American hardwood for kitchen knife handles?

[Kentucky]

curly maple , aqua fortis and tru oil is pretty darn attractive

Curly maple stained with aqua fortis is about the prettiest wood their is to me

 

[jdm61]

Basic curly maple stained with Fiebings and finished with BLO ain't bad looking either.

Curly maple stained with aqua fortis is about the prettiest wood their is to me
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[Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith]

Stabilized curly maple is also lovely. The stripe is pretty pronounced, and the scintillation is great. The stripes roll up and down the handle as it moves.

When dyed/darkened on raw wood, the stripes are fixed. That said, the classic dyed/darkened pipe hawk or muzzleloader is a joy to hold and admire.