Draw Knife

Drawknives in Woodworking: The Essential Tool for Rough Shaping and Precision Carving

Among the most iconic and time-honored hand tools in woodworking is the drawknife—a simple yet powerful blade used to shape wood with speed and control. With its distinctive form and tactile method of use, the drawknife is particularly valued in green woodworking, chair making, timber framing, and other traditional crafts where shaping raw stock by hand is essential.

What Is a Drawknife?

A drawknife is a cutting tool consisting of a straight or slightly curved blade with a handle on each end, designed to be pulled toward the user—hence the name. The edge of the blade faces the user, and the tool is used to shave off layers of wood, removing material quickly while still allowing for precision.

Drawknives vary in size, with blade lengths typically ranging from 4 to 14 inches, depending on the type of work. Some have curved blades (ideal for hollowing or contour work), while others are straight for general shaping. The bevel can be single or double-sided, each offering a different kind of control and finish.

What Are Drawknives Used For?

Drawknives are incredibly versatile and are primarily used for rough shaping and thinning pieces of wood, especially when working with green (unseasoned) timber. Common uses include:

Shaping chair parts like legs, spindles, and arms
Making tool handles, bows, and paddles
Debarking logs and preparing timber for hewing or joinery
Carving posts, rails, and stakes in traditional fence or barn building
Creating flat or faceted surfaces on round wood

In crafts like Windsor chair making, drawknives are indispensable for shaping tapered, elegant components straight from the shavehorse.

How Is a Drawknife Used?

Using a drawknife requires technique and attention to grain direction. Here’s how it’s typically used:

Securing the Workpiece: Most often, the wood is held in a shavehorse—a foot-operated clamping bench that allows hands-free control and quick repositioning.
Proper Grip: The user holds both handles and pulls the blade toward themselves, slicing thin shavings with each pass.
Controlled Cuts: By adjusting the angle and pressure, the woodworker can take deep, aggressive cuts for fast material removal or fine, shallow passes for smoothing and refining.
Following the Grain: To avoid tear-out, cuts are made with the grain as much as possible. When working on curves or irregular shapes, the blade’s position is constantly adjusted to accommodate the flow of the wood.
Using the Bevel: Depending on the task, the bevel may face up or down—bevel-down for controlled slicing, bevel-up for aggressive shaping.

Types of Drawknives

Different shapes and configurations exist for specific purposes:

Straight Drawknives: The most common form, ideal for flat or gently curved surfaces.
Curved Drawknives: Useful for hollowing or concave work, like bowl interiors or chair seats.
Foldable Drawknives: Designed with pivoting handles for safe transport and storage.
Heavy Timber Drawknives: Larger and sturdier, used for debarking logs or rough timber work.

Each style gives the user a different feel and degree of control, and many craftspeople keep a few on hand for different stages of a project.

Skill and Craftsmanship

While the drawknife is a relatively simple tool, it requires sensitivity and practice to use well. The best results come from a razor-sharp edge, consistent technique, and a close feel for how the wood responds to the blade. Unlike power tools, drawknives leave characterful, faceted surfaces that reflect the human hand—an aesthetic valued in traditional and modern handcraft alike.

Drawknives are also incredibly efficient. In skilled hands, they can remove large volumes of wood quickly, yet stop just shy of the final shape with remarkable accuracy. Their versatility and speed make them a favorite among both hobbyists and professionals.

A Tool That Connects Us to Tradition

In an age of machinery and automation, the drawknife remains a powerful symbol of handcraft—a direct link to centuries of woodworking tradition. Whether shaping green wood into elegant chair legs or preparing timber for a timber-frame barn, the drawknife offers a deep connection between maker, tool, and material.

Simple, effective, and satisfying to use, the drawknife is a timeless reminder that sometimes the most elegant solutions are also the most enduring.

The Classic Woodworking Tool: The Draw Knife

A draw knife is a traditional woodworking tool that has been around for centuries. It’s used to shape and smooth wood by removing shavings, and can be found in many woodworkers’ toolboxes. Let’s take a look at the history of the draw knife and explore how it can be used in various projects.

What is a Draw Knife?

A draw knife is a simple but effective tool that consists of a short blade with two handles on either end. The blade is much longer than it is deep and the bevel on a draw knife is always up. It looks like a large version of your kitchen paring knife, but with two handles instead of one. The draw knife was first used by ancient Egyptians in 3000 BCE, who used it to fashion wooden tools out of logs.

The draw knife gets its name from how it is used: you simple grab the handles and draw the knife toward you with the bevel up. It also goes by several other names including draw shave, drawing knife, and shaving knife. At one time, woodworkers sat on a bench that also served as a clamp of holding device for the wood being shaped. That bench is called a shaving horse.

The length of the blade on a draw knife determines how they are sized. An 8 inch draw knife, for example, will have a sharpened bevel part of the blade that is 8 inches long. The size of most draw knives are usually between 8 inches and can be as long as 18 or 20 inches. Most are in the 6 to 12 inch size.

What is a Draw Knife Used For?

Draw knives are most commonly used for shaving down or smoothing out wood surfaces. They can also be used for removing bark from trees and cut limbs, and hey can also be used to create hollows in wooden planks or logs (though this requires more skill). Additionally, they can be used to shape pieces of furniture or other wooden objects, to shape rough shape cylindrical objects such as chair or table legs, or for preparing wood for use on a lathe. A draw knife is especially useful when working with curved surfaces because it allows you to shave away large or small amounts of material depending on the angle at which the blade enters the wood.

A steep angle will lead to an aggressive cut removing a lot of material. The steeper angle, however, will take a lot more physical effort. Lowering the angle removes less material and give you a finer finish.

How Do I Use a Draw Knife?

Draw knives are typically used by pulling or drawing the blade toward you from the middle of the wood rather than the entire length at one time. With the wood clamped down, held in a vise, or otherwise secured. By tilting the beveled blade upward or downward to change the angle of the blade entering the wood, the user can adjust the depth of cut and how much wood is removed in one pass.

Vintage 10″ Draw Knife, Brass Ferules and Hardwood Handles

The draw knife is an incredibly versatile tool that has been around for millennia and still finds use today among woodworkers everywhere thanks to its effectiveness at shaving down materials and creating unique shapes from them quickly and efficiently. Whether you’re looking for an easy way to shave down some rough edges or craft beautiful furniture from logs, the humble yet powerful drawknife might just be what you need! Be sure to handle your tools carefully though; even something as simple as a drawknife can cause serious injury if not treated with respect!