Drawknife

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A drawknife is a woodworking tool used to shape wood by removing shavings. It consists of a blade with a handle at each end. The blade is much longer (along the cutting edge) than it is deep (from cutting edge to back edge). The drawknife in the illustration has a blade 23cm long; much shorter drawknives are also made. The blade is sharpened with a chisel bevel. The handles can be below the level of the blade (as in the illustration) or at the same level.

The drawknife is usually pulled towards the user, with the sharp edge of the blade facing the user. The drawknife can be used to remove large slices of wood, or can shave like a plane. The small depth of the blade means that it can be used to create concave or convex curves. A spokeshave is used for more controlled cuts. The workpiece needs to be gripped in a device such as a shaving horse.

Large drawknives can be used to dress logs, and small sizes for carving and shaving. A common use of a drawknife is to create a roughly cylindrical billet of wood for turning on a pole lathe.

Despite its name, a drawknife can also be used with a push-stroke.