Snake wood trouble ATT: Stacey Apelt

HELLGAP

HELLGAP

Dealer - Purveyor
Hi ya all ive run into some real trouble and stacey give me some tips on snake wood but if anyone else know what I should do please reply. I made my wife a pair of incredable damascus kitchen knives with matching snake wood handles. I come home from a trip to find the handles are both cracked bad one has 3 cracks and the paring knife has one crack on one side. The cracks are so bad that the scale popped almost off on one side I can see light between the wood and steel so its bad. What should I do ??? Can I salvage the handles ???
 
I know it's no help but this is something I've heard of happening quite often with Snakewood.

It's a real bummer as I have some but am reluctant to use it.
 
Unless its stabilized or a true dense hard wood like Ironwood or Lignum vida I wouldn't put it on anything that will get wet like a kitchen knife. It's just asking for cracks, But that's just me.
 
Snakewood and Ebony are two woods that are just like concrete in the following respect: Its not IF they are going to crack and/or check, its WHEN.

From what you described it almost sounds like the result of having gone through a cycle in a dishwasher. If the wood is pulling away from the tang(s), there isn't really a whole lot you can do to save those scales. At least nothing that would turn out looking good.
Most of the kitchen knives that I have made for my wife over the years have very plain handles...mainly because the woods that tend to last in that environment tend to be plainer looking, and also because I anticipated having to eventually re-handle them when they were built.

Its a bummer that the handles went south on you...snakewood is getting to be fairly rare stuff, and very expensive.
 
Ed thanks for your reply, I kinda figured im hooped. The scale on the larger knife chef type chopping blade it has 3 cracks on one side alone and almost falling off the tang. The knife has only been hand washed one time and hand dried these scales were stabilized but freshly but to fit by me. The person I bought from had done it right It is all my fault. I had also bought 200 dollars worth of high end scales that im sure are worth 3 times what I paid . I used my kmg clone and heated up the wood causeing all the trouble. Stacey Apelt says hand sand and go slow never heat up the wood or it will CRACK. Iwas just hoping there may be some trick to save them out look is grim
 
Have you looked at Alpha Knife Supply? They have some great looking stabilized woods, though no snakewood. Many of them have some real interesting grain patterns and should hold together in a kitchen envirnment.

Doug Lester
 
Snakewood can't be stabilised with resin. If someone says they can do it, I'll call them a liar. It's too dense.

They may have been stabilised in the sense that they have been seasoned.

A piece of wood that is being described as stabilised in the context that we are looking at it, is one that has been treated so that it is not affected by environmental conditions.
 
STEW your right its one of the hardest woods ive ever worked with and I think thats what the guy did was just fill in any voids after cutting it was all kiln dried . Doug I have a massive amount of wood about 600 sets of scales now about 200 are stabilized 400 that dont need it cuzz they are rose wood ,ironwood or bubbinga. I also have 20 board ft of curly maple/birdseye non stabilized. I have about 40 different types of wood now, I really dont need any more lol thanks any how . kellyw
 
Snakewood is pretty but it sucks. I've heard some guys glue liners on it and it helps some with the cracking. I don't see how though. Stew is right, it can't be stabilized. Sorry.
-John
 
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