A thought

GWashington1732

GWashington1732

Joined
Jun 20, 2009
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So I saw a dead dear along the side of the road yesterday and had a thought. Would deer leg bone make a good knife handle? It would have to be pretty impact resistant because I've seen them get up and run off after being hit be cars. Plus, it would be free, you see roadkill deer year round in South Jersey, just get out of the car and take the parts of it you want and leave the rest for the vultures. It might be a little nasty, especially if it's been sitting for a few days :barf:, but who does it hurt? What do you think, about deer bones as handle material? I might not be the most fancy stuff but would it be worth it?
 
As long as the knife itself wasn't used for high impact tasks, like chopping et cetera... but at the bone dries it becomes relatively brittle, and would be better suited to smaller, easier tasks. Some khukuris have bone handles, but those are considered decorative... mind you khuks typically get subjected to some degree of chopping when used. I can't see why bone handles couldn't be used on a smaller knife used with care.
 
I was intending to try this on a KaBar Hunter or something similar in size maybe as scales on a folding knife, nothing for chopping. Does antler hold up to impacts better though? I will occasionally see a buck along the side of the road and I had a cool idea for a KaBar USMC. :D
 
Hi,

Maybe used in large profiles it might be OK. But whitetail bone is thinner in the walls than beef bone. So it wouldn't be as sturdy. But for a light duty knife it might be just fine.

dalee
 
GWashington1732 said:
I was intending to try this on a KaBar Hunter or something similar in size maybe as scales on a folding knife, nothing for chopping. Does antler hold up to impacts better though? I will occasionally see a buck along the side of the road and I had a cool idea for a KaBar USMC. :D
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Not too sure about antler... but I'm pretty sure folk have used it for bowie handles before.
 
Be careful. Depending on your state, it might be illegal to take parts off a roadkill deer. Here in WA, for example, I had a state patrolman tell me he'd arrest me if he ever saw me dispatch a deer that had been hit but wasn't dead yet (to this day I think I did the right thing by putting it out of it's misery, but that's another story). Anyway, just saying, do it discreetly if the law is around.

Parker
 
I once saw a knife on eBay, made by a Russian knifemaker, that used a bear's claw as a handle, and also another knife using a deer's leg.
 
catspa said:
Be careful. Depending on your state, it might be illegal to take parts off a roadkill deer. Here in WA, for example, I had a state patrolman tell me he'd arrest me if he ever saw me dispatch a deer that had been hit but wasn't dead yet (to this day I think I did the right thing by putting it out of it's misery, but that's another story). Anyway, just saying, do it discreetly if the law is around.
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Everything's illegal in NJ, but I haven't found any law against this yet, although it's too far a stretch for some officers to make laws up on the spot just so they can issue a ticket.
 
I often think of skinning fresh road kill for the fur. I never thought about the bone for scales. I think there may be a reason they use bovine shin bone. It would be a good question to ask Case, Queen, or another production facility that has experience in acquiring large amounts of natural handle material and finish them to a final product.
 
cj65 said:
I often think of skinning fresh road kill for the fur. I never thought about the bone for scales. I think there may be a reason they use bovine shin bone. It would be a good question to ask Case, Queen, or another production facility that has experience in acquiring large amounts of natural handle material and finish them to a final product.
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With beef production and consumption the way it is, cow bone is a much more consistent source of bone than deer, which would appear mainly around hunting season. Cow bone would also have to be thicker and more than likely stronger to support the larger, heavier animal animal. Though I'm not sure if deer bone would even work, I'll probably try it anyway when I get a little time just to see what happens. What do I loose by trying? It would be a good question to ask though, because it's possible that deer bone has a structure that makes it impossbible to carve without obliterating it.
 
The leg bones of the deer in Florida are only about an inch in diameter. Our deer aren't the largest so maybe bigger animals would have larger bones.

So the handle would have to be smaller for it to work. It also isn't solid and maybe 3/8" thick walls from what I remember? The pieces would be pretty small for scales once chopped up.

I guess it can't hurt to try? You might want to find someone that hunts and ask them to save a femur bone so you don't have to mess with road kill unless it is really cold and doesn't stink yet. Cutting the leg of a decaying animal doesn't sound like fun.
 
GWashington1732 said:
I was intending to try this on a KaBar Hunter or something similar in size maybe as scales on a folding knife, nothing for chopping. Does antler hold up to impacts better though? I will occasionally see a buck along the side of the road and I had a cool idea for a KaBar USMC. :D
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i'd have to assume so, seeing as how i've watched horned animals butt heads, but never kick eachother. they probably know which is stronger :D
 
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