What is Reddit's opinion of Morakniv Wood Carving Knife 120?

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You don't need to spend much at all. Mora makes a great carving knife for around 15$

Not sure if it's the same in the US, you can spend way more money if you want just like any other hobby. But you really don't need to.

It was a bit more expensive in the US, here is a link

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B004GATX62/ref=emc_b_5_mob_i

I've been using these for a long time and they are easy to sharpen and retain their sharpness well. Especially the laminated blades. They have both laminated and carbon steel blades.

There is a little woodcarving group that meets at my church. They were having a class on Dala horses and I went from there. It turns out there are these little clubs all over the place, I had no idea. I don't know where to look for them but maybe if you asked in something like Nextdoor someone would know. They are full of the nicest old people you'll ever meet. I started with a Mora knife, it's just a basic knife, I bought it for $35 on Amazon but I just looked and it's on sale apparently. This is the one I got. I just started with scrap 2x4s I had laying around but I don't really recommend it because they're pretty hard to carve because they chip easily lol. Hobby stores and places like Lowes often have basswood blanks for carving. (Not to be confused with balsa wood which will just leave you sad) I like to find wood around for two reasons, one is that I'm cheap and two is that sticks are everywhere and beautiful and I like it when the wood tells you which project it's for, like the story of Michelangelo and the marble. There are a few subreddits like r/woodcarving that are fun for inspiration and help. Woodcarving people, in my limited experience tend to be just super kind and helpful, they can be a bit used to each other in a club so my advice to break into the group would be to ask lots of questions and gush over their creations, everyone loves to show off their creations. I hope you have fun trying it out!

https://www.amazon.com/Morakniv-Carving-Knife-Laminated-2-4-Inch/dp/B004GATX62/ref=mp_s_a_1_6?dchild=1&qid=1619860721&refinements=p_n_shipping_option-bin%3A3242350011&s=outdoor-recreation&sr=1-6 this one looks pretty good but costs like 25 dollars

You're going to have a hard time taking any width down on the staff with a pocket knife, unless it's extremely sharp.

I usually don't recommend the Mora knife for general carving, but it would probably do a better job than your pocket knife.

To start you need 4 things imo. Knife, sharpening stone, wood, and a glove. I like Morakniv Wood Carving 120 Knife with Laminated Steel Blade, 2.4-Inch https://www.amazon.com/dp/B004GATX62/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_JF87CbW24FV4W It’s cheap and after many years of carving I still use it.

I use a home made honing strop 80% of the time and a diamond stone the remaining 20% when needed.

I use a lansky extra fine but there are probably better options.

Basswood is the standard carving wood. It’s available from hobby shops and on amazon.

Wear a (clean) leather or knife guard glove on your non dominant hand. It’ll save you a lot of cuts.

I bought my Mora off of Amazon and I love it. I went with the Mora 120, it has a small blade which makes it good for intricate cuts. They're only bout $40, here's the link

A Morakniv 120, sandpaper, a blister on my thumb and a bit of patience. Had to do a lot of short little notches to get the block down to the diameter of the stem which took the bulk of the time and effort.

I started whittling a few months ago and I've been using a Mora 120. I appreciate the big wood handle and the smaller 1.9 in blade, plus, it takes and holds a sharp edge well.

Oops, thanks for letting me know the link wasn't attached. Here it is. I believe what I want to do would just be considered woodcarving. I thought that was where I was posting, but apparently not! I'll repost this there.

The cuticle layer is an absolute bitch to get off. Get a SHARP, stout knife. Something like a Mora wood carving knife works well. Go slow and just keep taking small slices of it off.

Once you get the cuticle layer off, you get to do the pore layer. This is also a bitch. I'd recommend a hook knife for this, also sharp as hell, to scoop it out, up to the trauma layer.

After that you'll probably want to process it to make it a little more workable, probably by soaking or boiling. I would make or get a wooden, head-shaped form and a mallet and use that to shape the trauma layer into more of a hat shape.

I've worked with amadou before to experiment with it as a fire starter and was pretty unimpressed. It sort of works but is definitely not worth the pain in the ass of processing it.

I started with this. Pick a piece of soft wood with little fiber like basswood and look for some basic tutorials so you know how to work safely. Those Wood Spirits people make are a good start to learn the different techniques.
Something I also like to recommend is to keep your eyes peeled for shisels and gouges in second hand stores and flea markets, if you would like to work with them in the future. Gouges especially are hard to find (at least where I'm from) and are quite expensive to buy new.
Keep your tools sharp, it's more dangerous to work with blunt tools, and good luck with your first carvings!

No. Check out this thread

The Mora 120 is affordable and on Amazon

I used a morakniv carving knife for the entire carving. This is the exact one I bought Morakniv Wood Carving 120 Knife with Laminated Steel Blade, 1.9-Inch https://www.amazon.com/dp/B004GATX62/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apap_XcePFM5ymJj2o

For a spoon, he'll definitely need at least two tools. One to shape it, and one to carve the bowl. To shape it, the Mora 120 is a great cheap knife on Amazon that can be used for a lot of other things as well. It isn't the best for detail work, but it's definitely doable. If your friend already has some power tools and a file, this isn't totally necessary for spoon carving.

I've never carved a spoon, but afaik there is no real way to carve the bowl without a spoon carving knife (also called a hook knife) or a gouge. I can personally recommend Flexcut gouges, but I don't own a hook knife so I wouldn't know.

Good luck!

The Mora carving knife is an absolute classic and works wonderfully. It's not the prettiest thing but it really works.

I do a lot of carving and frequently use:

Basically any Mora (the red, wood handled classic is a great option too)

Helle: Odel (not a traditional carver but I love using it)

Kellam: Puukko

Enzo: Trapper (a bit beefier than a usual carving knife choice but works quite well)

Bark River: Bravo EDC (again not a traditional option but I really love carving with this thing)

A small Ahti puukko

A small and medium Wood Jewel puukko

Another idea that might be fun is get him a couple of the small Lauri puukko blades and he can carve his own handle, drill a hole and epoxy it on. Just a thought. The Lauri blades are wildly affordable and the smaller thinner ones make amazing little carving knives.

Thanks for the answers, unfortunately the shipping, duties, and exchange would cost me a lot for those :p

What do you think about these:

gouge set

• Basic Carving Sets $66

• Block Cutters $62

• Japanese Detail Carving Tools $55

knife

• Flexcut Chip-Carving Set $50

• Flexcut Cutting Knife $27

• Morakniv Wood Carving 120 $31

I also found a mix:

• Flexcut Beginner Palm & Knife Set $77

but idk if 4 tools is worth $77

first, watch this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vbdTc233FtM

I watched it after I started and understood my mistake - the wood choice was not best for the first time. Way too hard.

tools: carving knife was definitely most useful https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B004GATX62/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o06_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1

and the gauge https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B0000DD6UA/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o07_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

and hook knife https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B00343VCCK/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

and don't think you won't cut yourself - wear gloves! I didn't at first and I quickly learnt that the tools are really sharp. Especially the knife.

At the moment, I have only one, this -I chose it because it fits my hand well, and because it feels firm. You can make do with just one knife(I do), but a selection of different shapes and lengths helps, but surplus to this there are a few more things that help, one of which is a set of small chisels, like these Chisels like these allow you to give greater detail, and get in the areas where your knife may not reach.

Thanks! For both the carvings I use a Morakniv for the shaping of the general figure. (The yggdrasil one is a square, so no shaping ;)).

And for the general engraving, carbon paper for transfering the pattern and a Pfeil 9/4 gouge that really makes wonders, for working the bits that are too small for the gouge I use the knife again.

Assuming you're doing intricate carving, there is no other option besides this. Mora makes the BEST budget-friendly knives in the world.

Edit: Just so we're on the same page, Mora = Morakniv.

Blade to handle ratio is a dumb concept. Some knives are designed to have a large hand filling handle and short blade. Larger blades aren't always desirable. It's like people think they're getting ripped off - "Hey they coulda fit more blade in there what are you trying to pull?"

Look at this terrible blade to handle ratio.

I purchased a Mora 120 about 2 weeks ago and have been using it as my primary whittling knife. It's razor sharp and pleasantly comfortable to use.