Bark Removal

[Mr._Munchkin]

Yesterday I found the most efficient method of stripping bark from a sapling and thought I'd share. Use a linoleum knife, you can get one at about any hardware store for a few bucks and its worth its weight in gold. Use it like any other knife.

I didn't take time to sharpen it. I just took it out of my tool drawer, nicked and dinged as it was, and it worked like a charm, even for getting around knots (a new one might need to have a rudimentary edge ground on it, I don't know). I can't say how well it will sharpen or if it will hold an edge; but if it does then it might work as a general shaping tool. I only started using it yesterday so I haven't found out yet.

Try it, you'll like it.

[AlArchie]

Re: Bark Removal

Munchkin, I'll have to try that....got one down in the basement somewhere! One I've used for just that, though is one of those kitchen utensils...an OXO clam knife. They are not sharpened very well, but have a good sturdy blade, with a rounded tip. I sharpened it up, including the round tip and it's great for stripping diamond willow. The tip can work right into the diamonds!

Found this one while 'touring' with Karen in the kitchen dept of one of the department stores. Never know where, you'll find a good tool!

Al

[plain_ol_ed]

Re: Bark Removal

Never leave home without a credit card!

[AlArchie]

Re: Bark Removal

Ed.

Never tried carvin with a credit card.....do thgey need honing or are the rates sharp enough??

Al

[Guest]

Re: Bark Removal

The are more like a gouge!

[pyrogite]

Re: Bark Removal

Hey Mr. Munchkin,
I just added a linoleum knife to my tool box about 6 months ago, and I used it the same way you did. It worked great! I was going through my old junk drawer looking for something else (of course LOL) and there it was. I sharpened it on my diamond hone and stropped it and it just did wonders. I don't know if the edge will hold, but for the price, I don't mind wearing it out with stropping!
Thanks for the reminder!

Donna

[plain_ol_ed]

Re: Bark Removal

I kind of wonder, in the debarking application if maybe a little dull might be better. Sharp enough to cut the bark but not sharp enough to dig into the wood? Never tried it so don't know. Anybody?

[AlArchie]

Re: Bark Removal

That's what the guys in our club that do a lot of sticks claim. Not really sharp and they work better that way. I don't do enough of them to venture a quallified statement on that issue, though.

Al

[Teri_Embrey]

Re: Bark Removal

Boy, I sure don't know either, so I really have no business even replying to this post.

However, I thought I'd at least mention that I AM a bona fide Master Credit Carder :-)

Teri

[Guest]

Re: Bark Removal

I use a potato peeler to de-bark walking sticks. They are cheap, not too sharp that they dig in, and safe (relatively speaking). They seem to work fine but are a little tricky around knots, etc.

[Kenny_S]

Re: Bark Removal

Pocket knife. If it does 'dig' in, a little 0000steel wool fixes problem. Anyway, I haven't had the problems.
I find it amusing carvers using a dull item on wood. :

[AlArchie]

Re: Bark Removal

I would guess, Ken that the 'dull' tool idea goes back to the old days when peeling popple (aspen) for paper was done with a tool called a spud. It was about 4 1/2 to 5 feet long. The blade itself was spatula shaped and it was welded to a round steel handle, or attached to a wood rake style handle.

These guys were wielded like an ice scraper, and runn between the bark and the log. We got 7 cents a stick for peeling the *******s (ptl) which were about 6-10 inches in diametr and 8 feet long. A good peeler could do about 100 to 150 sticks an hour. I managed about 20/hour, and lasted one day, deciding early on that there had to be a better way to earn a buck!

If they were too sharp, they caught on the log and slowed you down. All you had to do was get started between the bark and the log and push at around a 30 degree angle. Early cut trees were easy to peel, but as summer went on the bark got more and more 'stuck'!

Anyway, that may have been where the idea of a semi-sharp peeler came from!

Al

[plain_ol_ed]

Re: Bark Removal

I remember them peeling spuds only too well ... we built a dock and I was the lucky guy who got to peel the pilings ...

[AlArchie]

Re: Bark Removal

Wasn't that just too much fun, Ed???

Should see these new harvesters, that cut, buck, debark, and load all in one operation. Well, maybe two!

Al

[Captain_Bandaid]

Re: Bark Removal

I have tried various means to remove the bark from walking sticks that were harvested and allowed to dry over the winter. I found that a drawknife works well for this and a good drawknife will cut through the knots and branches easily, leaving a smooth surface. I have also tried a 4.5' sidewheel grinder with a 24 grit flapwheel. WOW! This setup will strip a 5 foot sapling in a few minutes. However, be warned that it makes a HUGE mess, is noisy, somewhat dangerous, and leaves the surface in need of a lot of TLC. But it does get the bark off quickly.