Beginning Carvers Supplies:
The following items are recommended as the basic
requirements for a person that is beginning to carve. They are listed in
order by the importance or necessity of use in carving. If you would like
to call our customer service desk, (217-529-4123), we will help you with
your selection. We are carvers ourselves and we make recommendations based
on our years of experience and our experience of what works and what does
not.
1.
Safety
Supplies -- We recommend that all carvers should consider the
use of a safety glove or at least a thumb guard.
2. All woodcarvers need a
knife. We recommend the American made general carving
knife with either the 1-1/2" or 1-7/8" blade. The knife has a slim handle
that many people prefer.
Catalog number: HCK102 - 1-1/2" blade ... $13.95
or HCK102L - 1-7/8" blade ... $13.95
Even though they are more expensive, some hand made knives
are excellent choices. A quality carving tool is always worth the
investment. The
Helvie knives are very good knives and are sharp like surgical
scalpels. These knives have Pakawood handles
and are available in four different shaped handles and three
blade lengths and five different shapes. The large handles are available in
either finger grip or plain oval shapes with either 1-7/8" or 1-1/2" long
blades. The small handles are either a slim pencil style or a tapered style
that tapers down toward the blade.
3. Woodcarving gouges are a must for almost all projects. We recommend
starting with
Harmen
gouges with palm handles that fit nicely in the hand and have a
flat side that prevents them from rolling off a table or bench. These gouges
are available in either a "standard" or "miniature" size. The miniature
tools are frequently used for fine detail work, but the main tools you will
use are in the standard size set. If you are going to buy only one set, go
with the standard size set. Straight handles are available for those carvers
that prefer them over the palm style.
SP117 Standard size with palm handles
$45.95
SP117M Miniature size with palm handles
45.95
SP116 Standard size with straight
handles 45.95
SP116M Miniature size with straight handles
45.95
4. A larger palm handled gouge will be an asset in removing large amounts of
wood in a short time to rough-out your carving. We recommend either the 1/2"
- #9, 5/8" - #7, or 3/4" - #7 with palm handles.
LP5009 1/2" - #9 gouge $14.95
LP6257 5/8" - #7 gouge 17.95
LP7507 3/4" - #7 gouge 17.95
5. Tool
rolls are a safe and easy way to store and protect your carving
tools. Either the Wood is Good brand or Mel's Tools Rolls will do the Job.
The above listed Harmen gouges will fit in the 6 inch tool roll.
6. Sharpening
supplies are just as important as the tools. Not only are
sharp tools required for quality results, but more people are cut from dull
tools than with sharp ones. We recommend the Arkansas Tri-Hone - coarse,
medium and fine stones mounted on a frame for use. We prefer the 8 inch
Tri-hone over the 4 inch but either will do good job. A strop with an extra
fine abrasive is required to "polish off" the burrs left from working on
stones.
TRI-4 Tri-Hone 4 inch
$29.95
TRI-8 Tri-Hone 8 inch
39.95
SOIL-4 Honing oil
4.95
ST034 Knife strop
9.95
TL0150 Jewelers
rouge strop compound
4.50
7. Books, patterns and other reference materials. There are three
basic types of books available - the general reference book, the
step-by-step book that details how to carve one or two projects, and books
of patterns only. We recommend a book like the
WOODCARVING: the Beginners Guide -
Wheeler and Hayward - good basic information on
tools, woods, painting and finishing. For the step-by-step books and pattern
books, there are a wide selection available and it will be your choice based
on your own interests in subject material for carving. Good authors are Tom
Wolfe, Helen Gibson, Kelly Stadelman, and Cleve Taylor -
Click here for a list of their books as well as
some other step-by-step titles. Click
here for a list of very good books for
those starting out in carving.
8. Wood!!! We recommend either basswood or butternut as a good
wood for carving. The basswood is quite soft and has a consistent grain
structure that is very consistent to work with. Butternut is reasonably
soft and since it is a member of the walnut family it has very beautiful
grain. We carry a good selection of prime top quality of both woods in many
sizes.
9. For chip carving, we recommend the
Wayne Barton
Knives - the cutting knife and the stab knife.
Wayne's
new deluxe knives have slightly larger handles and the cutting knife
has an increased angle on the blade - a definite improvement
over older style knives..
The above items are almost a must to begin carving and will provide
the tools necessary for many carving projects. As your abilities progress
you will find the need to add other items to your "tool box."
10. For larger carving you will want to use heavy gouges
and a mallet. The Ashley Iles
gouges and
Wood-Is-Good
mallets are excellent. Ashley Iles gouges are known
world-wide. They are hand forged in England from top grade English steel,
and are sharpened and honed to a carving ready edge. The Wood-Is-Good
mallets are made with industrial grade urethane heads in 12, 20, and 30
ounce head weights. These mallets have a resilient head for long life.
11. Woodburners are used for a variety of purposes: hair
and beards on humans, hair on animals, and detailing feathers on birds and
ducks. When you are ready for a woodburner, consider the features of the
burners on the market. The simplistic pen type burners that are available at
arts and craft shops usually have only one temperature setting - too hot -
and the burning tip selection is very limited. The better units have
variable temperature controls and a very wide selection of tips. We
recommend the
Nibsburner brand of burners. These are quality units and are a
very good value for the investment. Four units are now available with power
ranges from 50 to 145 watts. When you buy, make sure your unit has the
following features:
A- Ample power;
B- Variable temperature control;
C- Interchangeable tips. Some manufactures permanently mount all tips in the
handpieces. This adds to the cost of additional tips;
D- Cords that are separate from the handpieces. This is another way for
manufactures to raise the price of additional handpieces.
12. Power carving equipment. Many carvers enjoy carving with power.
Roughing out a carving can be accomplished much quicker with power, and some
detail work is so much easily performed with power. The
Foredom units have
1/6 horsepower reversible direction motors that hang over your head or can
sit on your carving bench. There are handpieces that attach to the 39"
flexible shaft from the motor. The motor has a foot control with on-off and
variable speed control. The smaller hand-held units may cause more vibration
than the Foredom units. Hand-held battery powered unit do not have the
power for extended or heavy usage. We recommend the Foredom units since
they have reversible motors, ample power, run and cut smooth and have
handpieces that will accept 1/4" diameter shank cutters that can rough-out
work much faster.
Date of last modification:
Friday April 18, 2008 11:54:50 AM
