Using the Drawknife in Windsor Chairmaking

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Mike explains and demonstrates using a drawknife in Windsor chairmaking. He also shows how to sharpen the tool.
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Filmed and Edited by Nico Zottos at Vibe Media Production Co.

[@jeff9242]

Mr Dunbar. I have watched all your videos on making a Windsor chair twice. I must tell you i have never had anyone explain things so well. I feel like i already made one. lol, I am going over them again and taking notes, ordering what tools i need and have the wood . You truly are a great teacher, thank you so much.

[@thewindsorinstitute2047]

Thank you for your kind words. I'm pleased if the videos help you to make a chair. Be sure to send me a picture. Nothing tickles me more than helping someone accomplish their goal.

[@Bosun25]

Thanks for taking the time to explain and show the errors that are often employed in sharpening these tools - much appreciated

[@davidlundberg5022]

I loved how you stated a butcher does not push knife into meat like a chisel. Rather, slices through it. Excellent analogy. I learned more about by my drawknives watching this.

[@thewindsorinstitute2047]

Thanks, Dave. I am pleased to have helped. A drawknife is an amazingly versatile tool. It can take fine shavings and also hog off huge amounts of waste wood in short order.

[@simonioan1]

Πολύ καλό και χρήσιμο μαθημα. Πολύ καλή ικανότητα μετάδοσης της γνώσης. 👍

[@randyjohnson4877]

Great video thanks for sharing I'm in Eastern Kentucky drawn knife along with some other woodworking tools and it is a great interest of mine thanks again for the.

[@paddymalone7957]

Good man, great video very helpful. Thank you.

[@paulcloud1193]

Mike: fundamentals and basics will always stay the same. Thanks for showing how to use and sharpen a Drawknife.

[@cheshirebowman4465]

Well well. Love your video sir. I'm a longbow maker from UK and use several draw knives. I love these things. I think you made two very important statements. 1. Always slice and 2. Use it in the way that feels comfortable. I see you are a maker of windsor chairs. My wife's parents come from Windsor. We spend quite a lot of time there. Anyway, excellent video and keep up the good work.

[@colinhawkins6263]

Thank you for this video!! I just got into bow making and needed a video just like this to show me how to use and maintain my new drawknife.

[@jons2447]

Hello, Mr. Dunbar; Thank you for sharing your insights and knowledge and for providing the video series. I just got my 1st drawknife so your instruction will be very useful. Have a GREAT day, Neighbor!

[@1stinlastout165]

Yes the reason for a long blade is to use all, I was told as a apprentice the guillotine approach, I found after many years to make hand tools a part of your body in use!

[@thewindsorinstitute2047]

Thank you for watching, Yuri.

[@WoodworkingPro]

Hi Mike so pleased to find you're on youtube I always enjoyed your articles in Fine Woodworking ,I've always wanted to make a Windsor chair and have read your first book a number of times and have acquired a good number of hand tools over the years for the purpose of making a Windsor but have never put them to use. I always wanted to take one of your classes but your school has been too far for me to travel from the northwest, seeing this video really shows me what I missed, you are an excellent teacher and I plan on viewing any youtube videos you may have. Thank you so much for sharing your great volume of wealth. Jim

[@thewindsorinstitute2047]

Thanks for the kind words, Jim. Sorry you didn't make it to the school, but maybe our paths will cross some day.

[@ronmccarty7537]

Thumbs up on the last comment! I'm sort of in the same boat! And Yes! Thank you Mike! I absolutely love the way you teach!

[@ataarjomand]

Excellent clip. You answered all my questions that none of the other clips answered. And you explain very well and clearly. I am glad I ran into your clip.

[@thewindsorinstitute2047]

Thank you for your kind comments. I'm pleased the video helped you. The drawknife is an amazingly versatile tool if used correctly.

[@earthsciteach]

I just watched a few videos of how to use and sharpen a draw knife giving very bad advice. This video is spot on!

[@thewindsorinstitute2047]

Thank you Patrick for the kind comment. I worked with a drawknife for 45 years. Any day I spent in the shop I performed numerous operations that required that tool. I made my living as a chairmaker, and in that way I was like the guys working in the 18th century. I did not make chairs to be quaint or to fill some 1960s Hippie desire to get back to the land. I had to be as efficient as possible; my family depended on me and my ability and skill. I learned to use all my tools with maximum efficiency. That is why (like the old guys) I did not use a shavehorse. Anything that slowed me down cut into my paycheck. I have read and seen a lot of advice about drawknives that was not grounded on this impulse.

[@mikeevans3766]

Thanks for another fine video. I have been lucky enough to have seen the resurgence of interest in using hand woodworking tools over the last fifty years (many thanks to Roy Underhill, yourself, and a host of other talented, knowledgeable and generous craftsmen) and have always been amazed at the versatility and efficiency of hand tools including the drawknife. As a result of my interest, I often buy abused older tools and restore them to a useful condition. I sell a very few but only to local beginners with very little, if any, profit and usually with a free book, another tool, or a strop, just to encourage the fledgling craftsperson. The sharpening technique you demonstrate is adequate for general maintenance, particularly for new tools, but what about older tools with chipped edges, pitting on the flat and similar major flaws. I have found that careful grinding and limited dubbing, if necessary, can restore the edge to good service where hand-only work would have required days of effort. While such actions may not be desirable for new tools, it is pretty much the only reasonable option for the majority of older tools. As many of the older tools are widely available and at much lower cost (crucial to many beginners) than new ones, would it be possible for you to do a followup video demonstrating how to prepare an average old drawknife? I know that restoring older tools are dear to your heart since you literally (pun intended) wrote a couple of books on the subject. Thank you, by the way, for your books on craft. They have occupied an honored spot in my library for decades now and I still find them tremendously useful.

[@thewindsorinstitute2047]

Thanks for the kind words, Mike. I have found sandpaper sharpening works real well for reclaiming most old tools. If a tool is badly worn begin with 60 grit and work up through finer grades. That said, some tools have been so abused that I pass on them. I have considered a draw knife video as a short to accompany another series. For now I am looking for a sponsor. While I work for free the videographer insists on being paid. BTW, I only flatten the back. I never try to dub the lower edge. I allow normal wear to create it, and then, my flattening just keeps it under control.

[@boozoochavis7506]

Way to go Mike - very few people ever talk about how so many of these hand tools work better with some kind of skew cut or skewing action. Also, nice to see a guy clamping his work where it is most available, in this case in a bench vise - you are correct in that it does seem quicker for me than using a shave horse and makes my old back hurt less! Thanks for posting these videos.

[@conorvaughan9870]

great video ! thank you so much

[@pierrehome-douglas7785]

You're the man, Mike! Hope you're keeping well. Trying to make something that looks like a Maloof rocking chair right now. Way above my skill level but I'll use your techniques when I'm using the draw knife. Lots of shaping to do.

[@paulw4259]

Thanks for this. Are you the only person on You Tube who can really use a draw knife? Seems like it to me but I haven't seen every single one of the others. Thanks again.

[@thewindsorinstitute2047]

Thanks, Paul. I had a lot of experience with the drawknife. I had one in in my hands just about every day for 45 years.

[@jacobcarrera701]

I thank you Sir. A whole bunch of useful information. Pure wisdom, thankyou for sharing. Have a Blessed day Sir

[@thewindsorinstitute2047]

Thank you for the kind words.

[@tedhodson5118]

Thanks for the sensible sharpening lesson.

[@oldsam56]

Finally found someone that knows this tool. So much bad info on this tool. Thanks for this video.

[@thewindsorinstitute2047]

Thank you. Yes, there is a lot of poor instruction on the drawknife out there.

[@ronmccarty7537]

Clear, concise, great info, no hype! Thanks again...

[@igoryakunin685]

You have a great talent for expressing your knowlege, thank you for this video

[@kendavidson6755]

Very interesting thank you. I am about to buy a drawknife the make rustic walking sticks I have inherited a couple of wooden spokeshaves but they have tangs which are adjusted by tapping with a hammer the blades are hollow ground so I am trying to get used to using them can you get wooden spokeshaves with screw adjustments? Thanks again for your very informative video you have a very patient way of imparting your skill

[@thewindsorinstitute2047]

I pleased you enjoyed the video. Contact Dave's Shaves at www.ncworkshops.com/ He made the shaves I use in the video series. Very good quality.

[@ianfraser6161]

Good tips, Mike Dunbar, thanks.

[@thewindsorinstitute2047]

Thanks, Ian. I am happy to share my decades of experience with these tools and hope I am able to make other guys' woodworking more successful and enjoyable.

[@FALCON390Workshop]

Thanks a lot for your video. Very useful!

[@wortheffort]

Noticed you didn’t mention preference for straight, curved or bowed (not sure there’s right term maybe coopered). You demoed straight. Would be nice to hear recommendation of brands for those looking to acquire a nice user as I’m sure some companies were more consistent in steels over years.

[@wortheffort]

Oh, and awesome content once again.

[@thewindsorinstitute2047]

The blade shape (straight or bellied) doesn't matter a whole lot. The trick is the slicing cut. My knife was made by Woodjoy. For years I used a knife made by Genuine Forgery and really favored it. However, Ray Larsen retired and I didn't want to demonstrate using a tool my students couldn't acquire. Barr makes a good knife as well. Although I wrote a book titled "Restoring, Using, and Tuning Classic Woodworking Tools" I eventually realized that using old tools wears them out. So, I fostered and supported a cadre of toolmakers whose products were as good as the old.

[@thewindsorinstitute2047]

Thank you, Jon. I'm sure that knife will serve you well.

Great video sir. Thanks.

[@stevebella4221]

Thanks for another video. Love it

[@markluke8447]

Hello Mike, can you please tell me where to find a quality draw knife?

[@thewindsorinstitute2047]

Hi Mark: I am using a knife made by Woodjoy. They are no longer in business. Barr Tools made a good one. Give them a try.

[@jeffreydustin5303]

Where can I get that model of drawknife? It is a beaut.

[@thewindsorinstitute2047]

My knife was made by Woodjoy Tools. However, Glenn Livingston has since retired and I don't think the knife is still available. Sorry. I would check eBay.

[@granthall2325]

Where do you get your draw knifes from!!!????

[@thewindsorinstitute2047]

The knife I am using in the series was made by Woodjoy. They are no longer in business. However, Barr Tool made a good one.

[@maplebones]

He did not explain well the issue of bevel up or down. I think it may be a case of learning to use it one way which soon becomes comfortable, and then deciding that is the proper way. Both drawknives I use were built with the handles bent up from the flat back. That brings them parallel to the stroke with the bevel down, and is most comfortable for me. I understand that a deeper cut can be made with the bevel up, and he illustrates that by taking a deep cut using a chopping motion, something he previously said shouldn't be done That's confusing. Both my knives have a slight curve to the blade, the flat back being convex. With the bevel down , the pressure against the blade tends to straighten the blade out when cutting, so I'm pretty sure they we're designed to work that way . Obviously any carving knife can be used left or right handed so they will cut either way, but the direction of the cut is different than a chef uses carving beef. The draw knife is more complex.

[@jim-mellonmiccahofman7594]

Where can I buy the draw knife?

[@thewindsorinstitute2047]

The knife I am using in the video was made by Woodjoy. Glenn has retired an is no longer making them. I was always pleased with Barr Tool's knife. barrtools.com

[@WoodcraftLeagueOfAmerica]

Hi Mike. Loving your videos. Could I ask, what is the type of plane you use on the spindles on the back of the chair?

[@thewindsorinstitute2047]

The plane was made in China. I believe I bought mine from Woodcraft Supply. I'm not sure they still carry it. If not, I think Lee Valley has them.

[@WoodcraftLeagueOfAmerica]

@@thewindsorinstitute2047 so it's basically a small nosing plane. I think I can make one of those. Thanks

[@thewindsorinstitute2047]

@@WoodcraftLeagueOfAmerica Actually, it is not a nosing plane in that the sole is only a portion of an arc, not a semi-circle. The plane is so inexpensive I would buy one. Don't go to Crown. The source is either Woodcraft or Lee Valley.

[@WoodcraftLeagueOfAmerica]

@@thewindsorinstitute2047 gotcha. Yeah, I was thinking that Crown plane seemed way overpriced. can't seem to find the cheaper one. I'll keep looking, thanks.

[@thewindsorinstitute2047]

@@WoodcraftLeagueOfAmerica www.leevalley.com/en/wood/page.aspx?p=64009&cat=1,41182 Check out K, $9.