2018 BF Knife Poll 5.1: Wood Handle Materials

Choose your Wood Material Champion: 2 Votes Allowed

  • Snakewood - $$

    Votes: 38 12.3%
  • KOA Flamewood - $$

    Votes: 105 34.1%
  • Box Elder Burl - $$

    Votes: 15 4.9%
  • Maple Burl - $$

    Votes: 23 7.5%
  • Buckeye Burl - $$

    Votes: 56 18.2%
  • Ironwood - $$

    Votes: 119 38.6%
  • Osage Orange - $$

    Votes: 64 20.8%
  • Bocote - Shipping Cost Only - Free

    Votes: 46 14.9%
  • Shockwood - $$$

    Votes: 8 2.6%
  • Ebony - $$

    Votes: 36 11.7%

  • Total voters
    308
  • Poll closed .
Joined
Dec 1, 2015
Messages
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You are in Poll 5.1: Wood Handle Materials

If you are just joining, the knife that has been built thus far for the 2018 BF Knife is a 2 Bladed Buck 301, Clip and Sheepsfoot on opposite ends of the knife. Your blade steel is CPM-154 with a tang stamp and the bolsters are NICKEL SILVER. And it seems to be a lock that both blades will have FFG.

Now that poll 5/8: Handle Materials has given us tons of input for handle choices, we've created 3 new polls. These polls will feature the following broad categories for handle materials:

Poll 5.1: Wood
Poll 5.2: Animal - LINK HERE
Poll 5.3: Synthetic - LINK HERE

These polls will run until 5/23. A Champion Material will emerge from each poll, a Wood Material Champion, an Animal Material Champion, and a Synthetic Material Champion. These Champions will face off in a Battle Royale, winner takes all bout.

So, as always, battle it out and choose your champion. To add some spice into the mix, you will be given the ability to VOTE FOR 2 OPTIONS in each poll. After all, if you're choosing your champion, you may as well have 2 horses in the race!

*Bocote is an option in this poll is being donated generously by Dopic1 Dopic1 should it be chosen. As has already been discussed, Bocote was already used in a recent BF knife, so please keep that in mind as you vote.

* I think it's fair to ask that if you have no interest in ordering a knife, please do not vote, but please do participate in the discussions!
 
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Went with the free bocote because of the member donation, but I'd be OK with any of the choices.
 
This is a tough call, there are some terrific wood choices here...
  • Ironwood is my first choice. I know we have seen a bunch of it on GEC knives as well as Fiddleback knives, but it is a beautiful varied grain with some of the most pleasing chatoyance I've experienced with any wood. I have a few examples, all different, all equally beautiful though.
  • Osage Orange is my second choice. I've long been intrigued by Osage, it has an interesting history and it really is hard to get more American that this wood. It is durable, it changes with age and use, and it really is very pleasing to look at. I do not have any knives in OO yet but I would be very happy for this Buck to be the first.
  • Koa Flamewood is a very close second/third choice. Such a gorgeous wood. My dad has a Martin acoustic guitar with the back and sides made from Koa and it is simply awe inspiring. If Koa is chosen, I would have to get two knives, for obvious reasons...
Though I certainly appreciate the very kind offer in regards to the Bocote, it is not my favorite wood. If it ends up being chosen, it will indeed be a special knife and I will be proud to own one, it just isn't my first choice.
 
Really, these options are all winners. My two favorites are burl (any of them) and Koa. For now my vote goes to the Koa.
 
Koa to the win :D My experience with osage hasn't been the best(well ok, maybe I haven't carried my osage knife enough to give it a good chance to wear); it's just too orange for my liking (well, who would have thought that osage orange would be orange :D )
 
Koa to the win :D My experience with osage hasn't been the best(well ok, maybe I haven't carried my osage knife enough to give it a good chance to wear); it's just too orange for my liking (well, who would have thought that osage orange would be orange :D )

It is rather remarkable to see how Osage changes with use and it does so within a relatively short amount of time. It would be cool if some members here could show off some of their examples to demonstrate how it ages. Personally, I find it rather exceptional. It definitely does not stay orange.
 
Since shockwood is still at zero: maybe some people don't know what it is and would actually like it(I certainly didn't know it(and don't like it :D )) Here's a picture from google. Schatt and Morgan did some slipjoints with it. The amount of resin seems to vary greatly from knife to knife/manufacturer to manufacturer
pacvf2ck3vxz.jpg
 
I assume the burl woods are stabilized, but what about the other wood choices? While I love the look and feel of wood, I'm always a little wary of how it moves, twists, bows, cups, or otherwise warps. My experience is with slightly larger pieces, so I don't know how big or small of an issue this is with knife handles.
 
I assume the burl woods are stabilized, but what about the other wood choices? While I love the look and feel of wood, I'm always a little wary of how it moves, twists, bows, cups, or otherwise warps. My experience is with slightly larger pieces, so I don't know how big or small of an issue this is with knife handles.

Many woods do not require stabilization due to their natural density and toughness. Ironwood, Osage, Bocote, Ebony, etc. require no stabilization.
 
Since shockwood is still at zero: maybe some people don't know what it is and would actually like it(I certainly didn't know it(and don't like it :D )) Here's a picture from google. Schatt and Morgan did some slipjoints with it. The amount of resin seems to vary greatly from knife to knife/manufacturer to manufacturer
pacvf2ck3vxz.jpg
I don't see that working on a small or narrow handled knife knife. The wood to resin ratio could come out badly.
I assume the burl woods are stabilized, but what about the other wood choices? While I love the look and feel of wood, I'm always a little wary of how it moves, twists, bows, cups, or otherwise warps. My experience is with slightly larger pieces, so I don't know how big or small of an issue this is with knife handles.
I've seen a number of 100 year old knives with wood that outlasted the steel. They were mostly ebony or cocobolo.
 
It's interesting that ebony wasn't an option. I wonder why. That said if all the usual wood choices were on offer we'd have a list a page long right? :)
 
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