Question for you carvers.......re: draw knives

John L

John L

Well-known member
I have started purchasing some tools to carve my first decoy and need some advise choosing a draw knife. If I were to get one draw knife, what would you guys suggest to start with. Folding handles? How long of a blade and depth? Curved or flat blade etc, etc...
Thanks for the help
 
John,
I have 3 draws. Two were purchased at an antique store and one is the flexcut drawknife. My favorite is the 8" Coach Makers Draw from the Antique store. It has a slight curve which is really good for a slicing cut. The blade is about 1" deep. It is just like blade number 513 in the picture below. My flexcut is good for tight areas and it has a curved blade. I have a straight edge 11" draw, but I find it is the last I go to (its kind of like 511 below). I don't like the folding handles since I want to maintain more control and not lose leverage on an angle cut. I paid $15 for the two antique blades and $30 for the flexcut (Rockler coupon). A quick ebay search will bring up plenty of draw knives.

Hum117.jpg

 
I have a couple and am just starting to try to use them consistently. I recently bought one of the folding drawknives at a local flea market for something like $7. Problem is that somebody must've tried to sharpen it with a wheel that had a nick or somehting. It's pretty messed up. Does anybody know where I can get it resurrected? Somebody who can file/sharpen it and get it back to a consistent edge? Right now it's like a fine serrated edge.
 
I think the smaller and thinner the better
I bought a small carving draw knife from Veritus and it is easy to use
and cuts smoothly
the bigger draw knives IMO require to much force and don't have the control of a small one
 
I have a few draw knives. I can tell you one thing for sure.... The sharpest one is the best one!

As with all carving tools I guess.

We go to a local flea market in the summertime with the kids and there is always a wide variety of old draw knives for a couple of bucks. Even the rough ones can be shaped up with a little work on the wheel.
 
Knots Knives in Maryland makes some great drawknives for decoy carving...............any of the ones in the picture will do the job as well. The key..............SHARP TOOLS. You can remove a ton of material FAST with a draw knife. Next tool....invest in a spoke shave!
 
513 is a nice shape. If you can get that slight curve in the blade like that it will help you slice with the drawknive. The other very important thing is to get a blade that is flat that will allow you to slice. There are drawknives out there that are a flat blade and then rise up on the back part of the blade. They do not allow a smooth slicing motion when your wood of cork hits the rise on the back part of the blade. The next thing that was said before is get a good spokeshave which is very good advice they will make a great smooth surface for you. Good luck. Hank
 
I'll second the Knotts Knives Drawknife, I bought one and have not regretted it since, i am a new carver as well and this tool is a must, as well as a spoke shave.
 
I'll recommend two, though i haven't used either. But save your money and buy hand forged! Makes a huge difference, plus you are supporting a craftsman like yourself.

Barr tool in McCall ID has a new chair makers drawknife on his website. Looks very nice. Just google the name.

Dick Anderson of Savage Forge makes a drawknife. Tom Newell can probably chime in on Dicks tools with more knowledge than just about anyone. You have to call him as he has no website to my knowledge.

Hope this helps.

Abe
 
John - Great question. I use my great grandad's. It's a curved blade and probably 18-20 inches long from handle to handle. That rascals carved well over 5,000 decoys. My suggestion is, curved blade and the longer the better...

Good carving and God bless!
 
Thanks for all the feedback guys. I went on Ebay and just did not know what would be best. I'll go through some of the listings and see what looks like a good fit.
 
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