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Riving, a Viking-age woodworking technique

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Re: Riving, a Viking-age woodworking technique

#61

Post by mitchell_h »

scoggs wrote: post #31
321yawaworht wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Where do you guys come from? How do you know all this stuff? It's so interesting and I'm often surprised at the diversity of knowledge, experience and backgrounds on HN. For even the most esoteric of subjects folks here will have interesting input. I love to try and experiment, and like people who are passionate about things. Just wanted to get it off my chest. I love this place and it makes me appreciate life and it…

I'm not OP but if (s)he's / they're my age or older (young 30's) we grew up in a time where, depending on where you lived and how much money your family had growing up, knowing these non-technical (in a computer / digital sense) skills was more of the norm. Think "handyman" skills. I grew up in a household where my father worked in the cement industry. He made nearly all of our furniture, made a full deck in the back…

first up, awesome post! I grew up in much the same way(i'm 35, from lower middle class/upper lower class). If it was at all possible to do it our selves, we did because didn't have much choice.

Today I live on a hobby farm and I still use all the same things I learned back when. i keep a hefty stock pile of "junk" for re-purpose and have rebuilt most of the building, motors, and tools I have.

I've got 2 sons and they both think it's funny watching me fix random stuff with other random stuff. But it's a skill I've watched them pick up. i'm happy knowing they can fix what needs fixed and they're confidence never wavers when they want to build something.

Re: Riving, a Viking-age woodworking technique

#63

Post by tripletmass »

monochromatic wrote: post #60
GlenTheMachine wrote: post #4

This is an interesting article, but riving is not specifically Viking. It was the primary method of producing workable wood blanks from tree trunks in every civilization that used wood blanks. Which is to say, it was used all over Europe and Asia (at least), for at least the last 2000-plus years. I'm not as familiar with the woodworking traditions of Africa or pre-European-contact North or South America, so I don't k…

Riving is the right way to start if you’re making your own dowels too.

Rive first, true the dowel later; use a trivial cylindrical hydraulic cavitation method, extract dowels...only what trivial method was that again? Packing group twice, cavitate once mon.

I suppose you take off your ring and stick it on one side of the branch, push it with a series of hardwood staves while a friend brakes the stock so that a density minimum always appears true, ahead of the ring, and then continue until the limit theorem packing fails to brake?

Re: Riving, a Viking-age woodworking technique

#66

Post by abakker »

soperj wrote: post #56
CPLX wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you're at all into woodworking it's just a matter of time before an evening in the YouTube rabbit hole leads you to riving, or Alaskan chainsaw mills, or Wood Mizer demo videos, or silent Japanese guys that are wickedly good at joinery.

hahaha. I've been down the Alaskan Chainsaw mill & Riving rabbit holes, as well as the Paul Sellers stuff (silent british guy that's wickedly good at joinery), but I'll have to check the other 2 out.

2nd this. Buddy and I are currently building a bandsaw mill out of A motorcycle. All because of YouTube.

Re: Riving, a Viking-age woodworking technique

#67

Post by oh5nxo »

Gustomaximus wrote: post #62

The modern equivalent still common in Australia and probably other countries where you turn one log into 5 fence posts: https://youtu.be/rILXrWcav_Q

Funny, I'm always knee deep in long shavings when cutting that way, much shorter knotty lumps which won't split with an axe. Matter of wood, or special chain perhaps? Birch, pine, spruce and normal cutting chain&teeth, in my case. Or maybe there is a non-obvious technique?

Re: Riving, a Viking-age woodworking technique

#68

Post by oh5nxo »

jonnycomputer wrote: post #37
patrickyeon wrote: post #2

A while ago, I ended up watching a video about making roofing shingles using hand tools, which uses the same technique, but on only ~footlong logs. https://youtu.be/UZA1J8RHltY?t=555

I rather like this video. I aspire to chop so well. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7fWo0P0MdJM

The wood looks like somewhat dried aspen, not the worst to chop. Not to dismiss her skill, at all.

Re: Riving, a Viking-age woodworking technique

#69

Post by KozmoNau7 »

321yawaworht wrote: post #23
GlenTheMachine wrote: post #4

This is an interesting article, but riving is not specifically Viking. It was the primary method of producing workable wood blanks from tree trunks in every civilization that used wood blanks. Which is to say, it was used all over Europe and Asia (at least), for at least the last 2000-plus years. I'm not as familiar with the woodworking traditions of Africa or pre-European-contact North or South America, so I don't k…

Where do you guys come from? How do you know all this stuff? It's so interesting and I'm often surprised at the diversity of knowledge, experience and backgrounds on HN. For even the most esoteric of subjects folks here will have interesting input. I love to try and experiment, and like people who are passionate about things. Just wanted to get it off my chest. I love this place and it makes me appreciate life and it…

>"How do you know all this stuff?"

I've sometimes been asked this from friends and colleagues, when I've talked about some subject that I happen to know something about, be it electronics or plumbing or bicycle repair or baking or sound mixing.

I absolutely do not claim to be an expert or master in any field, but I do have reasonable knowledge and familiarity, as well as an unceasing desire to learn more.

Being a "knowledge sponge" and constantly curious about the world is a hallmark of geekdom to me. As is the willingness to try, fail and try again, and learn from it.

My parents made sure to instill these values, so I was naturally helped into the geek mindset.

My mom is a teacher and naturally curious about everything, she's a popular science enthusiast, if such a thing exists.

My dad is what used to be called a "radio mechanic", and has never been afraid to take on DIY tasks of any kind, and involve me in them.

In general hobbies have always been important in my family. My uncle assembles his own racing bikes and has hand-built several wooden kayaks, just as an example.

Maybe not everyone has taken the same way into greatly expanded general knowledge, but I like to think a lot of us have this desire to learn new things.

The real trick is to know the limits of your knowledge, and to admit when you hit them ;-)

Re: Riving, a Viking-age woodworking technique

#70

Post by exDM69 »

I do this kind of woodworking as a hobby. A lot of the material I use has been riven or split from firewood or yard trees. I mostly use dry or half dry wood, but sometimes also green stuff.

It is a bit time consuming, but not that much when I take into account that I don't need to be transporting stuff to a sawyer and back home, then to a shop with jointers and planers and whatnot. I can do it all in my home shop with a handful of tools whenever I want.

Here's a gallery of a firewood project I made for a contest earlier this year: https://m.imgur.com/gallery/TCgqd

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