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I'm looking to buy a spokeshave to use when carving necks. I'm looking at the Veritas shaves from LeeValley.
www.leevalley.com/wood/page.aspx?c=1&p=49142&cat=1,50230&ap= 1
So my next question is which one should I get? Flat, round, or concave. The concave one looks like it could be just the thing for carving necks, but I have never used one of these things and wanted to get some opinions.

Any thoughts? Advantages or disadvantages to the different designs? Thanks

Josh

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Josh House

Canadian Luthier Supply
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House Guitars - Custom Built Acoustic Instruments.
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Just this one guy's opinion but I'd save the money on a spokeshave and spend it on a Japanese Saw Rasp. It's a bunch of hack saw blades attached together in random fashion to make a rasp. Works like a dream.
My drawback with a spokeshave is, and it's compounded if you haven't used one before, that they tend to pull the wood out if not used properly, instead of cutting the wood. It could be disasterous on a neck.
Just my .02 worth.
BTW, I'm pretty sure Lee Valley has the saw rasps.

Paul

I already have two Nicholson Pattern Maker's rasps from LeeValley. They have a random tooth pattern and work great. However I don't think this is what you are talking about.

I am really happy with the way my Nicholson rasps work, but I'm looking for a way to remove rough stock quicker. I thought a spokeshave might be the way to go. Thanks for your input and if you have a link to the rasp you are talking about please pass it along. I couldn't find a rasp that fit your description on the LeeValley site.

Josh

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Josh House

Canadian Luthier Supply
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House Guitars - Custom Built Acoustic Instruments.
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Can I second Paul's opinion about the saw rasp. I got mine from Axminster (in UK), fine one side, course the other made up of double sided saw blade material in a lattice 25mm x 230mm. As they are a lattice waste just falls right through. And all for ?8 against ?50 or so for a good spoke shave.

Colin

Colin S38691.3850462963

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I don't believe in anything, I simply make use of a set of reasonable working hypotheses.

Hi guys,

I love my cheap little green Kunz flat spokeshave. It's really fun to use & works amazingly well. I can only imagine how great the Veritas spokeshaves are. After basic shaping with the spokeshave, I use a micro-blade rasp - flexible flat & long (intended for use with a hack saw frame but I hand hold it) & a 5/8" round micro-rasp with a handle. These offer a similar kind of wood removal than the Japanese saw rasp (maybe a bit less aggressive). I finish the heel part of the neck with 1" & 2" diameter x 3" long sanding drums on a drill press.

It's the process I started with & am quite comfortable with. Also, very easy to control the amount of wood removal, and it's a rather inexpensive approach as well. Many different ways to skin this cat.

Skip

You could always use Mario's chain saw thing.

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Joe Breault
Merrimack, NH
Perpetual novice

Josh, colin hit the nail on the head. That's the exact rasp I have. If it's quick stock removal you want, this will do the trick. In fact, I don't often use the coarse side as it can be a bit TOO aggressive. Do a google search for "shinto saw rasp" and you should have good luck. I think I paid around $11 USD for it.

News flash! they have gone up a bit in price. Saw Rasp

Josh,

I use the flat Stanley spokeshave. It does a fine job on a guitar neck. There is something hypnotic about making a big pile of shavings with it.

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yes, Wayne is right. Curls are much nicer to look at than a pile of sawdust. But the first time I used one, I tore a huge hunk out and swore it off forever.
Anyone want to buy a "used once" spokeshave?

Hey Josh.

Depends which wood, but on Mahogany I use the Lee Valley Veritas flat spokeshave - removes wood fine, and tis way easier to keep a flat blade sharp - curved ones are a b&&ch to sharpen.
But I also have this half round single cut file that is spectacular - i got it in a grab bag of files at LV years ago. Had never seen anything like it before, wasnt even sure what the heck to do with it - well it carves like a dream in and around the heel.

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Tony Karol
www.karol-guitars.com
"let my passion .. fulfill yours"

I used a STanley for years but recently bought the Veritas one. I prefer the flat ones as they are indeed easier to sharpen. I also prefer the flat base because the angle needs to be just right when using the rounded base. If it isn't the blade could chatter and mark up the wood.

Well I must say that $15-$20 for the saw rasp is a bit cheaper than the spokeshave. I think I will pick one up and give it a try. Thanks guys.

I am still leaning towards the idea of trying the spokeshave as well. I know a number of builders who really like them. Tony, I had thought about sharpening issues with the different blades and I was also thinking the flat one would be easiest to sharpen.

I would be interested in hearing more about Mario's chainsaw thing. Is it one of those attachment things that you put on a handheld grinder?

Josh

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Josh House

Canadian Luthier Supply
http://www.canadianluthiersupply.com
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House Guitars - Custom Built Acoustic Instruments.
http://www.houseguitars.com

I use a Lie Nielsen flat spokeshave. It works very well and comes setup correctly and very sharp, right out of the box. I haven't had any problem with it tearing out any wood so far.

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Dave Rector
Rector Guitars

Hi Josh,
I have about 5 spokeshaves,mostly Stanleys and one concave Kunz.
I got some old ones cheap at tag sales.
My favorite one that I usually reach for when carving necks is a "hermaphrodite" Stanley model which has a straight and concave-curved blade next to each other in the same tool.
I start with the straight blade and finish up with the curved-works great.

Thanks for all the tips.

Paul is going to sell me his old shave and I am going to give it a try. If I like it I may upgrade to the veritas in the future. And I am thinking about giving the saw rasp as try as well.

Josh

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Josh House

Canadian Luthier Supply
http://www.canadianluthiersupply.com
https://www.facebook.com/canadianluthiersupply?ref=hl
House Guitars - Custom Built Acoustic Instruments.
http://www.houseguitars.com

Josh the Nicholson Pattern Maker's rasps from LeeValley are an excellant tool and will remove wood quite rapidly as you already know. I have 3 or 4 spokeshaves and they work quite well. If I were to buy one I'd get the flat blade as Tony suggests.

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Files ..

wanna try one that is my other fave. Not sure what its true name is, but I was told its for cleaning off horse hooves before reshoeing. Its a big file, about 14 long, and almsot 2 inches wide. The double cut side is great for evening out something after you have spokeshaved it close. The other side has 1/8 spike like rasps sticking out - dont let it hit your arm or hand, instead gashes. But one of my students is doing a birdseye neck, and you dont lay into the file at all, just let it ride on the wood and gently push, and it rips right thru the maple. Got mine at a yard sale for 5 bucks, but I think they actually retail for about 40-50

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Tony Karol
www.karol-guitars.com
"let my passion .. fulfill yours"

Tony,
I know exactly what you are refering to. I haven't used my yet, but our fearless leader of the Colorado Luthiers Group sells these used horse hoove files for $2 at our meetings. Since he lives on a ranch, he always has lots of these. If anyone wants one you might want to contact him and see if he will send you one. You can find his site at dunwellguitars.com. Good luck!
Tracy

FYI...Japan Woodworker also sells the saw-rasps. It has turned into my go-to tool for hogging off wood in a controled manner. The Nicholson rasps are superb tools and make a good follow-up to the saw-rasp cuts.

By the way, I find I virtually never have a need to use the "plane" attachment on my saw-rasp (I just use the bare blade)--it's quite unstable due to the narrowness of the blade. The next one I buy will have the straight handle. Just buying the replacement blade is also an option, but the sharp teeth make it uncomfortable to hold.CarltonM38691.6839699074

Those French rasps are getting excellent reviews, saying they are well worth the money. I believe, though, that the Nicholson patternmaker's rasps are also hand-cut, which is why they hover near the $50.00 mark (and why they work so well).

[QUOTE=TonyKarol] Files ..

" Not sure what its true name is, but I was told its for cleaning off horse hooves before reshoeing."

It's called of all things, a horshoe or hoof rasp. You can usually get them at farm supply stores or where they sell horse supplies. Horseshoers don't use these things when they start to get dull but they are still fine for wood. If you have a horseshoer in your area, give him a call, you can probably pick up all the rasps you want for a few bucks. After shoeing several hundred head of horses in my life, I don't care if I never see another one of those things.Jimmie D38691.9294675926