Are 2x4's good to carve with or is Bass wood much better for a beginner?

[Claude]

Heinecke was mentioned. Many of us on here, including me, buy all our basswood from Heinecke. Here's a link to their site: https://heineckewood.com

Claude

[woodburner807]

Basswood is what you want to use and very sharp tools. Learn to sharpen and it is one of the most important things to do. Next, use quality basswood, as Claude mentioned. While starting use quality basswood...I didn't. I bought some cheap basswood off Ebay and it was frustrating. Once I got good basswood (Heinecke) it made carving easy and a pleasure.

[Rontana]

I have carved things out of 2x4s and 2x6s, but did it more as an experiment or because I liked the look of the grain. Tough to work with and tricky. As suggested by everyone else, go for good basswood (northern vs southern). A couple of suppliers I like are Arrowhead (https://arrowheadwoodproducts.com/) and Ocooch Hardwoods (https://ocoochhardwoods.com/).

Been getting wood from the latter for various projects for years, and like them because they will do custom sizes on a wide variety of wood (just ordered some basswood and butternut from them)

[rockie12us]

wow thats a great diagram/drawing, thanks Pallin. Very helpful. I ordered some basswood and am awaiting the fun to begin.

[rockie12us]

Any suggestions on glove to buy for the hand holding the wood being carved? and thumb tip ideas for the hand with the knife?

[pallin]

There have been many discussions of carving gloves on this site. Do a search. Likewise on thumb guards.
My personal opinion is beginning carvers should avoid hand-held projects until they are very familiar with the response of wood to sharp tools. Yes, those neckerchief slides were hand-held projects. I had been carving for 23 years when I did those. Nearly everything I carve now is clamped to my workbench and carved with gouges. This is not a good time for a trip to the hospital emergency room.

[Claude]

Any suggestions on glove to buy for the hand holding the wood being carved? and thumb tip ideas for the hand with the knife?

I use one of these: https://www.woodcraft.com/products/s...ove-medium-7-9 They do wear through in a year or so, and then you can wrap the holes with duct tape or vet tape and continue to use the glove for a while. Feels awkward at first, but carve for a week or so, and it will feel weird to NOT have it on. While you are at it, you might consider one of these: https://www.woodcraft.com/products/l...ard-adult-male This will also wear quickly - a new one lasts me about 3 weeks before I cut through it. When I do, I wrap it with several layers of duct tape and it's good for another 3-4 weeks. When it cuts through again, I can pull off the cut-up duct tape and put new layers on. Not always needed if your cutting style when using a paring cut keeps the blade away from your thumb, but mine ends up with the blade right against the thumb in a paring cut, so I NEED the thumb guard...

Claude