The Crooked Knife: History, Design & Use with Jarrod Dahl, Woodspirit School of Traditional Craft

Recorded October 30, 2021
Jarrod Dahl, Woodspirit School of Traditional Craft, Ashland, Wisconsin, www.woodspiritschool.com
Woodspirit Handcraft, www.woodspirithandcraft.com
The crooked knife, also known as the mocataugan, has an important place in the history of North American woodworking. Essentially a one handed drawknife, this ingenious and highly efficient tool was commonly used by indigenous people of the Eastern Seaboard and Great Lakes Region for making snowshoes, birch bark canoes, and more.
Join Jarrod as he shares the history of this tool and his experiences with using the knife for woodworking projects including birch bark canoes, ash baskets and snowshoes. He will share photos of various designs, discuss their nuances, and give a demonstration of how to carve with the tool while explaining what he has learned about the knife’s design. He will also talk through the steps for forging your own crooked knife blade and how to fit the handle to its user. This talk is perfect for someone who wants to make their own crooked knife or has carved with them before.
Resources link for this presentation including a manual on how to make a handle for a crooked knife: www.woodspirit...
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Support our developing School of Traditional Craft in Ashland, WI by sending a donation here: www.woodspirit.... Thanks for your interest!

[@waaboozlittleshell4483]

Thanks i just sharpened up my crooked knife and watched this

[@goemaerebart9451]

There are some of these videos on the net that stand out. This one is one of them. I'm an all-round wood- and steelworker and the more I grow old the more I value the 'less is more' attitude. Skills over watts, intelligent moves over hours of digging to nowhere. Honestly, initially I wanted to learn something new about spoon carving, and the more I advanced in this document I understood that this was about everything but spoon carving. You know, I've been carving canoe paddles and axe handles with loads of satisfaction, using 'old world' drawknives, and for some reason I managed to pass completely aside/far away this world you described in your video, sir. Chapeau bas, as they say in this country. Hat down. In an absolute humble way not only you managed to understand, transfer and honor the ancestral knowledge, but also to add your own value to it. I enjoyed every single second of it. And now I need a Mocotaugan.

[@jasonjohnson6344]

Informative video. 👏👍✌️

[@Fuss707]

Thank you very much for sharing this! Greatly appreciated 🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻🙌🏻❤️

[@MrRugercat45]

Amazing video! Loved it! You covered so much material in a very concise manner.

[@Fuss707]

Thank you very much for sharing this! Greatly appreciated 🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻🙌🏻❤️