Advice on spoon making ?

[David.s]

hey guys i got my frosts spoon knife and mora delivered(picking it up at the post office tomorrow) just wondering whats the best type of wood to use for carving spoons, bowls etc.

also is there a good site or book for identifying plants trees etc, i know there are loads of choise but just wondering what you guys use/recomend.

will put pics up with my attemps.

 

[leon-b]

use live green wood as it is alot easier to carve than seasoned wood
leon

 

[billycan]

The choice of wood depends entirely on what you want to use. Clearly there are some species you wouldn't want to use as they are toxic. Try Sycamore, Acer pseudoplatanus or Sweet Chestnut Castanea sativa to start with, both fairly light easy woods and both can be found fairly commonly.
As a general rule, all fruit woods are good, very dense and hard and safe for eating utensils, but maybe not something to start on immediately.

I got some blackthorn Prunus spinosa today and it is seriously hard, the grain is so close and it has a nice colour.

 

[Ed]

use live green wood as it is alot easier to carve than seasoned wood

I agree in general, but some woods tend to split when drying (like holly). Chilean beech is nice as is willow.... birch is another. Oak can be really hard when it starts to dry ... I tried carving a oak burr bowl last year... fine for the first few days, but after it had dried a little it was a nightmare..... and still not finished


Ed

 

[leon-b]

yes holly can twist and split even when it is seasoned apparently
leon

 

[bushwacker bob]

I'd reccommend starting with Birch.It is easy to identify and easy to carve.
I manage to produce acceptable spoons from the stuff and I dont have a spoon or crook knife.If your bushcraft knife is sharp,you can hollow a reasonable bowl with the curved section of your blade.

 

[leon-1]

JP did a good tutorial you can find it here. I'll agree with the others about birch as it's quite a nice wood to carve.

 

[leon-b]

do you know what birch looks like ? it has white bark which has little bits of it falling off
leon