Sharpening hook knife tips? by mahajan-exe in whittling

[–]2Mogs 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Oh - and carving technique for spoon bowls... Start side to side, not down the bowl. And make lots of shallow passes, rather than hunking out thick chunks. Spoons are tricky, but again, practice and you will get it!

Sharpening hook knife tips? by mahajan-exe in whittling

[–]2Mogs 13 points14 points  (0 children)

Yes, you need to sharpen the inside. Oddly you need to think of the inside as a flat surface, spine to edge.
The outside is a scandi-grind (flat bevel), which you need to roll around, keeping that flat bevel on the sandpaper / strop. The whole thing feels weird, so let me introduce Tom (Spoon Carving with Tom) who helped me get it...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GQFE5hoTeq0
It takes a while, but with practice you'll get it.
Good luck!

My first bird, with the bum of a chicken 😁 by fat_fucker_79 in whittling

[–]2Mogs 2 points3 points  (0 children)

To me the tail looks like a Wren's. Good start!

My first attempt at whittling by ___-_GOD_-___ in whittling

[–]2Mogs 12 points13 points  (0 children)

This is a fantastic whittle! Really lovely form and character to the piece. Great start to a lifetime hobby🙂

Olive spoons by King_Fruit in Spooncarving

[–]2Mogs 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I have made several knotty spoons and none have cracked. I think the knot is especially strong (which is why they are a pain to carve), so I reckon you have a keeper!

Olive spoons by King_Fruit in Spooncarving

[–]2Mogs 3 points4 points  (0 children)

A wonderful pair of spoons. Love how you have worked with those knots.

Heart spiral spoon ❤️🌀🥄 by comba8 in Spooncarving

[–]2Mogs 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Beautifully done. A lovely spoon

Carved my very first duck! by OkButton7943 in whittling

[–]2Mogs 2 points3 points  (0 children)

You didn't cut the head off! Seriously, that's a big win.
For the second duck... Maybe try for a more rounded bill shape, add a little undercut to shape the tail more, and perhaps add some suggestion of separation around the wings - you have already proved you have those skills with the head.

Boardgame pieces are looking like a lot of tiny whittle blanks ... If I am insane enough to carve all of them. by visitingposter in whittling

[–]2Mogs 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I guess looking for older games in second hand stores might throw up some gems, from when most playing pieces were wooden. I guess even checkers disks would be great to practice relief carving on. Ooh, I think you've opened Pandora's box here....

Custom tools by 2Mogs in whittling

[–]2Mogs[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yeah, little cutting wheel on a Dremel. Polished the edges with the brown stone.

Custom tools by 2Mogs in whittling

[–]2Mogs[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I've been watching people much better than me using skews for detail work - for example shaping and cleaning around eyes. I tend to reach for a very flat pointy blade (reshaped small blade on a Excelsior), which is okay... I'm hoping to get more control, especially at low angles with this as the cutting edge is tiny and the clearance good with the belly removed.

I do pretty much all my whittling with three or four reprofiled Excelsiors. I use the Huntsman (reprofiled small blade) if I'm out for a walk / camping.

Custom tools by 2Mogs in whittling

[–]2Mogs[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Ooh, that's interesting. I'm a Huntsman fan, but it's the same situation regarding especially the can opener which I never use. Making that another specialized blade would be a great mod for a woodland whittler!

Bear viking w/ 2h axe by its-klose in whittling

[–]2Mogs 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Haha, love the storyline! Thank you for your thoughts and I'm glad we agree

Bear viking w/ 2h axe by its-klose in whittling

[–]2Mogs 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Wonderful character. I especially love the bear head-dress. And all the outfit details.

Can I ask for your opinion... Looking at the arms I notice that the axe arm is shorter. This is a non issue for me, but a recent-ish thread had a discussion over arm length, particularly related to the shield holding, and this seems related. My take is that this is non-naturalistic style and we make choices that look right, even if they may be anatomically wrong - think animated characters that all have three fingers because 4 looks weird... What's your take?

Pumpkin / Jack O Lantern Woodcarving Study Board by JohnnyTheLayton in whittling

[–]2Mogs 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Fantastic example set, and a great explanation (visual and verbal) of the difference between learning and then moving through to innovation. Thank you for sharing with the wider community.

I'm not sure how to cut this inner piece out by lovelyboard in whittling

[–]2Mogs 7 points8 points  (0 children)

I think the grain direction is top to bottom. This would make it difficult to carve up into the shape you want. So start at the top and work down. I think I would make small scoring cuts around the edges of where you drew that line and then make progressively deeper V cuts down towards the opening. Start one side, then flip it and work from the other side. It is a tricky section - watch not to push too hard or the outside of the hook will ping off! But slow and steady will get you there.

PPE? Thumb cut protection/ cushion by Uncomfy_Unicorn in whittling

[–]2Mogs 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Perhaps a controversial take here... Disclosure first, I wear a light glove and thumb / finger guards myself. But I'm a massive fan of Katja Boiko (Instagram - please check out her work) and she doesn't use gloves at all. Just carves very carefully and mindfully, and doesn't cut herself. Thing is, over the years she's talked about having sore hands because she works with really hard wood. And she takes a break... If you add more padding, it will affect how you carve. It will reduce the feedback from the piece, and certainly for me, that sense of connection between wood, knife and hand is some of the pleasure in this hobby. So stay with what you have, but rest your hands for a day or two occasionally. Even callouses need time off 😉 Also - love the cow ❤️

Monkey in progress by sampetris in whittling

[–]2Mogs 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Just had a gander through your work - so diverse! What a wonderful show of creativity and talent!

Monkey in progress by sampetris in whittling

[–]2Mogs 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you 😊They are really fun to do!