A better set contains a dozen carving tools and this includes the above tools as well as a couple of bent fluting gouges, with ¹⁄₈ and ¹⁄₄ inch sweeps, a couple of front bent tools, a straight parting tool, and a veining tool, all of which is shown at [A in Fig. 22]; the sweeps, as the curved cutting edges are called, are shown at [B].
The tangs of these tools, that is the sharp ends which fit into the handles, have shoulders on them to prevent the handles from creeping and splitting. The best carving tools on the market are those made by S. J. Addis of London, and you can’t go wrong if you buy them.
 | A |  |
| STRAIGHT CHISEL | SHORT BEND GOUGE | |
 |  | |
| SKEW CHISEL | STRAIGHT PARTING TOOL | |
 |  | |
| STRAIGHT GOUGE | LONG BEND GOUGE | |
 |  | |
| FLUTING GOUGE | FRONT BEND GOUGE | |
 |  | |
| VEINING TOOL | ||
 | ||
| BENT FILE | ||
 |  | |
| B | C | |
| SWEEPS OF WOOD CARVING TOOLS | CARVER’S MALLET | |
Fig. 22. kinds and sweeps of carving tools
Carving tools as they come from the makers are sharpened but not honed, that is the tools are ground sharp, but the inside bevel of the tools must be rubbed up with an oil stone slip and most wood carvers like to do this themselves.
When you buy a set of carving tools you also want to get a carver’s mallet made of lignum-vitæ[15] with a face 2¹⁄₂ inches in diameter and, as you will see in [Fig. 22], its shape is quite different from the ordinary kinds. Also get a Washita oil stone, and an Arkansas carving tool slip, which is a small wedge-shaped oil-stone.
[15] Lignum-vitæ is a greenish-brown wood and is very hard and heavy. It grows in tropical America.
Fig. 23. markers for stamping in backgrounds
Two or more markers, which are stamps made of tool steel, are very useful for stamping in background work. A number of different designs are shown in [Fig. 23] and they cost about a quarter apiece.