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Davis Brothers Handmade Custom #2A XL Traditional NW Woodcarving Crooked Knife
$ 20
- Description
- Size Guide
Description
Hello friends,This is a new Davis Brothers knife, a traditional Wood Carving Medium #2A XL Crook Knife.
With one of our Custom leaf shaped blades, it has additional length for reaching deeper into a carving. This leaf shape facilitates really fine shavings while also assisting more aggressive deeper cuts.
This is towards the medium/large end in our regular production, with a sturdy handle that fits neatly into your hand.
It's an A bend (slight
bend over front of blade)
. This curve is great at
fine work
while still capable of
getting out big chips and deep cuts.
This knife is not available from any other seller to my knowledge.
Crook knives are a specialty in the Pacific Northwest and are usually pretty hard to find, mostly made only by custom knife-makers.
This crook knife is based on designs used by carvers for hundreds of years. Crook knives are extremely versatile and will perform a multitude of tasks well. We make a wide selection of Crook or Crooked knives, Detail knives and Hook knives, as well as Chip Carving and Whittling knives.
WORKMANSHIP: Each knife is unique and hand crafted, with no automated processes used in the more than 30 machining, forging and woodworking tasks for each one. Some tool marks may be visible on the knives. I do not attain absolute machine-like perfection, but strive to combine creativity, beauty and utility. The look and feel of this tool when held is beautiful, smooth, and inspires the work at hand.
BLADE: It was made using 1095 high carbon blade steel, ground to shape then forged, bent, refined and hardened. It was then tempered to keep a durable, keen edge and is extremely sharp.
The shape of the blade facilitates very delicate depth control and very fine shavings, but will also dig deep when the angle of entry is increased.
HANDLE:
The handle is Teak from Thailand, with a milk chocolate brown color with darker grain patterns, including a burl figure, unusual in Teak.
This handle style has a really nice feel in your hand, and allows plenty of force to be used while still maintaining accurate control. It was made long enough for
occasional
two hand use (see photo). It is finished with hand rubbed Shellac, a benign finish that accents the color and grain and is very durable.
CONSTRUCTION: This knife is 8 3/4"overall, with a 2 5/8
" long blade that tapers from 1/2" over the length of the blade before coming to a point. The blade is set with epoxy and further secured with two bronze pins.
CARVING CHARACTERISTICS:
It is sized for medium to larger scale work, and can be used with a wide variety of woods and carving styles. This knife excels at sculptural uses, and is the one to go to for masks, bowls and similar projects.
The A bend is slightly bent over the front of the blade, and combined with the leaf shape, excels at finer shavings. It is large enough however, to take a bigger chip.
It works great at texturing, shaving and hollowing. You may be surprised by how much wood it will move. If only the tip is used, it will do quite intricate work, because of the pointed shape.
With a single bevel edge all the way around, this knife can be used with either hand, and cuts well either pushing or pulling both overhand and underhand.
The blade has plenty of strength for those tasks, but should not be used for prying. For best performance, when sharpening this tool it is important to leave the back side absolutely flat (no bevel on back side).
SHARPENING CROOK KNIVES: Having been asked many times, I will share some suggestions. In general if you have the implements to strop and hone gouges the same will work for crooked knives. These knives hold an edge well and should go through many many stroppings before needing to be honed.
Stropping the curved edge of a crook knife requires a curved strop. I use a couple that work great and are easy to make:
1) A closet dowel 1 1/4" diameter and about 1 1" long covered with smooth leather carefully glued in place.
2) A smaller, 3/4" dowel, covered with denim cloth ( which holds compound well) glued on.
I use white polishing or buffing compound on both (available in hardware stores or online). You may already have a preference for a particular compound, if so, use it instead.
Strop away from the edge, not towards it, and repeat 10 or 20 times or until the keen edge is restored. Strop only the top side ( the beveled side) to maintain the flat bottom side of the blade. If the bottom of the blade needs stropped eventually, then use leather on a flat surface.
Hone the blade only when absolutely necessary, if stropping no longer restores the edge. Use only very fine or ultra fine abrasives. As before, they must be rounded or curved. I use ceramic files, diamond hones, natural Arkansas slipstones and waterstones. All work, but keep them very fine to avoid scratches on the edge. Once again, touch up the flat bottom of the blade only enough to remove a wire edge if it forms when honing. Follow up any honing with a stropping to polish the edge.
SAFETY FIRST! : This blade is extremely sharp. Always be aware of where you are cutting, and do not put hands, fingers or other parts of your body in the path of the blade. Always wear a cut-resistant carving glove on the hand not holding the knife. And please keep this knife safely away from children.
SHIPPING AND CUSTOMER SERVICE: I have several auctions running this week , and will gladly combine shipping to save you money. Wait for the combined invoice if you have multiple purchases/wins. I offer a 30 day return policy and will personally work to resolve any issues. I take pride in my craftsmanship, and strive to please every Customer.