How Do You Keep Knives Looking Great?

Dan of Bazz Clazz

Dan of Bazz Clazz

Joined
May 10, 2017
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Wondering what are some of the better methods for protecting and maintaining the organic portions of a knife? What do you recommend for keeping handles - wood, bone, leather or horn, looking good and safe from deterioration? Mainly worried about my wood handled knifes shrinking away from the tangs, frames, and pins. Then I realized that bone, leather, and horn could have similar problems so I figured I would ask.

Likewise for leather sheaths? I've used mink oil on leather gloves, and while gloves got waterproof and in great condition, the color changes. Wasn't worried about that for my gloves. But don't want it on my sheaths. Also worried about anything that soaked into the leather that could later affect or discolor the knife scales, or even worse, the blade.

What do you recommend?
 
To keep my knives looking great I keep them free of rust with a light coat of mineral oil.
They don't however look great until they've developed a patina.
For any natural wood tool handle I let the wood drink as much boiled linseed oil as it will.
 
Dan of Bazz Clazz said:
Wondering what are some of the better methods for protecting and maintaining the organic portions of a knife? What do you recommend for keeping handles - wood, bone, leather or horn, looking good and safe from deterioration? Mainly worried about my wood handled knifes shrinking away from the tangs, frames, and pins. Then I realized that bone, leather, and horn could have similar problems so I figured I would ask.

Likewise for leather sheaths? I've used mink oil on leather gloves, and while gloves got waterproof and in great condition, the color changes. Wasn't worried about that for my gloves. But don't want it on my sheaths. Also worried about anything that soaked into the leather that could later affect or discolor the knife scales, or even worse, the blade.

What do you recommend?
Click to expand...

Wood: Hickory has you covered.
Leather: I use Bick 5 leather cleaner/conditioner on shoes, jackets, sheaths, just about all things leather. If you want a special water repellent coating after that, I use Kiwi Camp Dry on stuff like leather hiking boots and shoes that get soaked in the PNW, works awesome.
 
I use Renaissance Wax on bone, stag, and wood handles. I don't have any sheath knives other than a Buck 110. I used to wear the Buck knife on my belt for about 10 years long ago. All I ever did was occasionally polish it with black shoe polish.
 
On a tangent but related: If I happen to come across a blade I must own and it is handled in wood/bone and/or sheathed in leather, I will send it out to be rehandled in micarta/G10 and/or replace the sheath with either a Combat Master or custom Kydex. This has happened twice.
 
Leather conditioners like Bick 4 don’t change the color but don’t last as long before needing to be reapplied. Oils last longer but can soften leather and darken it. Wax based products create a waterproof seal last longer than an oil if applied properly but also can change the color. Wax can also harden leather in certain applications. I find for wood boiled linseed oil is best and it works on stag and bone as well. Mineral oil also works for that. For bone I really like using Neats foot oil. It’s a leather product so it doubles for the leather also but it comes from the shin bones of cattle. I figure that stuff like mineral oil, linseed oil, or waxes even don’t always belong in or on my bone. And since the Neats foot oil that comes from bones of the same animal, it seems fitting.
 
Never put oil on stag or bone- it softens and darkens it.
Handle materials are best protected with wax- Johnson's Paste Wax or neutral paste shoe polish work well and are much cheaper than Rennaissance wax.
 
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