Direction of the cut

[Tharkis]

So on my sword, I am carving out the edge (blade). I've noticed when I cut in a certain direction on one side, it is very easy. The cuts slide through and I can control them relatively easily. However, when I cut the other side, the blade seems to cut deeper than I want, no matter how I make the cut. This causes me to chunk into the blade, which obviously causes issues. I imagine this has something to do with the grain of the wood but I'm not sure what's the best method of dealing with it.

[morganwoodcarver]

Try taking thin easy cuts against the grain, you can always change direction of your cutting, sometimes you get a piece that no which way you cut the grain will be a pain. Just take your time and it should come out fine.

[Old Scout]

Any time you cut against the grain ,the knife or gouge will tend to dig in , reverse your cut

[mpounders]

You may need to cut the opposite direction on one side. I've made several bunches of kitchen spreaders and knives, and I use a sanding drum, in my lathe or in a drill press. Or you could use a belt sander. I draw a center-line down the edge of the rough blade and then sand down each side to make a sharp edge. I relieve the edge just a bit by hand sanding. Works great as a cornbread knife.

[BrandantR]

I wrote an article sometime ago for my blog on this very subject of wood grain that you might find useful. Follow this link and click on the "Demystifying Wood Grain" link which will take you to the article. I hope this helps.

The Old Stump: Tutorials Page

[davidinsarasota]

With or against are not the only options. Many times across the grain gives better results than with.

[jmischel]

I highly recommend Brandant's article about wood grain. Well worth reading.

You'll find that different woods are more or less forgiving when it comes to cutting with or against the grain. The teak I worked with recently, for example, is not forgiving at all. On the other hand, I just completed a piece yesterday from apricot that was not at all difficult to cut in either direction.

[Howie]

I concur with jmischel. I've done an entire carving in basswood against the grain with no issues; I've tried carving against teh grain or cross grain in redwood and it crumbled.

While there are certain 'rules' to follow in terms of grain, each piece of wood has its own personality. Read what you can and play!

Another tip: try using a block/sponge sand instead of carving if you've got the basic shape already.

[Robson Valley]

Ditto Howie. Woods are different. Almost all my carvings are western red cedar which splits very easily. I can't run a long, deep gouge cut strictly with the grain or against the grain. The wood begins to split out ahead of the gouge! Start at the stop cut or edge. Make a bunch of shallow gouge cuts, each further back into the carving than the previous one. One or two final shallow cuts to even it out. Tools have to be deadly sharp to avoid any chipping when I cut across the grain. I insist on using local woods but it is a little exasperating to constantly have to plan which gouge cut is next.

[Howie]

Stop cuts are a great idea. It'll help prevent gouging out more than you need. I use them all the time when I'm carving... either with a knife or a coping saw.

When I started carving I had to ruin a few projects to figure out how to position grain and cut things properly. You should see a couple of my first carvings compared to what I can do now – and that was only a few months ago!