CottonWood Spirit Lesson - 3


Choosing the Proper Woodcarving Knives and Taking Care of Them


Woodcarving knives are tools to round and smooth the piece of wood for carving. These knives are the most crucial part of the woodcarving task. Different types of knives are responsible for different types of curving. A properly designed knife can handle any carving.

A carver needs to choose his knives carefully. The principal features of the wood carving knife are that defines its usability for a task is the blade. Blades can be short or long based on the delicacy or roughness of the task. Apart from that, the blade should also be sharp. The high level of sharpness determines the ease of use. Most of the time, the blade is sharpened professionally.

Another decisive criterion is the grip of the knives. This is ensured by the proper shape and length of the handle. A misfit handle can make a carver tired extremely quickly. The ergonomic design of the handle is desirable. Because each knife of the wood carving tools is slightly different, the carver has to make sure he gets the one that is best for his hand.

The choice during the buying is guided by the carver's choice and the task he is going to accomplish with the knives. However, there are tasks that a carver must do after buying the knives. These tasks include proper care of the knives as well as safety in using them.

First, the wood carving tools are well separated from each other. This is because; keeping them together in a random fashion may cause one to bang against another knife. This friction may make the edges blunt. The blunt edges make the carving task extremely painful and inaccurate. Moreover, the blunt edge may force the carver to use unnecessarily high pressure for the carving. This is dangerous in case the knife slips and hurt the carver. Therefore, a blunt or dull edge of the woodcarving knife is not desirable. The wood carving tools can be hung up separately or can be kept organized in separate compartments.

Another process is to sharpen the edges regularly. The sharp edge can carve woods easily and with proper accuracy. For inexperienced or beginner level carvers, the wood carving knife is best to be sharpened by a professional. For an experienced carver, proper wood carving power tools need to be used to sharpen the knives. There are few wood carving power tools for sharpening a carving knife. A sharpening stone is one of these wood carving power tools. There are two types of sharpening stones - the harder and softer stones. The stones need oil and water respectively. The blade needs to be repeatedly drawn across the stone until it becomes acutely sharp. The powder grinder uses motored wheels that rotate. The blades need to be held against the wheel for sharpening. Safety glasses should be used while using a power grinder. Lastly, you can use leather for blade sharpening tasks. The leather's exceptionally fine abrasive surface is highly effective for sharpening a blade.

The blades should be maintained in a proper environment. The wood carving knife should not be exposed to heat, and cold. The moisture level should not also be extreme.

The proper care of the woodcarving knives is critical for an excellent piece of carving task. A skilful carver knows that it is as essential to take care of the wood carving knife as it is to perform the actual task. A beginner carver also needs to realize this and start learning the caring skill for his tool. Choosing the right wood carving per tool, together with proper care for it, will ensure high-quality carving work.
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