How do you know what cutting tools to buy for lino cutting? How much to spend? As with all new hobbies it’s hard to know, particularly if you are on a budget. I’ve gathered up a lot of useful information so you don’t have to spend time looking.
For beginners:
Try a starter kit. They come with everything you need for a basic cut and print apart from paper. They are easy to find on shopping sites. Essdee make a common one:
Lino cutting tools:
Starter:
There are multiple makes of cheap cutters with either a plastic or wooden handle and interchangeable blades. Again Eesdee is an example of this (see picture above) and commonly available in art shops and online. I’ve not tried other versions so can’t comment on which is best but I’ve been using these for nearly at least 6 months and get good results with them, so whilst budget they are effective. (Cost £5-15 depending on what extras you choose).
More advanced:
There are multiple options online and increasingly expensive. It’s important to look for tolls that are the right shape and size for how you work, for example I use predominantly a tool with a tiny v shaped cutting edge to do fine details, a wider U shap and then a wider flat blad with edges to clear large spaces. I rarely use anything else, so when looking at expensive sets you should think do you need them, would it be cheaper just to buy the shapes you use or do you think with more options you would expand your repertoire?
Narex tools: Narex has a smaller selection than Pfiel (see below) but the tools are well made and a little cheaper. There is a set of 5 tools containing all the tools you should need except perhaps a smaller V tool. (currently £69.99).
Pfeil tools: Probably the most well known and expensive lino cut tools. Swiss made with a reputation for being incredibly sharp and well made. They can be bought singly (currently ~£25 per tool) or in sets of six (~ £120) of which there are multiple sets. They also do wood carving tools so make sure you’re looking at the those designed for lino, they are easy to recognise as the handle is shaped to rest in the palm of the hand.
There are many types of tools and there is a confusing descriptive system for naming them. Here is a catalogue link. There is one letter and two numbers to each code. You want one starting with L (for lino) then there is a number. The first number is the blade type (1 = Straight line. 2-11 = Curve or a gouge. The higher the number the deeper the curve. 12-14 = V shaped cutters), the second number is the size of the blade. So for example in the kit B you can see the numbers and the corresponding blade shape (image from pfeil’s catalogue):
This should be all you need to know for lino cutting tools. Next time inks and paper.
