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Thread: spokeshave vs draw knife

  1. #1
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    spokeshave vs draw knife

    So I come from a background of bow making and am just now getting into hand tools for furniture. Both drawknives and spoke shaves were common tools in bow making and I have both and am familiar with both. In many lists of hand tools I see spoke shave mentioned. What I cant see is what advantage it has over the draw knife. I have several draw knives from the large gransfors bruks to the smaller flexcut. It seems they would do everything a spoke shave would do but also more. What am I missing that a spoke shave can excel at that a draw knife cant?

  2. #2
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    In a word, “less.”

    A spokeshave is a fine adjustment tool, compared to a drawknife. Even Curtis Buchanan, the best practitioner I’ve seen with both a spokeshave and a drawknife, uses the spokeshave for the fine shavings that are much more difficult with a drawknife.

  3. #3
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    I would think that you would have more control over the depth of cut with a spoke shave and it might give a slightly smoother finish. My experience is limited to a few times I've seen either tool used and the Draw knife was used for roughing cuts and the spoke shave as a smoother.
    Lee Schierer
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  4. #4
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    How does one adjust the depth of cut on a draw knife?

    jtk
    "A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
    - Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965)

  5. #5
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    I would disagree that it is a rougher or less precise cut. The main use in bow making is "chasing a ring" the end result of which is to have one perfect ring across the back of the bow. This requires extreme precision.

    You adjust the depth of cut on a draw knife by how deep you cut, not some depth stop, it is all about feel.

  6. #6
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    Hi Brandon

    I was using a couple of drawknives and a couple of spokeshaves yesterday (shaping a chair seat). I have used a number of different types of drawknives - a new Ray Iles scorp, a vintage straight 8" Witherby, and a small Jennings carving drawknife. While drawknives probably are thought by many to be roughing tools - since they are capable of deep, carving cuts - I find that I can be quite precise with them. They do require a lot more practice in this regard than do spokeshaves. The spokeshaves I used ran from a Stanley #85 (like a woodie) to a #53 (adjustable mouth) and a LN curved sole. What was easier to do with a spokeshave was to take long, continuous cuts/shavings, and to sustain these with a uniform shaving thickness. This is why the spokeshave is often seen to be a finishing tool. One can finish off a drawknife but - if your skills are like mine- the cuts need to be shorter and straighter than with a spokeshave.

    Regards from Perth

    Derek

  7. #7
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    defending spokeshaves

    Hi Brandon
    I also have both drawknives and spokeshaves.spokeshaves.jpgdrawknives.jpg and it is useful to be able to choose one or the other. (sorry I don't see an easy way to rotate the pictures)

    The drawknife excels at hogging off material particularly in staying in the line of the wood fibres as well as forming sweeping curves in end grainsuch as seat edges.

    On the other hand I would always grab a bevel down spokeshave i.e. a 51 for smoothing a concave surface or any shave for final finishing touches where a slip would be disastrous.

    As you know both tools are a quiet way to enjoy shaping wood

    Best wishes
    Bill Howes
    Last edited by Lee Schierer; 01-21-2018 at 9:16 AM. Reason: rotated photos

  8. #8
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    The answer lies in what type/maker/manufacturer made the tools in question. I have spokeshaves with 4-5” blades which can do much of what small drawknives do. The other factor, other than the raw size of the tool, has to do with the design of the: mouth adjustment, blade height adjustment, angle and size of whatever lies in front of the spokeshaves blade. Although many spokeshaves are smaller with fixed blade and base dimensions, there are some old and new tools that do offer some or all the adjustments mentioned above. Spokeshaves with round or very curved bases can be tricky to use but, may offer similar blade control to drawknives.

    Barr Tools offers several sizes of Carvers Drawknives that are beveled on both sides of the blade. These are very agile for drawknives. My 6” Barr Carvers Drawknife is my favorite drawknife. At least in my hands, it is a very versatile tool.

    As is always the case, the skill set of the user may determine which tool is most appropriate for a given use.
    Last edited by Mike Holbrook; 01-21-2018 at 12:42 PM.

  9. #9
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    drawknives.jpg
    Roughing out the posts for a rocking chair.....from square stock....
    spokeshave.jpg
    Cleaned up with a spokeshave, until smooth..
    no corners.jpg
    Not a case of one tool vs another...more of a case of TEAMWORK between them
    front view.jpg
    To make the whole project.

  10. #10
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    I can also get a pretty clean surface with a drawknife; but I can, with a moment's inattention, ruin a pretty clean surface with a drawknife. Spokeshaves give you safety.

    It's a little like the debate between cutthroat
    48155.jpg
    and safety
    47794-safety-razor.jpg
    razors. Someone who's competent with a cutthroat razor can get an awe-inspiring, babybuttsmooth shave; someone who's learning or clumsy can get (if lucky) a trip to the emergency room. The safety razor reduces the likelihood of the latter outcome.

    I recall reading, some years back, an article on a program that built Viking-type boats somewhere in the U.S. The instructor had everyone use a hatchet for everything, and an accompanying photo in the article showed a young woman smoothing the edge of a plank with a hatchet. The finish visible was pretty darned impressive, but I doubt many of us would want to build a boat, much less furniture, with a hatchet as our only cutting-edge tool.

    If drawknifing to a smooth finish works for you, go for it - you've clearly had plenty of practice, and it'll be easier to sharpen one tool than two. Just know that many folks will stand in awe of your skill.

  11. #11
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    Makes sense. First yes my experience with draw knives is generally following grain where I am sure they have the bigger advantage over a spoke shave.

    The straight razor vs safety razor analogy also makes sense. When I have time I use a straight razor, but a safety razor is generally more consistently accurate.

    I may have to play with a spoke shave a little more and see how it would best fit into my work.

  12. #12
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    Take a look at this video by Curtis Buchanan, equally adept with both spokeshave and drawknife. In an earlier episode (#5) he uses the drawknife more extensively.

    BTW, are you going to MWTCA meet at Medina?

  13. #13
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    You can adjust the thickness of the shavings to some degree with a draw knife. A spoke shave is easier.

    The draw knife must be razor sharp to do it though.

  14. #14
    There is only a mechanical difference between the two tools. Spokeshaves have a sole, drawknives don't. How precise or appropriate one is for a task is up to the user.

    Like a chisel, a drawknife can be remarkably subtle, precise and versatile.

    I think it's the general size difference between the two tools that causes people to think one's for rough and the other for fine work.

    I have a couple small Lee Valley rosewood shaves, that are basically tiny drawknives set against a rosewood fence. This makes them in my hands about 1/2way between the tools in form and function. They can be used for very fine work.

  15. #15
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    Quote Originally Posted by Prashun Patel View Post
    There is only a mechanical difference between the two tools. Spokeshaves have a sole, drawknives don't. How precise or appropriate one is for a task is up to the user.

    Like a chisel, a drawknife can be remarkably subtle, precise and versatile.

    I think it's the general size difference between the two tools that causes people to think one's for rough and the other for fine work.

    I have a couple small Lee Valley rosewood shaves, that are basically tiny drawknives set against a rosewood fence. This makes them in my hands about 1/2way between the tools in form and function. They can be used for very fine work.
    Yes the specific knife makes a big difference. My Gransfors knife is huge with a very thick and stiff blade, It is sharp enough that I have still used it to chase a ring many times but not the best for fine detail. On the opposite end of the spectrum my flexcut is very small with a very thin blade and excels at fine detail. I traditionally went directly from this to a card scraper.

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