Recommendation? Finish for Ironwood??

CJ Newton said:
ALSO I just remembered another question. HYPOTHETICALLY, could ironwood (like Arizona ironwood or something) absorb tung oil or some other oil, given enough time? I know everyone says ironwood "doesn't" absorb oils or finishes, but my thought is, what if I were to take the scales (only like 1/4in. thick) and let them soak in tung oil for like a week, or even longer, in an air-free container? Would they STILL absorb nothing?
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It would absorb a little bit. The absorption is limited by two things. First is the pore size. The oil is drawn in via capillary action, the same force that pulls water up a paper towel if you dip the corner in. Ironwood has incredibly small pores, and that means it is very slow to absord oil.

The other limiting factor is that its already full of oil! Those tiny pores are already about saturated with natural oils known as heart wood extracts.

And lastly, it wouldn't do any good. The tung oil would just weep out of the handle and make a sticky mess.

Tung oil is a drying oil. That means that the long chains that make it up over time react and make the oil solid. But contrary to that name, it doesnt dry out, it cures. When tung oil reacts with oxygen it chemically changes to become solid. And in the already small, oil filled pores of desert ironwood or other exotics like cocobolo or kingwood there is not enough oxygen to cure and so the oil will just weep.
 
OK, I have been watching this very interesting discussion...I am in the process of ordering a custom made edc and had tentatively decided that I wanted some presentation grade ironwood for scales...that’s before I read this thread...I don’t want something that is going to change colors so I am back to square one on handle material...what to do, what to do?...

Cheers/bg
 
Bmgillum said:
OK, I have been watching this very interesting discussion...I am in the process of ordering a custom made edc and had tentatively decided that I wanted some presentation grade ironwood for scales...that’s before I read this thread...I don’t want something that is going to change colors so I am back to square one on handle material...what to do, what to do?...

Cheers/bg
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I would say shop around. My website has a section called wood identification amd selection you can look through to find ideas, or you can juat look through the woods i have in stock. You could also check out the for sale section here, look at other makers EDC knives and see what woods you like. If you have any questions at all about wood you can ask them here or send me an email directly.
 
All right. What about the piece you start out with in the first place? The scales I got were a chocolate brown and low contrast when I got them, then turned black. What about one of these pairs that comes bright yellow with dark streaks in it? Will it STILL, eventually, all turn black and have the grain be indistinguishable? I want to specify that I am perfectly fine with darkening, as long as there is some sort of visible grain.
 
CJ Newton said:
All right. What about the piece you start out with in the first place? The scales I got were a chocolate brown and low contrast when I got them, then turned black. What about one of these pairs that comes bright yellow with dark streaks in it? Will it STILL, eventually, all turn black and have the grain be indistinguishable? I want to specify that I am perfectly fine with darkening, as long as there is some sort of visible grain.
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Again, wood is a natural material. But in my experience blond streaking becomes muted as the wood darkens. There will be a diffrence in color, but the contrast will be far less intense
 
Greenberg Woods said:
Again, wood is a natural material. But in my experience blond streaking becomes muted as the wood darkens. There will be a diffrence in color, but the contrast will be far less intense
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Oh really? Well that is fine actually. It's an EDC knife, so I don't care if it's showroom-quality, but as long as it isn't a single solid color that's great!
 
If you warm the scales to about 200 degrees, they will sweat some of the natural oils, wash it off with acetone and do it once more, then warm them to about 100 degrees and apply your first heavy coat of true oil or sealer. I will encourage the wood to soak the finish into the pores. I've never finished ironwood, but have used this process with teak, rosewood and some of the other naturally oily woods with good results.
On the other hand, I don't believe you can keep the wood from making its natural progression, only retard it.
 
golfer1 said:
If you warm the scales to about 200 degrees, they will sweat some of the natural oils, wash it off with acetone and do it once more, then warm them to about 100 degrees and apply your first heavy coat of true oil or sealer. I will encourage the wood to soak the finish into the pores. I've never finished ironwood, but have used this process with teak, rosewood and some of the other naturally oily woods with good results.
On the other hand, I don't believe you can keep the wood from making its natural progression, only retard it.
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I would rather strongly advise against this.

The heat and acetone will damage and strip the heartwood extracts that are responsible for the color of wood. While it may make an oil finish slightly easier it will damage color. In my opinion nearly all exotic woods should be sanded to high grit, buffed, and either waxed or lightly oiled with a finish like tru oil.

Heating and a heavy acetone wash will cause severe damage to the color and character of the wood. I know a few guys who sell "treated" cocobolo to lutheirs. It has all the orange and red color bleached out through heat and solvent leaving a pale wood that retains the acoustic properties of rosewood while being easier to finish. In my opinion this is NOT worth losing the character of an exotic wood.
 
I sent an email to the Buck Custom Shop (since they now offer real ironwood as a handle option) and asked if they do anything to their wood or if it is just bare. I figured if anyone was to put a finish on it, they would. Awaiting a reply now
 
the only thing that i have seen even start to keep DIW from gettigng dark fast is a complete shell of CA (i have done this on razors due to all the water) my EDC folder turned nearly black in only a few months in the summer in my pocket was a stunning scale i then sanded it out and looked ok for a bit but went dark again changed it out with some redwood lace and a guy bought it right out of my pocket no long after. only use DIW for EDC when strength is wanted anymore and keep in stock plain jane blocks. i still have some fancy contrasty burl scales for other projects tho
 
I would never use a wood that darkens badly, or needs any kind of finish.
Why would you? There are many naturally stable woods, and others that are stabilized.
 
Bill DeShivs said:
I would never use a wood that darkens badly, or needs any kind of finish.
Why would you? There are many naturally stable woods, and others that are stabilized.
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What would you suggest then? Keep in mind this is for a Buck 110 where the scales are essentially an insert and must be extremely stable
 
CJ Newton said:
What would you suggest then? Keep in mind this is for a Buck 110 where the scales are essentially an insert and must be extremely stable
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You could use a stabilized wood like koa, mango, maple, Tasmanian blackwood or black palm.

You could use an ultra stable exotic like ringed gidgee or African Blackwood.

If you want to see some stabilized woods you can look at my website, www.greenbergwoods.com or the website of Mark, www.burlsource.com

If you have any specific question about prices or placing an order, do it via email or a contact forum on my site.
 
Greenberg Woods said:
You could use a stabilized wood like koa, mango, maple, Tasmanian blackwood or black palm.

You could use an ultra stable exotic like ringed gidgee or African Blackwood.

If you want to see some stabilized woods you can look at my website, www.greenbergwoods.com or the website of Mark, www.burlsource.com

If you have any specific question about prices or placing an order, do it via email or a contact forum on my site.
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Ringed Gidgee all day!!!
 
Sure as I posted the above, a customer is requesting a rehandle in ironwood! Same day-even!
 
There are a couple of good reasons to use Ironwood besides durability and stability. If those are your main concerns, dymondwood is a great choice....tons of neat colors too! ;) :D

If Ironwood darkening is a concern, you could choose some on the lighter side. There's plenty like that. The light stuff may darken but will never turn black.
 
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