hi guys it's been a long time since i posted. but here it goes. i just got back from deer camp and one of the guys hunting with gave me a peice of curly wild cherry. i want to know if anyone has used it before? if so how it looks finished and the best way to stain the wood? i hope it is a good wood for knife handles because the guy i got it from said he has a barn full of the same wood and said i could get a lot more if it works out.
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help plz wild cherry finishing?
- Thread starter ZSilver
- Start date
Fred.Rowe
Knifemaker / Craftsman / Service Provider
- Joined
- May 2, 2004
- Messages
- 6,848
Eastern wild cherry is prone to checking and splitting. It is nice to finish and I believe, looks best without any color added.
Cherry stabilizes well and is recommended.
The nice stuff is highly sought after.
Fred
Cherry stabilizes well and is recommended.
The nice stuff is highly sought after.
Fred
- Joined
- Feb 5, 1999
- Messages
- 1,068
I've used black cherry burl, both stabilized and plain. Stabilizing is a good thing.
Use sharp abrasives because the cherry will scorch pretty fast otherwise. There are some nice colors to it, but there are easier woods to work with. Be patient whiole you work it.
Gene
Use sharp abrasives because the cherry will scorch pretty fast otherwise. There are some nice colors to it, but there are easier woods to work with. Be patient whiole you work it.
Gene
- Joined
- Feb 28, 2006
- Messages
- 3,494
We've worked with some Brazilian cherry in our high school wood classes. Beautiful stuff! Dense and hard, difficult for the kids to work. Make sure all your tools are sharp. I'd stabilize it for sure. Should be fine then. As for finish we usually use Watco or Danish oil finishes, sometime child safe beeswax/mineral oil concoctions. Suspect you'd want something else for knife handles.
Wild Cherry makes a great knife handle, either as scales or as a blind-tapered tang. Just make sure it is dry. The older the better. It needs no stain, just a rubbed oil finish that gets in deep and builds slowly to bring out the color. Over time it will darken on exposure to UV. Not quite as hard as good black walnut (much less rosewood, etc.) it will make a nice hand friendly haft. It will check out from pins like ivory.