Favorite Handle Material on Coke Bottle Hunter?

[the possum]

What kind of handle scales would you prefer to have on a custom made coke bottle hunter, given your druthers? Single saber ground clip point blade with long pull and deep swedges, with the usual swell center handle, and nickel bolsters on both ends. Haven't decided yet if the bolsters should be threaded, so open to ideas on that as well.

Main choices would be white ivory, brown or possibly blue bark ivory, white mother of pearl, black mother of pearl, ebony, or natural stag. I realize jigged bone is super traditional, but it's not available for this particular piece. I'm leaning away from the pearl scales just because they seem out of place on this pattern. I'd love stag, but it really depends on the texture/beauty of the particular piece. Ivory is the easy choice. What say ye?

 

[Pàdruig]

You have an idea of the size you are going for? Will this be patterned after a traditional large folding hunter or some of the smaller variants?

My preference would be for Ebony or Stag - both very good looking and traditional materials that weather very well on a working knife like the folding hunter. If you are having it custom made, you would likely have some say on the quality of Stag being used.

 

[the possum]

It will be patterned after a large traditional one.

 

[Primble]

My New York Knife Co. lock-back Hunter in jigged bone. So similar to this ? ........ or something different ?
Ebony would look nice with a shield or if no shield maybe some nice stag. Brown bark Ivory sounds nice too.
This knife has an iron bolster on the pivot end and NS on the end cap.

 

[GaiusJulius]

Ebony is the most traditional, followed by stag. I’d probably refer stag but only if it’s “good” stag. Taste in stag strongly varies by the individual though so that course is risky.

I’ve seen coke bottle hunters in celluloid imitation mother-of-pearl. Not my thing but an interesting knife nonetheless.

 

[the possum]

Primble-
Yeah, very similar to that, but not a lockback. I was also figuring on some kind of shield if it had smooth handle material, but will probably forgo it if using stag.

I do have a big old Western / Boulder folding hunter with cracked ice handles, but it's not a coke bottle pattern.

 

[Tyson A Wright]

I'll go ahead and state my (probably unpopular) opinion: I think a large swell-center hunter would look amazing with stabilized koa. The right piece can be stunning because koa is gorgeous, and it's a tough and very functional material because of the stabilization. It's not as traditional as some other suggestions here, but it's not completely wacky, either.

 

[lambertiana]

If you want to be true to historical examples, ebony would be a good choice. If you want a really nice one that is different, mammoth would be a great choice.

 

[Pàdruig]

I am a fan of ebony on this pattern and have a small pile of "dark" wood. (I say this because though I am confident that some are indeed ebony, others might be some other variant)

 

[afishhunter]

Dark wood; Ebony/African Blackwood, and some Rosewoods, for a "traditional" working peice?

Personally, I "think" (others will agree and disagree) a "critter" infested burl would be the cat's roar on such a large knife.

 

[jc57]

Of the materials you listed, stag would be my pick if I could see the stag first. I love stag and I hate stag. It is all in the actual implementation and the particular slabs you get, and how they are fitted, treated, and polished (or not).

I hate extremely fat stag, severely mismatched sides, and especially sides of vastly different geometry. I like the variations and character of natural materials up to a point, but I want the window of "variation" constrained within a particular range. Stag is one of those materials where I either need to see the knife in person, or at least have a front, back, and vertical shot of the handles.

When done to my particular tastes, stag is one of the most beautiful and best feeling handle materials. Since my particular tastes are, well, particular to me, I generally go with jigged bone since it is more something you know about what to expect.

 

[Oldy]

As much as like stag it is so unpredictable from one to the next,mamoth from what I hear can warp,ebony varies alot as well from having brown streaks to my favorite in a dark rich black with some small pitting in the grain.but I can't resist dark ebony with silver shield and caps but I also love the rich dark golden brown jigged bone.

 

[danno50]

Another vote for ebony.

 

[Old Engineer]

I would go with Stag but I would want a lot to say about how that Stag would be . We used to be able to pick which Stag handled knife from Collector Knives but that time passed long ago . I would want bolsters on only One End . Too much Texture is being lost to transition down to the bolsters . Some of that is caused by pieces of Fat Stag . Attached photos of my Northfield 43 and 97 are some examples of what I am trying to say .

Harry

 

[the possum]

Padruig, that's a heck of a nice collection ya got there.

So I'm getting the impression most folks would vote ebony, or the right kind of stag. I'll have to see, maybe the stag could work out. But I agree with Old Engineer's thoughts on stag. I don't like it too thick, or losing too much texture in the transition to the bolsters. In fact, I don't mind if some of the deeper grooves in the stag are actually below flush against the bolsters- lots of antique Sheffield knives I've seen were like that.

 

[Pàdruig]

Padruig, that's a heck of a nice collection ya got there.

So I'm getting the impression most folks would vote ebony, or the right kind of stag. I'll have to see, maybe the stag could work out. But I agree with Old Engineer's thoughts on stag. I don't like it too thick, or losing too much texture in the transition to the bolsters. In fact, I don't mind if some of the deeper grooves in the stag are actually below flush against the bolsters- lots of antique Sheffield knives I've seen were like that.

Thank you, my friend. It probably isn't much of a secret that I am fan of this pattern and am intrigued by its history. You can't go wrong with Ebony - it's classic, beautiful, and iconic in its use on traditional cutlery.

I do love stag though. I credit Harry ( Old Engineer ) for influencing my affinity for it. I have found that Stag tastes are pretty subjective and we all like different aspects of it. I think the thinner the Stag is, with much of its surface character maintained, the more it represents the skill of the cutler. I only have a couple of examples of this pattern with Stag and they are both relatively modern - a GEC and a Winchester. I like my Stag dark and gnarly and the pile side of the Winchester is a good characterization of where my preferences are.

I also have an old Sheffield piece (not a folding hunter) that exhibits some outstanding Stag - again, particularly on the pile side.

 

[Old Engineer]

Thank you, my friend. It probably isn't much of a secret that I am fan of this pattern and am intrigued by its history. You can't go wrong with Ebony - it's classic, beautiful, and iconic in its use on traditional cutlery.

I do love stag though. I credit Harry ( Old Engineer ) for influencing my affinity for it. I have found that Stag tastes are pretty subjective and we all like different aspects of it. I think the thinner the Stag is, with much of its surface character maintained, the more it represents the skill of the cutler. I only have a couple of examples of this pattern with Stag and they are both relatively modern - a GEC and a Winchester. I like my Stag dark and gnarly and the pile side of the Winchester is a good characterization of where my preferences are.

I also have an old Sheffield piece (not a folding hunter) that exhibits some outstanding Stag - again, particularly on the pile side.

Those old English Cutlers knew how to do Stag right . Love your old Jack my friend . Who was the maker ???? I do have some other Stags , but not many with Stag done IMO right .GEC has done some right but the best I have is an old Sheffield Pruner and some of the German Makers do the Transitions different to be able to save the Texture of the Stag .

Harry

 

[Mike Robuck]

Another vote for ebony. Not my knife or picture. Ken Ericson made a really nice ebony cokebottle but I can't seem to find pictures of it.

 

[Pàdruig]

Those old English Cutlers knew how to do Stag right . Love your old Jack my friend . Who was the maker ???? I do have some other Stags , but not many with Stag done IMO right .GEC has done some right but the best I have is an old Sheffield Pruner and some of the German Makers do the Transitions different to be able to save the Texture of the Stag .

Harry

Thanks, Harry. From what I can decipher from the tang stamp (it's a little hard to see), I believe it shows C. Johnson, Western Works, Sheffield.