A Gouge for Spoon Carving

[rxh]

This is something I made earlier this year: a gouge intended for spoon carving, usable one handed. I had tried using ordinary straight gouges but found myself holding them by the steel part rather than the handle. The starting point was a rectangle of 1/8" thick gauge plate (O1 steel). I shaped the end by "heating and beating".

 

[rxh]

I smoothed the outside by filing.

 

[rxh]

I also formed the bevel by filing.

 

[rxh]

The rest of the shaping was done with hacksaw, files and a Dremel tool.

 

[RogerS]

That is rather beautiful :eusa-clap:

 

[rxh]

The finished article.

 

[rxh]

The handle is of apple wood, with brass ferrule.

 

[rxh]

That is rather beautiful :eusa-clap:

Thanks Roger.

 

[Cabinetman]

Superb work, almost too good for such a mundane thing as a spoon.

 

[rxh]

Superb work, almost too good for such a mundane thing as a spoon.

Thanks Ian - it can be used for other carving too

 

[PeteW]

Looks like a thing of beauty - and utility - to me. Well done :eusa-clap:

 

[AndyT]

Wow. Fascinating to learn that it's possible to make something like this without a lot of special tools, concave add-ons to the anvil etc.

When you say you got the end shaped by heating and beating, do you mean you were stretching the steel from the inside of the curve by hitting it with a ball pein hammer onto a flat surface, or have I imagined that bit wrong? Do you have any more action shots of that stage?

 

[MattS]

That’s a lovely looking gouge.

And a wooden spoon is far from mundane, a simple every day tool can be beautiful. Not to mention the health benefits of wood rather than metal or plastic

 

[AndyP]

Very nice.

I hope you will show us the spoons you make with it and how you go about doing so.

 

[Just4fun]

I got a tool for carving spoons in a box of old tools I bought from a flea market. I had no use for it so it sat around for a while. I just (this week) sharpened it and gave it to an elderly neighbour who has started making spatulas & the like, so he could add spoons to his repertoire.

The tool I had was oriented differently: the cutting edge was on the side like with a knife rather than on the end like a chisel, and you used it with a side-to-side motion rather than a fore & aft motion. Given that the spoon being carved would probably be held in the hand rather than a vice, the sideways approach seems inherently safer to me, but I have never tried making spoons so I could be wrong on that.

 

[Woodster]

Nice job on the gouge rxh.

The tool I had was oriented differently: the cutting edge was on the side like with a knife rather than on the end like a chisel, and you used it with a side-to-side motion rather than a fore & aft motion. Given that the spoon being carved would probably be held in the hand rather than a vice, the sideways approach seems inherently safer to me, but I have never tried making spoons so I could be wrong on that.

I’ve got one like that. They aren’t ideal for use on seasoned wood though, they’re much better on at least still partly green wood. I’ve got a couple like this.



I ended up getting one of these and it’s much better on dry wood.

https://www.cyclaireshop.co.uk/wood-car ... qaEALw_wcB

What I would like is a gouge like this but they aren’t cheap.

 

[rxh]

Thanks for all your comments.

AndyT - Yes, I shaped it on a flat anvil with a ball pein hammer. Occasionally I turned it on its side and struck a few blows on the edge to make the curvature tighter.

Andyp - here is a photo showing the gouge in use on a spoon resting on the bench. I think a board resting on the knees would also work.

Just4fun and Woodster - I have a couple of hook knives but haven't learned how to use them effectively.

 

[Pete Maddex]

Looks a useful tool for roughing out the bowl, can I suggest a scraper for smoothing, this one has 6 different radii so it fits into anywhere in the bowl, its a lot easer than a goose neck scraper.

Spoon and egg shaped scraper by Pete Maddex, on Flickr

Pete

 

[droogs]

Superb work, almost too good for such a mundane thing as a spoon.

Thanks Ian - it can be used for other carving too

Yeah, a big ladle or a spatula :lol:





Very nicely done Andy.

 

[rxh]

Looks a useful tool for roughing out the bowl, can I suggest a scraper for smoothing, this one has 6 different radii so it fits into anywhere in the bowl, its a lot easer than a goose neck scraper.

Spoon and egg shaped scraper by Pete Maddex, on Flickr

Pete

Thanks Pete, I'll make a scraper like that.

 

[Sheffield Tony]

Some interesting ideas here. I'd never thought of making a gouge that way, good idea. The scraper is similar to one I made from old saw plate - it works well, even on green wood where abrasives aren't great. Not that I'm much of a spoon carver.