The Newbies Arena Are you new to knife making? Here is all the help you will need. |
12-02-2007, 11:01 PM
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Steel Addict
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Join Date: Oct 2007
Posts: 127
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handle material
i am going back and forth between ironwood or a stabilized wood for a handle.....i love the look of each..for different reasosn..i am very new to knife making..is either easier to work with/finish?....knife is a 7 3/4 inch hunting fixed blade. not used in wet or salty/humid areas...
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12-02-2007, 11:37 PM
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Skilled
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Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: Hattisburg Ms
Posts: 599
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i love ironwood,,however it will oxidize,,,so if the piece you have is extreamly dark to begin with it will only darken more. (it still looks great and will last for a thousand years)
properly stabilized wood can be dipped in burnt motor oil,,wiped clean and no stains,,
it comes down to what you like best,,,make two,,use them both lol.
good luck
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12-02-2007, 11:43 PM
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Steel Addict
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Join Date: Oct 2007
Posts: 127
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haha that is a good idea..........hmmmm....
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12-02-2007, 11:43 PM
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Super Moderator
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Join Date: Apr 2004
Location: Southeast Texas
Posts: 2,919
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I don't think one is harder than the other, but they are different. The obvious choice here is to make 2 knives.
If you look around this forum awhile, you'll see that there are many different materials and styles used. What stands out is not so much the material, but the workmanship and artistry that goes into making the knife. Some knives are complicated and difficult - or at least the process is complicated. For what you are talking about, don't focus on how hard it is, just on the time you take laying out the project and then the loving care you use in getting it done.
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12-03-2007, 09:26 AM
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Founding Member / Moderator
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Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: Wauconda, WA
Posts: 9,840
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Stabilized wood is much easier to finish than most any plain wood, with ironwood being one of the exceptions. In other words, ironwood is about as easy to finish as stabilized wood. I've used both on hunting knives and kitchen knives, both situations where you would expect to cut meat. On one such ironwood handle, a white powdery growth of some kind (fungus?) kept appearing no matter how we cleaned it off. Even after coating with tung oil the white powder would come back every six weeks or so. Never had that happen on any other ironwood and never on stabilized wood but it's something to take into account in your decision. Probably wouldn't happen to you but it could ...
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12-03-2007, 10:03 AM
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Hall of Famer
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Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Central Ohio
Posts: 2,193
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It was likely a type of fungus or mildew, Ray. I have had it happen to the surface of some gunstocks I've had in storage. It apparently feeds on the lipids in oils and waxes.
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12-03-2007, 10:14 AM
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Steel Addict
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Join Date: Oct 2007
Posts: 127
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thanks guys, great info. can't wait to get to it next year...after the hub bub of christmas has died down!!
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