The crooked knife is the heart of traditional bark canoe building methods. It is used in almost all phases of construction to shape, pare, shave and fashion split ribs, gunwales thwarts and stems to name a few. A comfortable and effective tool, it draws on the larger muscle mass of the entire arm instead of the wrist action and grip of the conventional knife. Its companions are the three sided awl, punch awl and small chisel. These are personal tools and are trusty companions in the hands of the bark canoe builder. They can be customized with carvings and cord wrappings.

Click here for photographs...