The SAK Whittling Club

[Smaug]

I was on Amazon, cruising the Vic SAKs. One of the 'You might like' items at the bottom was a The Little Book of Whittling, by Ernest Lubkemann. ($10) I skimmed the excerpts and found that the author uses a Tinker. The projects in this book are practical items. His other book is full of decorative roosters and such.

I thought maybe some other folks here would be ready to take it to the next level. We could do it together and use this thread to log our progress, and share photos.

I also ordered a Hiker just for the job. $21. I thought the saw would come in handy, not only for harvesting the wood, but maybe also certain roughing-out cuts. Lots of whittlers use a band saw for this, which is ideal. But using the SAK for the whole project would be more pure or something.

The Vic Pocket Pal might also be ideal, along with the Recruit. (as was mentioned in other threads)

While I'm waiting for that to arrive, I have an old, beat-up Tinker I'll start with. Any SAK you have that you want to use is of course cool.

The cool thing about SAKs is that they are inexpensive enough to buy and not worry about "ruining" it to re-shape the blade. The author of the aforementioned book, for example, recommends filing the small blade into a Wharnecliffe shape. Another mod that might be good would be to re-shape the can opener to grind off the screwdriver tip and make a push-cutting blade. Or if a Wenger is used, sharpen up the can opener to be a pull-cutting blade. (and maybe the bottle opener to be a push-cutting blade/chisel?)

Other items that may come in handy:

• A thumb guard, for the pull cuts. $1.50
  
• Cut-resistant gloves, for the hand holding the work. $8.47
  
• I'm thinking about this book on how to carve tree spirits in hiking sticks. $10.
  

Other useful links:

• Thread on Modded SAK for Whittling
  
• Thread on SAK for Whittling
  
• Web page on how to get started in whittling.
  
• Another book of whittling projects.

Anyone else want to take up a hobby with his/her SAK?

[nuphoria]

Already guilty of this

I'm not very good at it, but I've made a few walking sticks whilst sitting around outside in the summer.

[Smaug]

Already guilty of this

I'm not very good at it, but I've made a few walking sticks whilst sitting around outside in the summer.

Hey great, the second member. (or maybe the 0th?)

Care to post any pix to get folks motivated?

[nuphoria]

Well, no pics of my sticks around, but here's the SAK I made to do it with!

The Carver:





There's a very old thread somewhere about it, but it was basically a salvaged and resharpened small blade, a sharpened chisel and a few other basic tools I find useful for wood bothering

[volbu]

Count me in!
Four days ago I received the Little Book and now I m bugged from the corkscrew on my tinker since it s much worst than the philips, so I m ready to order a Hiker as well!

[Smaug]

Count me in!
Four days ago I received the Little Book and now I m bugged from the corkscrew on my tinker since it s much worst than the philips, so I m ready to order a Hiker as well!

Judging from some of the comments in the threads I linked, it seems like the Recruit is a good choice, if you can go without the saw. It has no back tools, just smooth, flush springs. I have an Economy Series Recruit from the mid-80s.

No one mentioned the Pocket Pal, but that would have the same advantage, but no option to adapt other tools for whittling. I may order a Recruit too, since they're only $10 or so.

[LooseNut]

Great idea, i had thought about taking this up before but never tried.

This youtube video is what put me thinking of it before.
It's of a man carving a net needle with almost all the tools on a standard Vic farmer:

"www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ts0dfN3t0nY"

(Mods; if I shouldnt be posting links please let me know and I'll remove, cheers)

[captain spaulding]

I might have to give the egg a try and see if it interest me. I used to whittle sticks into sharp points as a child as well as just playing around a bit with whittling wood. I would love to give it a try as now and see if anything comes of it. The "ball in a box" piece or the "wood chains" would be extremely cool to make. 

[J Mackrel Jones]

Wood Ambassador (scissors left uncut) carved with SAK.  The green ComTek a separate project entire.

[kirk13]

I;ve started doing a bit of whittling too,but I'm using a Rough Rider Whittler to do it

[Gareth]

Great idea, i had thought about taking this up before but never tried.

This youtube video is what put me thinking of it before.
It's of a man carving a net needle with almost all the tools on a standard Vic farmer:

"www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ts0dfN3t0nY"

(Mods; if I shouldnt be posting links please let me know and I'll remove, cheers)

not a problem at all.   Though the big lesson from the vid is; try not to saw the top of your thumb.

I've done a few pieces from the little book and, like Nuphoria, made my own SAK for the purpose.

[Syph007]

Building a SAK whittler is on my todo list, but I really want to include a crook knife preferably stainless to match the SAK stainless blades.  I haven't found one yet to use for the mod and my skills aren't there yet to make and heat treat my own, but one day it'll happen.  I need the hook shaped blade to do bowls/spoons unless there is another technique for that?

[LooseNut]

Great idea, i had thought about taking this up before but never tried.

This youtube video is what put me thinking of it before.
It's of a man carving a net needle with almost all the tools on a standard Vic farmer:

"www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ts0dfN3t0nY"

(Mods; if I shouldnt be posting links please let me know and I'll remove, cheers)

not a problem at all.   Though the big lesson from the vid is; try not to saw the top of your thumb.

I've done a few pieces from the little book and, like Nuphoria, made my own SAK for the purpose.
(Image removed from quote.)
(Image removed from quote.)

Gareth, sound for that.
By the way is that a Hiker in the pic with the blade layer and keyring removed?

[Smaug]

Great idea, i had thought about taking this up before but never tried.

This youtube video is what put me thinking of it before.

I think that video was in one of the other threads. It is really neat, how a SAK can be a "multi-modal whittler." These are things that would be impossible to do with only blades, right? Or at least a lot more time-consuming.

On the other hand, if we use blades other than just side cutting, it becomes more like carving than whittling. Or half way between the two, right? SAKs don't have gouges or anything, but chisels are available.

So we will have more capability than a traditional whittling pocket knife, but without going so far as to use specialized carving tools. This is going to be fun.

[Smaug]

Wood Ambassador (scissors left uncut) carved with SAK.  The green ComTek a separate project entire.

Very nice work on both of them! 

[Smaug]

I;ve started doing a bit of whittling too,but I'm using a Rough Rider Whittler to do it

You're fired.

Seriously though, why handicap yourself with a traditional whittling knife? Maybe you can at least give a SAK a try?

Otherwise, I vote that we can accept your work, but we will just feel a little pity that you are choosing to handicap yourself in this way.

(now that I've said that, you'll probably display some really outstanding work that none of us can keep up with, hehehe)

I've only ever whittled points and blades on sticks as a kid too.

I think my first project is going to be the spreader/spatula to get to the bottom of mayo jars better.

[Smaug]

I've done a few pieces from the little book and, like Nuphoria, made my own SAK for the purpose.

Very nice work Gareth. I'm not sure my first ones will come out that nice, but it won't be for lack of effort!

Nice job on the mod too. I bet you were tempted to replace the Phillips with a chisel too...

[Smaug]

I need the hook shaped blade to do bowls/spoons unless there is another technique for that?

No, you don't need a hook or gouge. There's a technique to it. You kind of start in with diagonal cuts. I think the author recommends roughing it out, then putting some sandpaper on the end of another stick to smooth it out.

Take a look at Amazon's free reading sample of the first book I linked; it is in there. (or at least my sample's was. I don't know if they show everyone the same sample pages)

This is the difference between whittling and carving: With whittling, one only uses a regular knife. They usually seem to have short, straight edges coming to a point. Usually Wharnecliffe shape. We therefore have to work a little harder to accomplish the same thing a carver could accomplish with his specialized tools.

Maybe this will turn out to be a "gateway" drug for some of us?

On one hand, whittling gives some pride that we can accomplish something with such a humble tool. On the other hand, it is also a handicap, as digging material out is a lot slower this way.

Even so, some whittlers start by cutting a blank with a bandsaw, to save a lot of that roughing work. I've watched a few whittling videos on YouTube now, and with a sharp knife and the right kind of wood. (softish, with tight grain, e.g. Basswood) it goes AMAZINGLY quickly.

[Smaug]

Gareth, sound for that.
By the way is that a Hiker in the pic with the blade layer and keyring removed?

I'm not Gareth, but you're right. Gareth gave the details in one of the previous whittling threads I linked on Pg. 1.

****

I went for a walk in the woods today, looking for stock with my (new) Soldier on my hip. I found and harvested some specimens. (all deadfall and small trees the park district had cut down to keep the wood chip trail clear)

With any luck, I'll get started tomorrow on a 3-minute owl or 5-minute wizard. I'm sure either of them will take me a heck of a lot longer than that, though. I'm no Michaelangelo...

[Smaug]

Not to get off topic and back on SAKs again, but mightn't this little guy turn out to be a real over-achiever here, despite the small grip size?

Minichamp II, image courtesy of SAKWiki


Now here, we've already got the right size blade(s), and one of them is a Wharnecliffe.

We've got the "orange peeler" which would also have it's uses in whittling.

The "cuticle pusher" already has a bit of a dished shape to it, to follow the curves of a fingernail. I figure that guy could be sharpened up and made into a gouge.

The pen could be used to draw the patterns on the workpiece.

Not sure about the rest of it. But I think there's potential there.

[Spork, Lord of Lime Jello!]

I've used a modified MFV blade to carve spoon bowls...sharpened further up around the tip to the centerline.

[Smaug]

I've used a modified MFV blade to carve spoon bowls...sharpened further up around the tip to the centerline.

What's MFV?

Good tip. I bet lots of us have SAKs (that we inherited of course) with broken-off tips that would be perfect for this.

That's a nice-looking spoon. I hope my first one turns out that well...

[Thisjk38]

I a very interested in starting to whittle. Can anyone describe or share a link of how to mod the small blade into a Wharnecliffe. Will I be shortening it for the new shape? What is the advantage of the Wharnecliffe over the sheeps foot blade found on my electrician?

[Smaug]

I a very interested in starting to whittle. Can anyone describe or share a link of how to mod the small blade into a Wharnecliffe. Will I be shortening it for the new shape?

If you go to the link to the book in my first post, then click "Look Inside" you can read the pages in the book where he says how and why to change that blade into a Wharnecliffe shape.

What is the advantage of the Wharnecliffe over the sheeps foot blade found on my electrician?

The Wharnecliffe's sharper point will probably make it easier to cut around corners and in tight spots. The sheepsfoot might do OK though. I'd certainly try that out before grinding it down, as a Wharnecliffe blade is not as tough. If you're going to file or grind a blade down, I wouldn't do the Electrician's.

Basically, all you're going to do is to file it mostly flat on the cutting edge; remove the belly. Then, touch up the spine of the blade a bit until it comes to a sharp tip.

[Smaug]

Project #1:

I'm going to do the spreader, which Gareth has shown us his fine example of on Reply #10 on Pg. 1. That seems like a good staring point, because it is most similar to the sticks I whittled as a kid. With that one, we could probably even do it without the book.

Project #2:
Next, I'm going to try Will's 3 minute owl:
http://whittlingwithwill.blogspot.com/2011/05/three-minute-owl.html

How about you all? Are you going to join me or do you have something else in mind?

[Spork, Lord of Lime Jello!]

I've used a modified MFV blade to carve spoon bowls...sharpened further up around the tip to the centerline.

What's MFV?

My First Victorinox

[Styerman]

I do it a bit , usually use my Handyman . Results aren't all that great , but sometimes quite functional .

Chris

[82brutus]

Count me in.  I typically use a hiker or tinker for whittling or woodcarving if I just pick something up randomly or want to carry something in my pocket.

I do have another homemade detail blade and some scandis that I use for roughing just because of hand comfort. 

[Thisjk38]

I a very interested in starting to whittle. Can anyone describe or share a link of how to mod the small blade into a Wharnecliffe. Will I be shortening it for the new shape?

If you go to the link to the book in my first post, then click "Look Inside" you can read the pages in the book where he says how and why to change that blade into a Wharnecliffe shape.

What is the advantage of the Wharnecliffe over the sheeps foot blade found on my electrician?

The Wharnecliffe's sharper point will probably make it easier to cut around corners and in tight spots. The sheepsfoot might do OK though. I'd certainly try that out before grinding it down, as a Wharnecliffe blade is not as tough. If you're going to file or grind a blade down, I wouldn't do the Electrician's.

Basically, all you're going to do is to file it mostly flat on the cutting edge; remove the belly. Then, touch up the spine of the blade a bit until it comes to a sharp tip.

I looked through the book but couldn't find anything. Is there a page number?

[Smaug]

I looked through the book but couldn't find anything. Is there a page number?

It wasn't the book I thought. It is on Pg. 2 of Whittling Twigs and Branches, which is available in the free sample.

Sorry for the bad reference.