Sweep or Rough Cut

Whittling Techniques 

Whittling Basics

First thing is to choose the right blade for the task at hand . Are you moving wood that is are you bulk cutting or rough shaping or detailing. All of this may need a different  blade as choice. It could be a "Sheep’s foot" standard blade shape or a narrow finer pointed one.                                                                                                                                Next make sure your blade is sharp even keen as this makes it so much easier that battling your work piece especially if the wood is a harder type. A blunt blade tires out your hand and even results in cramping. 
To avoid cutting yourself and getting blood over your work it is a good idea to wear a thumb guard or mesh glove

Types of Whittling Cuts

There are several cutting styles in whittling, and here below we’ll just stick with the basics most well known for the purposes now.

Straight Rough Cut

Sweep or Rough Cut

  This cut is used at the very start of your project to carve out the basic bulk to your project size. Hold the wood with one hand and your knife firmly in your other. Make a long, sweep slice cuts with the grain across and away from your body. Don’t cut too deep or and start making several, light slices to eventually reduce the wood to the desired size and shape.

This also helps to get the feel of the wood and its condition and the direction of the grain.   As a beginner its a great idea to learn off woods that have  regular even grain structure

 Thumb Pushing ( Push Stroke)

Thumb Push

Sometimes where you want to cut won’t allow you to do the pull stroke. That’s when it’s time to bust out the push stroke. Hold the wood piece in one hand and the knife firmly in other with the blade facing away from you. Place both your right and left thumbs on the back spine of the knife blade. Now cut by pushing the blade away from your body with your thumbs using these alternately to cut and steer to direction the of the blade through the wood.

 This cut has a good deal of control to it. The push stroke, like the pull stroke, gives you greater control and power over your knife for detailed cuts. The type of wood you are using and its condition is very important and will enhance or limit the outcome and quality of your  project

  Pare Cut (Pull Stroke)

Pare or Pull Cut

  
    This is the most used cut in whittling. To perform this cut, imagine you’re peeling a potato. Hold the wood firmly in one hand , with the knife in the other with the blade facing inward. Position the thumb of that hand against the wood, and squeeze those fingers inward in order to draw the blade toward your thumb that holds the knife. Make your stroke is short and controlled. Keep that thumb out of the path of the oncoming blade. It is a good idea to wear a thumb pad and or a mesh glove to avoid cutting yourself.


     There are different schools of thought about straight edge and curved edge blades for whittling and carving .Some have found that a curved edge allows many more types of cuts to be made & more easily with less force. 

This allows for a much wider range of whittling cuts to be made. You can also gouge easier and achieve hollow cutting therefore making convex or concave surfaces. 

AXE cutting

   There is a historical decorative technique  which is in Norway using an axe  to create a herring bone pattern called "Splash whittling". Axe chopping or cutting is some time used especially in foreign ethnically differing communities such as in Asia or Africa 

  Here it is useful to distinguish between whittling and carving .These are some times used interchangeably, but they are different arts. Carving employs the use of mallets, chisels or gouging tools while for the purist whittling involves using only knife. Also Carving frequently uses powered equipment such as drilling machines, routers and lathes. 

About the most that whittlers deviate would be the use of specialized gouging tools and these are often included in the set of whittling kits sold today.
Specialized whittling knives, with fixed single blades, are preferred for sculpting artistic work. They have thick handles which are easier to grip for long periods, allowing more precise control and pressure.