North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

["tanis cuff" <tanistanis@hotmail.com>]

I was once shown how to use the grip which Lucky describes, but, to avoid 
cutting yourself you should hold your knife arm steady and pull the stick 
away from yourself.  Takes a little practice to get used to, and the trouble 
with a single-bevel knife is you may be more comfortable with knife in left 
hand, and the stick in the right.


----Original Message Follows----
From: Lucky
To: North American Fruit Explorers <nafex@lists.ibiblio.org>
Subject: Re: [NAFEX] Grafting knife grip?
Date: Wed, 25 Feb 2004 08:32:34 -0600

At 08:35 AM 2/25/2004 -0500, Tom wrote:
> Finally bought a grafting knife with a single beveled edge.  Now I have a 
> question...
> I am following the instructions in the "Fruit Grafters Handbook" put out by 
> Burford and Fackler, and it does not
> mention whether the beveled edge should be up or down, when making cuts.
> I am right handed, and I assume that they sent me a right handed knife.  
> When I hold the knife in my right fist,

Yes, you've got a right-handed knife.
I always make my cuts pulling toward me - the edge is facing me, and the 
bevel is up; I realize one's power-stroke should be on pushing away, but 
grafting is not so much a power thing as a finesse thing.  Of course, 
cutting toward one's self is one of the major reasons so many of us cut 
ourselves from time to time in the process.

Lucky Pittman
USDA Zone 6
Hopkinsville, KY

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