Gouges
A gouge is basically a chisel with a curved cutting edge. There are three variables :-
Shaft - Straight, Curved or Spoon
Width - the width of the cutting edge
Sweep - the curve on the cutting edge, from almost flat to U shaped (no.s 1-9)
Also, there are small palm-held versions of the above, generally known as Blockcutters.
No-one could own all the possible permutations, so start with an all-purpose selection
eg. Straight ¾" no.4, Straight 1½" no.5, and a Curved 3/8" no.8.
General rules of usage are to try to match the gouge sweep to the curve you are carving, and always use the widest gouge you can,
changing to smaller widths as the space gets tighter. Curved gouges are great for scooping out hollows, and straight gouges are best
for use with a mallet. Block cutters are good for fine detail.
Knives
My favourite type of carving knife is the Swedish "Sloyd" design, with a 2" blade. The curved blade is long and pointed enough to
get into the tightest corners, and the shape of the handle lets you make a real fist round it so you put a lot of power into the cuts.
The Flexcut Pelican is a wierd looking design, but is suprisingly good for detail. Some of the chic Japanese knives look similar
to the Sloyd design, but not as chunky. One for the ladies perhaps.
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Beware.... Tool suppliers often put "Chip Carving knives" in with other carving tools. These have either flat or concave blades and are
unsuitable for anything except chip carving (engraving flat surfaces).
Rifflers and Rasps
A riffler is a small curved file with various shapes at each end, designed for smoothing out small curved places. The most useful shapes are
the Ratstail and Ski shapes.
Rasps are similar but much bigger, for quick basic shaping of flat or convex surfaces.
Power tools
You can save a lot of time by attacking your log with a chainsaw. This is a noisy, oil splattered and potentialy violent assualt, but
with a bit of practice you can do your early "roughing out" in hours rather than days.
Petrol chainsaws are more powerful than electric ones but the 2-stroke exhaust fumes make them unsuitable for indoor use.
Don't be blinded by technical specs; to use a chainsaw as a carving tool you have to be able to manoeuvre it, so weight and balance
override any other consideration. Go to a DIY store, pick one up then flick it around like Zorro. Now, imagine that plugged in...
An angle grinder is useful for scooping out, especially the Arbortech which is lightweight and comes with an
extension arm and a 2" cutter, enabling a lot more control. Even more violent than the chainsaw. The instructions say keep both hands on
your tool. They're not kidding.
Most people already have an electric drill in their DIY box. Just get a selection of sanding discs and your off.
