Has anyone used Mesquite in a knife handle?

Chris Railey

Chris Railey

Well-Known Member
I have an opportunity to buy some Mesquite that has nice figure and grain but I have never used it before. How does it work?

As a side note, if anyone has an abundance of of Mesquite and would like to trade it for some Black Walnut let me know.
 
I've used it a couple of times and it's worked good - as far as I know anyway. Never heard back from customer so I expect it's still doing good. Mesquite can look good. I think of it like Black Walnut as far as stabilizing goes, you can stabilize, but it sure looks good and seems to last without stabilizing.
 
Chris - I did a quick search here on KD using "mesquite" as the search term. Several pictures came up showing knives. Jason Fry, Randy Lucius, and a couple others have used mesquite, it appears.
 
I've used a lot of it.... both stabilized and not. Either way, it's a tough wood..... grinding, especially finishing with finer grits requires new/sharp belts, as it will burn very easily.

It's one of those woods that can be all over the map in terms of how it looks.... some has awesome "burl" look to it, and other is plain straight grain.
I personally like using it not stabilized, and finishing with lots of coats of Tru-Oil.

As with any natural handle material..... don't buy it unless you can see it first hand! I've been hustled far too many times, even by individuals that I thought I could trust, who promised/showed me one thing, and then once they had my money, sent me something totally different (and not in a good way). Beware, especially if it's an entity on the net, who "wets down" the wood for photos. If they use any amount of water on it....it's going to have to sit for a LONG time before use........
 
I’ve got a mesquite knife on order- and just like Ed said, damn if I didn’t get hustled on the scales I bought. It’s always a crap shoot buying wood online, even from big companies. In my early days of making I’d buy from Woodcraft (HAHAHAHAHAHA!). You may as well walk out in the woods and pick up sticks off the ground. That’s about the same luck you’ll have getting anything that matches the pictures from Woodcraft.
 
Whew..... sorry, but glad it's not only me that gets the "hustle" when buying handle material. For me, I learned a long time ago, to not even consider buying it, unless I actually held it in my hands and see it in person.
Ordering from any of the supply outfits, I have this picture in my mind of some high school kid, being given the order form, and told....."Go get this stuff". He/She goes to the "warehouse", and finds a bin labeled "XXXXX" and grabs the fist block or set of scales they can.....and that's what you get. On the other side.... with the online/pictures..... even those who supposedly post "actual wood you will receive" pictures..... I don't trust.... been burned by them too.
I've written about it before, but one of my biggest hose jobs with online, was buying a whole burl for several hundred dollars, and being promised that it had been "air dried for over 2 years", sent pics of a burl that looked great....dried and everything....... and when I got it, it was soaking wet, with so many cracks and checks that I got absolutely NOTHING in the way of handle material out of it. The outfit where I got it, conveniently became deaf to my emails and phone calls. :mad: I finally got mad enough that I started posting on their FB page..... and they went "out of business" shortly there after.
 
Thanks guys I appreciate the responses. It sounds like it works like Maple which I am used to working. Maple burns readily with a dull belt.
 
Well, I am happy that I didn't disappoint ya Ted!
Just doin my part to speed up your healing.! A smile and a chuckle go a long way to help. Besides, us westerners know about mesquite bbq. Gotta teach them southerners!
 
EdCaffreyMS said:
with the online/pictures..... even those who supposedly post "actual wood you will receive" pictures..... I don't trust.
Click to expand...
One online seller that is very reliable is Shelton Pacific. Steve Hughes puts a sticker with an individualized identifier number on each block. It is how he controls inventory and how you choose which block you want. High end product, no junk.
 
I'm sure there are trustworthy sellers out there. I will admit that there are still TWO individuals that I would trust for natural handle materials, but I've just been burned too many times, specifically on wood, and in some instances by people I once thought of as "friends", to keep going through it.

As a kid, it only took me once of peeing on an electric fence to never do that again.....and that didn't cost me anything! :)
 
The small knives have mesquite spacers and the bigger knife has all mesquite
 

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J. Doyle said:
I made this one with mesquite awhile back. It worked pretty well and didn't really cause any issues.

Click to expand...
Not to derail this tread, that is a beautiful set up. I'm intrigued by the sheath. The knife is held in place by the loop, which is attached to the stud pin, and the loop being independent of the sheath. What size stud pins do you use for that? It looks great.
 
It smells GLORIOUS when you're sanding it, I love mesquite, I also use it in my charcoal grill for making Tri Tips and Brisket and such TASTY!
 
I've been a meat smoker for quite a while, and mesquite is my go to wood for beef, period. Hickory for pork, and cherry for a little milder smoke. If it's for my own consumption, I'll sometimes use mesquite for smoking a whole chicken, but it's easy to overdo it.
 
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