Carving tools?

[Matthew Lau]

I just had some input from Tristan regarding carving tools.
I'd like to check with the rest of MIMF.

In two weeks, I'll be taking a break from dentistry.
I'd like to work on some carved electric instruments, and possibly a mandolin / violin.

What tools would you recommend?

Additionally, has anyone used unconventional tooling?
I've been reading the Courtnall book, and I'm envisioning the shaping operations being done with tools like adzes, crooked knives (ala pacific northwest), and Japanese fingerplanes. Anyone do any of this?

-Matt

[Eric Baack]

a router is handy for roughing out a lot of material fast. Especially if you have a means to hold it above the workpiece.

[Charlie Schultz]

Seems I saw an article in one of the woodworking magazines a while ago where the guy was actually using dental tools (high speed drills and burrs) to do incredibly detailed carving. So you should be all set, no??

As far as general purpose carving chisels, I like the Pfeil tools, in particular the fishtail variety (and they seem to come sharper than, e.g., Two Cherrys). But at $30-$50 a pop, they add up fast!

[Bob Gramann]

I found this http://www.woodcraft.com/product/200486 ... plane.aspx very useful carving a mandolin top and bottom. The handle on it is useless. I cut it off about halfway up, drilled it, and attached to to a much longer handle that I turned. That made it a wonderful tool. I bought a double-curved bottom finger plane (with a palm extension) from Lee Valley tools http://www.leevalley.com/US/Wood/page.a ... at=1,41182 for the finer work. To finish it off, I used a scraper. The Carruth scraper from StewMac https://www.stewmac.com/shop/Tools/Scra ... xsr=264478 is well worth the expense. There are other ways to do it, but I found these tools to be sufficient and even pleasurable to use. And each is well worth its cost.

[David King]

My favorite carving gouge was one I made from an old Swedish file. I buff it regularly with rouge on a hard buff and that keeps it razor sharp.
I did a lot of the shaping with a 4-1/2" right angle grinder.
There's always the chainsaw disc from katools.com if you are in a big hurry to remove material.

[Arnt Rian]

A Wagner safe-t planer in a drill press is pretty efficient for outside curves. Planes and scrapers (check out Al Carruth's scraper, sold by SM) cleans up things, and then a drill press with a depth stop to drill a bunch of guide holes on the inside, before hogging out most of the rest with a carving spoon. Some more scraping, and finally sanding to finish it off.

[Jim McConkey]

For mandolins and fiddles, I rough out the tops like Arnt with drill press and stop, and rough clean out with gouges. Those little (2-3 cm) Ibex planes are indispensable for final carving. Scrapers to finish.

[Matthew Lau]

Sounds like a plan.

I'll be slowly building up a tool set over the next year.

[Gilbert Fredrickson]

Read George Buchanan book Making Stringed Instruments for traditional carving methods. It may be the single greatest book ever written. Traditional Woodworker has a good selection of small adzes. Woodcraft has scorps and such. Woodcraft and Traditional Woodworker may be the two greatest tools stores in the history of all mankind. Lee Valley and Diefenbacher are also heroic in their line of hand carving tools.

[Chris Paulick]

You might check and see if there are any YouTube videos from violin makers carving tops and see what they use. I'm pretty sure there are some. But I'm pretty sure it's the same as the others said they use. But still good to see it being done. There are a few violin makers tool supply stores on the net. You can get things there too. Finger planes, scrapers and knives and gouges. The one thing I learned about sharpened factory gouges is that the come with a cut angle that is too high. You will do better to re-sharpen the gouges to around 15 - 20 degree cutting angle with a secondary bevel . I'm assuming when you say carving you are talking about carving/shaping the top and back plates . The advantage of a fishtail gouge over a straight gouge is that they are lighter and the fishtail has a pointed corner that allows you to get into tight corners because it isn't a 90 like the straight gouge. You wouldn't want a fishtail for heavy mallet work removing large amounts of wood.
watch lot of sharpening youtubes and Chris Pye has a website that cost about $10 a month and you can quit whenever you like that is about woodcarving but you can have a look at his videos on sharpening gouges and carving technic which is worth the $10. Mary May also has a carving site too. She has a good lesson on carving a relief of a large donut which will teach you about being aware of grain direction which will apply to using fingure planes on a top too. I don't remember the name of the British guy who has a good video on sharpening planes.

[Andrew Mowry]

Bob, nice modification of that pullshave. I have one and love it, except for the handle. In fact, I wrote a review of for American Luthiery several years ago, and the handle was my one gripe.

[Jason Rodgers]

I'll second Andrew's praise of your spoon handle, Bob. I bought one years ago with an idea to modify the handle. That looks quick and easy.

Another example of folks doing their own take on plate carving tools is found in a picture on page 16 of AL 114 of Stephen Marchione using a "whaling harpoon, I mean a big fishtail gouge." (Quotes, James Condino.) The handle on that thing is like 3 feet long!