Carving glove & knife

[Girk]

My 14 year old grandson has taken an interest in carving -- something I know little about.  What is the recommended knife and safety glove for a novice carver that age?  I've been informed by my daughter that I should not get him a knife without also getting a safety glove, so the glove recommendation is important.  Thanks.

[wood2woodknot]

If he is already interested, what does he already have and what kind of carving is he interested in doing? Whittling? Chip carving? Relief or flat work? Go from there. Needs are different for each.

First thoughts (because I have never used a glove or finger protector)..... Steel weave and cut-resistant gloves are available in restaurant supply stores, fishing headquarters (Bass Pro Shops, Cabela's, Walmart?), and tool stores (Woodcraft, Rockler, HD, Lowe's) for about $15-20 per glove. Can't say how good or how comfortable they are. Probably come in only one size - adult. There are also leather thumb/finger guards that slip on - and some carvers just wrap several layers of adhesive tape over their thumb or finger tips.

No comments on the many types of knives, except to say I would start with just a decent quality all-purpose knife and add more as skill and needs dictate. Add an inexpensive stone for sharpening (and teach him the age-old technique of spitting on the stone to lubricate it -- maybe best not to tell his mother about that part 
 
).

Hope some others chip in. Maybe add some help with books and videos for techniques.

[cbygeorge]

Carving gloves and thumb guards do come in different sizes.  There are also a lot of different knives available at reasonable prices.  It really doesn't cost a lot to get started.  Knowing what kind of carving he wants to get into would be helpful in narrowing down the choice.  There are also a lot of helpful tutorials online that would be helpful especially on sharpening.  Please let us know and more detailed advice can be provided.

Chuck

[JimBelair]

For the best protection you want a stainless mesh glove, like meat cutters wear.  Lee Valley and others carry them.  Also available is a Kevlar glove, considerably less expensive, but only protect against slashing type cuts, not stabs.

[Girk]

Currently my grandson is just using a pocket knife to whittle.  I'm not sure he (nor I) know enough about carving to really know much about other options.  But he is quite artistic and rather persistent, so I suspect he may become interested in other kinds of carving once he has a decent knife to work with and watches some tutorials.  I'm looking at a flexcut knife, and I especially appreciate knowing about the differences between types of gloves.  Thanks for the replies!  Much appreciated!

[Phil S.]

If he'd like to stick with a pocket knife, one I've always been interested in is the Oar knife -



An inexpensive fixed blade knife are the Mora carving knives -



They come in a variety of sizes.  They also make a hook blade knives that some carvers find handy.

One down side of the Mora knives is that they need some sharpening before they work well.  That's not an issue with knives from Del Stubbs.  He makes very good knives for a very reasonable price that are ready to use on arrival -



The drawback to Del's knives is that there is a lot of demand for them which translates into a bit of a wait (a coupl of months right now) to get a knife after you order one.

Any of these knives would work well for carving.  There's a link to a source for each of these knives, but the new software doesn't highlight them very well so you might overlook them if you wanted to find more info on these various knives.

Good luck-

Phil

[Girk]

Thanks, Phil.  Helpful information, and the Oar knife looks nice, though a bit pricey.  I looked at the Mora knives, but he would like to take it with him when they travel, etc., so instead I've been looking at this Flexcut knife --  Flexcut Detail Jack .  Gets decent reviews, and would be portable. 
Thanks!  ~ Gary

[AHill]

I like the Flexcut line of carving tools and knives.  They are very sharp and they have beginner's carving sets which include straight bladed knives and gouges.  They are reasonably priced.  Just search for "Flexcut" on Amazon.

[Phil S.]

Both the Mora and Stubbs knives come with a sheath.  The Mora sheath isn't very secure, but Stubbs Kydex sheath for his knives work well.  Neither is going to work well in a pocket though and these days people freak out if you wear a knife on your belt.

[Timberwolf]

My 14 year old grandson has taken an interest in carving -- something I know little about.  What is the recommended knife and safety glove for a novice carver that age?  I've been informed by my daughter that I should not get him a knife without also getting a safety glove, so the glove recommendation is important.  Thanks.

....................
I can recommend the Oar Carver, provided you are able to modify the cutting angle a bit.It is a little too "steep" to suit me and needs to be lowered considerably IMO....The steel they use in that knife is super..it is d-2, which was formulated as a "punch and die" steel..It is almost completely rust proof and holds an edge like no other I know of. Because it is so hard, it is hard to sharpen and diamond is what I use for mine.
    I do think a fixed blade knife is best to start with...Mora makes a pretty good one for general whittling, but Flex-cut would be my choice for him...Keep in mind that no ONE knife will serve for ALL carving, but I would get him the smallest Flex-cut to start with. You can modify the fat handle to fit his hand.
......It MUST be sharp enough to leave a polished edge on end-grain pine or bass wood, and the Flex-cut will do that out of the box. The edge wont last forever, and he will need to know how to sharpen it or he will become discouraged and give up...Most people just give up because sharpening is beyond their capabilities {or so they think}. Some carvers never learn and have to pay others to sharpen their knives. Learning to sharpen is essential, IMO, but with proper instruction, determination and perseverance, anyone can learn...
   If you use knives long enough, you can be SURE you will be cut.....If he can get past that fear {some people cannot} he can learn to carve. But keep band-aids handy...{I cut my thumb last week}
Ten stitches in my thumb a few years ago.
 

.....I suggest he get a "Twig Carving book" { Amazon,google it} and practice carving Roosters.. It will help him decide if he wants to pursue the hobby...And I suggest checking Youtube...there are plenty of videos and you can learn alot from them..