Davis Brothers Handmade Med. #3 D Traditional NW Woodcarving Crooked Knife

Description

Hello friends,
This is a new Davis Brothers knife, a Traditional Wood Carving  Long # 3 D bend (moderate bend on front half) Crook Knife. The Long #3 Crook knife has the longest blade of our medium sized knives, and the extra length is intended for reaching those difficult areas deep in a carving.  This version has a faster taper with a more pointed blade. This knife was hand forged by a carver, for carvers, right here on the Pacific Northwest Coast.  Davis Bros., well known for high quality hand forged NW Coast style woodcarving tools, will make a limited number of some of our customer's favorites. We make a wide selection of Crook knives (or Crooked knives), Detail knives and Hook knives, as well as Chip Carving and Whittling knives. This crook knife is based on designs used by carvers for hundreds of years. Crook knives  are extremely versatile and will perform a multitude of tasks well.
WORKMANSHIP:  Each knife is unique and hand crafted, with no automated processes used in the more than 30 machining, forging and woodworking tasks for each one.  Some tool marks may be visible on the knives. I do not attain absolute machine-like perfection, but strive to combine creativity, beauty and utility.  The look and feel of this tool when held is beautiful, smooth, and inspires the work at hand.
BLADE:  It was made using 1095 high carbon blade steel, ground to shape then forged, bent, refined and hardened.  It  was then tempered to keep a durable, keen edge and is extremely sharp.
The shape of the blade facilitates very delicate depth control and very fine shavings, but will also dig deep when the angle of entry is increased
HANDLE:
The handle is Honey Locust, with a warm Honey color (Thus the name?) and iridescent contrasting grain figure. Locust was one of the first trees transplanted here by the pioneers because of it's toughness and resistance to splitting. As a side benefit is the unusual beautiful color and striped appearance. I got this years ago from a friend's yard when a limb fell in a storm.
This handle style fits really nicely into your hand and
allows plenty of force to be used while still maintaining control.  It is finished with hand rubbed natural Tung oil and Carnauba Wax.
CONSTRUCTION:  This knife is 7 1/4"overall, with a 1 3/4
" long blade that tapers from 7/16" over the length of the blade before coming to a point. The blade is set with epoxy and further secured with a traditional seine twine wrap, reinforced with Cyanoacrylate for extra strength.
CARVING CHARACTERISTICS:
I used knives very similar to this to produce masks and sculpture over the years.  It is sized for medium to larger scale work, and can be used with a wide variety of woods and carving styles. The D bend is moderately bent over the front half of the blade, and is a rendition to meet the demand for a  blade combining the qualities of both A and B bends.  It excels at shaving, texturing and stock removal, and is meant for use on masks, spoons and small sculpture as well as general hobby use. It is great for relief carving and creating or finishing detail areas on larger projects. It performs especially well in tight corners and recesses, where other knives will seldom reach. It can also be used for detail work, as it comes to a fine point.  With a single bevel edge all the way around, this knife can be used with either hand, and cuts well either pushing or pulling. The blade has plenty of strength for those tasks, but is rather delicate and should not be used for prying.  For best performance, when sharpening this tool it is important to leave the back side absolutely flat (no bevel on back side).
SHARPENING CROOK KNIVES: Having been asked many times, I will share some suggestions.  In general if you have the implements to strop and hone gouges the same will work for crooked knives.  These knives hold an edge well and should go through many many stroppings before needing to be honed.
Stropping the curved edge of a crook knife requires a curved strop. I use a couple that work great and are easy to make:
1) A closet dowel 1 1/4" diameter and about 1 1" long covered with smooth leather carefully glued in place.
2) A smaller, 3/4" dowel, covered with denim cloth ( which holds compound well) glued on.
I use white polishing or buffing compound on both (available in hardware stores or online). You may already have a preference for a particular compound, if so, use it instead.
Strop away from the edge, not towards it, and repeat 10 or 20 times or until the keen edge is restored. Strop only the top side ( the beveled side) to maintain the flat bottom side of the blade. If the bottom of the blade needs stropped eventually, then use leather on a flat surface.
Hone the blade only when absolutely necessary, if stropping no longer restores the edge. Use only very fine or ultra fine abrasives. As before, they must be rounded or curved. I use ceramic files, diamond hones, natural Arkansas slipstones and waterstones. All work, but keep them very fine to avoid scratches on the edge. Once again, touch up the flat bottom of the blade only enough to remove a wire edge if it forms when honing. Follow up any honing with a stropping to polish the edge.
SAFETY FIRST! : This blade is extremely sharp. Always be aware of where  you are cutting, and do not put hands, fingers or other parts of your body in the path of the blade.  Always wear a cut-resistant carving glove on the hand not holding the knife.  And please keep this knife safely away from children.
SHIPPING AND CUSTOMER SERVICE: I have several auctions running this week , and will gladly combine shipping to save you money. Wait for the combined invoice if you have multiple purchases/wins. I offer a 30 day return policy and will personally work to resolve any issues. I take pride in my craftsmanship, and strive to please every Customer.