Cause for concern?

crossada

crossada

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May 16, 2004
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Is this crack in the stag a cause for concern? I have applied some mineral oil to it which seemed to lessen it some but it has returned over a weeks time. Any advice would be appreciated. Just not wanting to have it get so bad that it could loosen or worse.
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Thanks.
 
So it is already a knife handle? If so, I would load it up with CA glue and hope the mineral oil didn't screw up your chances for a good patch job.
 
I agree with Rick. I've done this before to a couple of my own knives. Use some thin CA.
 
Rick Marchand said:
So it is already a knife handle? If so, I would load it up with CA glue and hope the mineral oil didn't screw up your chances for a good patch job.
Click to expand...

Remake the handle if it's already a knife - unless it's a real Loveless or Scagel or something.


Or if it's not on a knife yet, I'd cut into scales with the cut on the crack

I see lots of recommendations to oil everything, but I don't understand why it would help anything.
the oil really works against epoxy sticking to anything.
 
I was under the impression that this was a personal knife. I agree with the Count... if it's intended for a customer, remove and salvage scales if you can. Not that a glue fix isn't a good repair... it's just never a good idea to sell a "fixed" knife.
 
Sorry for the lack of info. Yes this is my personal Bagwell that I just purchased. It wasn't too bad when I first got it but I think coming from Texas to Iowa where it was cold at the time where I had the heat on might of made it worse. I have boiler room heat too so there is more moisture in the air.

Is CA glue super glue? I put the mineral oil on about two weeks ago now so hopefully it won't cause problems with the glue.

Thanks for all the advice so far, I really appreciate it.
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Beautiful knife! Yes, ca is super glue. Get a squeeze tube of the thin stuff(not gel) and drip it in. The stuff will wick in really fast and the porous core of the stag will suck it up good. You may need a lot. Keep a rag on hand to wipe off any pooling or drips. You will know when the crack gets full. You might be able to touch up with a super glue gel or maybe even some tung oil after it is dry.
 
If it is to be a collectible once you put glue in there the value will decrease since it has been repaired. Cracks occur in natural material and is expected. Once repaired the value will plummet.

If it is to be used then by all means repair it and to hell with collector value.
 
If you are going to glue it, spray the crack liberally with brake parts cleaner. Wear safety glasses!
After it has dried out, hopefully you will have removed most of the oil.
Don't oil stag, horn, or bone. Ever.
Go over the crack with a black magic marker before you glue it. The glue will dissolve some of the ink, making it black.
 
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Please contact the maker before you do anything even if you bought it on the seconddry market.I would ask him if you can send it to him to fix the crack. I would think he would do the the glue repair for little or nothing at all and if you ever sold the knife the repair was done by the maker as it should be.
 
My goodness, that's a gorgeous knife! Thanks for sharing it with us.

I agree with Brett, try to contact Mr. Bagwell and ask his advice. He is a HUGE name and if you want to maintain the knife's value, getting him involved is surely the best way to go.

Frankly, I don't think that crack is much to worry about. I could be wrong, but I would probably leave it alone. Barring major sudden shocks in temperature and humidity, that stag will probably outlast all of us.
 
I put mineral oil on it as that is what I found in the collection maintenance thread over in customs:confused:
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/534526-Knife-collection-maintenance-thread

If everyone thinks it will be A-OK without putting glue on it that's what i'll probably do. I just got the knife from Bill a few weeks ago and don't want to send it back. I have very little experience with stag so i've found this all very helpful with the do's and don'ts. It really isn't a big crack but when I found it I didn't want it to get bigger over time.

I will see what developes more on this thread before I do anything at this point.

Thank you all for the help.
 
I restore cutlery for a living. Never put oil on stag, horn, or ivory. It will soften and discolor it-and make any later repair attempts futile.
If you want to protect these materials, use paste wax.
I'm sure Bill would repair the knife.Why not ask him?
 
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On the other hand, Jerry Fisk wrote an article recommending mineral oil dips for ivory and stag. But what does he know?;)
Darcy:)
 
He knows a lot about knives, but apparently little about stag or ivory.
 
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