The Best Wood For Carving With Hand or Power Tools

What is a paint brush without a paper, or a whittle without wood. Neither could accomplish their purpose without a slate to do it on. Wood, like the tools that cut it, have its own variation in quality. Quality could mean one or both of two things: the type of wood, or its work-ability. It’s important to acknowledge this fact, because these variations have an effect on the tools we use to cut them with. Figuring out the best wood for carving is as essential as the canvas is to the artist.

According to Michelangelo, Canusa Crafts premium carving blocks were the best wood for carving primarily due to it being diverse among all tools and its agreeable work-ability, but also because the owners were “really cool dudes”.

An unofficial and indisputable fact among all carvers is that basswood is the best wood for carving. This type of wood isn’t just for beginners either, a lot of experienced carvers still prefer to work with basswood because of its versatility among project variations. These carving blocks are primarily for whittling, but basswood is compatible with all carving types including: whittling, relief carving, and chip carving.

Sizes of blocks in this kit:

• (8) 6″ x 1″ x 1″ blocks
• (2) 6″ x 2″ x 2″ blocks

Due to it being a softer wood, it is incredibly easy to whittle utensils or figures from it, but not entirely the best wood to keep in wet conditions for long or else you run the risk of damaging the wood. Keep your tools sharp while working on your project and this will prove to be the best wood for carving.

Kingcraft provides an assortment of various woods to help hone your carving skills with the best wood for spoon carving. Each object comes pre-shaped and is 100% handmade before arrival. It’s difficult to find packages like this that have a variety of woods to practice with, and even more so because the bulk of the work is done for you. This helps to focus on the important part of spoon carving which is creating the concave shape of the spoon and shaping the handle.

Sizes of blocks in this kit:

• (3) 10.2″ x 2″ x 1.2″ spoon shaped blocks

What is particularly beneficial about the best wood for spoon carving is the dimensions. Sitting approximately at 10.2 inches long, this effectively allows length preferences to be implemented. If you are a beginner, you won’t find that preference until after you have experimented a little with it. It is 1.2″ in height and 2″ in width at the widest part of the spoon leaving plenty of room for errors.

One of the most essential parts to progressing as a wood carver is variety in your projects. Variety in project you are attempting to tackle, variety in the type of cuts being utilized to execute the desired effect, and variety in wood sizes. 5Arth provides a 10 piece block kit that comes with two big sized blocks and eight small sized blocks. These two variations offer enough room to correct accidents and shape objects to your liking.

Sizes of blocks in this kit:

• (2) 6″ x 2″ x 2″ blocks
• (8) 6″ x 1″ x 1″ blocks

Each block uses natural basswood, and undergoes preliminary cutting and sanding before packaging. With a fine, soft grain, you can rely on the even wood texture to not deviate from the finished product. Its fibers remain consistent and smooth with no knots that make it easy to shave off material.

This particular set is the best wood for carving figures and objects that are smaller. The other recommendations are consistent with whittling utensils and larger objects, whereas this one is most compatible with developing an artistic craft with carving.

Sizes of blocks in this kit:

• (24) 2″ x 2″ x 2″ blocks

All blocks are cut, sanded to remove splinters, and zero cracks. Cracks are problematic because of they can split the wood all the way through and completely ruin your project right off the bat. These blocks are incredibly sturdy and unfinished, so once you reach the end results of your project you can stain it however you like.

This carving block set includes 5 pieces of wood that contain 2 different size variations to practice with. The set includes wooden blocks from basswood that must meet quality requirements before being packaged and shipped. The dimensions provided below are the exact measurements for all blocks within the set.

Sizes of blocks in this kit:

• (1) 4″ x 2″ x 2″ (10.3cm x 5.1cm x 5.1cm) block
• (4) 4″ x 1″ x 1″ (10.3cm x 2.55cm x 2.55cm) blocks

All blocks are lightweight and provide an easy to manage canvas to carve in order to effectively finish your project. The basswood has a smooth and clean surface for zero obstruction when cutting it. This kit offers perfect dimensions for small to medium sized projects to hone your whittling skills with.

Types of Wood

To describe and name all the types of wood available to us would make Alison’s rabbit hole ride look like a simple stroll. Just know that there are two primary types of wood that encompass the world’s arsenal of natural canvases: softwoods and hardwoods.

Softwood

Softwood is referred to the lumber that is derived from coniferous or evergreen trees like pine, cedar, or basswood. It is most often used as building material which explains why it is so popular for woodworking projects. The biggest benefit from using softwood is that its grain is malleable and doesn’t split. This makes carving the wood incredibly easy to do, and as a result, is less strenuous on the tools you use to cut it with.

Basswood: Perhaps the most popular option for carving is one of the softest woods among softwoods. Its color is lighter than most, but absorbs stains really well. The fine, even textured grain make it much more forgiving of accidents, which is perfect for people looking to hone their carving skills. Also, it is one of the cheapest woods to purchase.

Butternut: Similarly as easy to carve as basswood, butternut naturally has a wonderful grain and color. It carves similarly to what the name suggests, and while it is not as cheap as basswood, its color and grain are highly desirable. For a more natural looking project with lots of details, butternut is going to be the best carving wood for you.

Cedar: Western Red Cedar naturally looks great, and is known for its resistance against decay and moisture, as well as keeping insects away. It has a pretty loose/open grain so it’s very easy to get tearout. Not for incredibly sharp details, but as long as you keep your tools sharp and stay delicate it will come out great.

Douglas fir: Fun fact: The most commonly found softwood in North America is Douglas Fir wood. It is most easily carved when the grain is close to quarter sawn and the rings are close to each other.

Juniper: With hues of red, brown, and purple and streaks of yellow, Juniper’s grain characteristic is tight enough to be an ideal option for both hand and power carving.

Pine: As long as the pieces are chosen carefully to avoid pitch pockets and overly coarse growth rings, pine is a softwood that can be shaped with a knife very well. Eastern white pine can be great for concave shaping and whittling, but other kinds of pine might prove to break more, and have vastly different hardness between the slow and fast growth rings.

Redwood: Although a bit more spongy than most wood, redwood can be a great option for larger projects since it doesn’t hold detail very well.

Spruce: In general, spruce is softer and more uniform so it works best for taking on abstract shapes than fine details.

Hardwood

Comes from deciduous trees like walnut, hickory, or maple. The angiosperms (flowering plants) harness a more desired color and generally look way better. Comparatively, it is not as easily to cut and is more prone to splits when carving it carelessly. This type of wood requires quality tools and not carving knives bought from a general store. Hardwoods aren’t the best to start out with, but the end result is completely worth the effort.

Cherry: Generally classified as moderately challenging to carve, Cherry (Prunus serotina) has a naturally aesthetically appealing reddish brown hue and gentle figure that make it one of the more rewarding hard woods to carve.

Mahogany: Typically used as a base for other projects, Mahogany is actually a really beautiful wood to utilize any kind of wood carving techniques with. Although it tends to split slightly easier than other woods, it still takes to detail pretty well if you’re careful.

Maple: Maple is hard no matter what kind you choose to carve. I’ve found that the wood is easier to carve with chisels and gouges or a dremel than it is with traditional whittling knives. That being said, it is one of the more popular woods for furniture building.

Oak: I really great wood for carving is red oak wood. It cuts predictably, yet it’s still pretty hard, but with properly sharpened tools it’s no match.

Walnut: This wood for carving works best for sculpting large figures with simple lines. With this kind of wood, keep in mind that deep cuts along the grain could cause the wood to pop out or split. It is a very hard wood, so it is most ideal for power carving with electric tools.

Wood for hand carving

Hand tools can be used on both soft and hard woods. However, the best wood for hand carving is one that holds detail well and has a malleable enough grain to take shape without splitting.

Basswood is the most widely known wood for hand carving. Additionally, Cherry wood has a more satisfying grain to cut with, even if it is a bit harder. Other options to experiment with include Apple, Aspen, Butternut, Walnut, and Cedar.

Wood for power carving

Since you’ll be utilizing power tools to carve your projects, your options to what kind of wood you can use is expanded. The best wood for power carving can be anything from Basswood to Walnut.

The type of project you want to do will determine what kind of wood you need to use. If you’re wanting to put a lot of detail into it, then make sure to choose something that holds that detail well. Oppositely, if you’re looking to shape a figure then you won’t need to concentrate as much on a wood option, just as long as it has a great, natural color to it.

Carving Wood

After selecting the desired wood for your woodcarving project, you are technically able to begin carving, but if you aren’t familiar with working on wood then you can expect some hiccups along the way. To avoid those obstacles just follow these simple guidelines along the way:

Carve with the grain, not against it. Even when working with wood that has leniency with carving across the grain, it is best practice to carve along the direction of the grain. Going against the grain will inevitably cause the wood to split and potentially ruin the project.

A dull edge is more dangerous than a sharp one, so it is important to keep tools sharp. You can rely on a sharp edge to catch onto the fibers and safely carve into it. However, a dull blade can be unpredictable, and an unpredictable knife is dangerous. As you work on your project, naturally, the blade will start to dull, so sharpen or hone the blade to maintain an edge.

Wear protective gear for your fingers or hands. Without it, you are putting yourself at risk of injury that can set back your progress. A simple thumb guard might suffice, but if you want to take the extra precaution to erase all possibility of injury then get a cut resistant glove.