Green Wood for Spoon/Utensil Carving

[Nebraska]

Tim,

Your turning stock question has a lot of variables. Sealing end grain slows the drying process to reduce cracking. It does not keep wood “green”. So if the goal is green wood you going need a provider who can sell you wood based on moisture content. Now as fun as carving green wood can be, carvers making this choice need to accept the possibility their work may crack as it dries.

[Brian T]

Good. Somebody has to be first and here, you might be the one!
Branches of both conifer (compression wood) and deciduous (tension wood) trees can make for really awkward carving because the upper halves and the lower halves of the branches have different wood anatomies and textures = "reaction wood.". Just me, but I never want to struggle with that.

[PittsburghTim]

Tim: What have you got for carving tools for this?
I have carved a lot of spoons and forks in very well-seasoned birch.
Just stiff but pretty nice to work. Makes nice dishes and good adze handles.

A lot of the bowl work is cross grain so green wood is a lot softer.
However, seasoned wood just needs thinner cuts and more time.

a) western style mallet and gouges
b) Scandinavian and Pacific Northwest crooked knives.

I have quite a selection of traditional European (mostly Pfeil and some Stubai) chisels and Drake carving knives in addition to draw knives and spokeshaves for shaping. I have a good stockpile of dried maple and walnut, so maybe I will just have a go at it with those to hold me over until the weather breaks and the tree services are working in the area again.

I am still curious about the possibility of using turning stock and whether it would provide some or all of the easier carving that green wood would provide.

Thanks,

Tim

[Brian T]

Tim: What have you got for carving tools for this?
I have carved a lot of spoons and forks in very well-seasoned birch.
Just stiff but pretty nice to work. Makes nice dishes and good adze handles.

A lot of the bowl work is cross grain so green wood is a lot softer.
However, seasoned wood just needs thinner cuts and more time.

a) western style mallet and gouges
b) Scandinavian and Pacific Northwest crooked knives.

[PittsburghTim]

I would like to try my hand at making some wood serving spoons, ladle, and coffee scoops. Everyone recommends green wood for it's ease of carving, but I do not have any wooded property at my disposal. I'm sure I can find a few trees coming down this spring and summer and will see if I can bother one of the local tree services. In the meantime, I have seen turning blanks that are harvested green and the sealed with either wax or anchorseal. Do you think these would do the track until I can find a good source of local wood? Has anybody tried this?

Thanks,

Tim