Wood for knife handles

[jmforge]

I will keep that in mind. I was very pleasantly surprised at how nice teak was to work with. All my life I thought of teak as decking and rub rails. I have never seen a teak burl. That's worth looking into. For kitchen knives, you'd be hard pressed to find a better handle material than teak if looks are not paramount. A burl might be a real winner.

Remember that most teak that you see does not have a real fine finish layer on it. You apply teak oil to the deck to keep it from drying out and splitting, but a smooth, shiny surface would kind of defeat the purpose of the non-skid deck. I don't know what an 800 grit "hard" oil finish would look like on teak. I have read that plantation teak like the stuff that is grown commmercially in Central America does not have the same oil content as old growth stuff. Much of that stuff is left unfinished or, at best, hit with some kind of wood "sealer."

 

[Greenberg Woods]

I will keep that in mind. I was very pleasantly surprised at how nice teak was to work with. All my life I thought of teak as decking and rub rails. I have never seen a teak burl. That's worth looking into. For kitchen knives, you'd be hard pressed to find a better handle material than teak if looks are not paramount. A burl might be a real winner.

This is some teak burl. Its nice stuff to work with.

 

[doc blues]

I love Cocobolo, too. I always have. I remember how happy I was the first time I was able to upgrade a pistol to cocobolo grips. In it's finished state, neither Cocobolo nor African Blackwood give me any problems. But the dust is no bueno for me. And people need to heed Steve and JMForge's advice... you DO build up an allergy to it over time. I made a bunch of Cocobolo knives before I had problems. I always wore a respirator, but over time I got to where if I could still smell the dust on me- or on my bench even days later, it was like getting a quick whiff of pepper spray. I need to give away the last of my blocks of it, too. Just handling them, if they are rough and dusty, then forgetting and touching my face or eyes later is enough for it to start burning.

I'll look in my stash and see what I still have of it, because at one time I had some absolutely gorgeous blocks of it. Free to a good home. I'll post pics when I find it.

I know this is late , but if that cocobolo is still available I would love to take it off your hands.

 

[John Wilson]

I know this is late , but if that cocobolo is still available I would love to take it off your hands.

sure thing. let me see if i can dig it up. i can’t even remember how big a block i have left, but whatever it is, it’s yours.

PM me your address and I’ll get it out on Monday.