How long does it take to get jigged bone handles looked "worn out"?

I think it depends on the cut of the bone, and how hard that turns out to be. I have an old CASE copperhead that started to finally have that pocket worn look after about 5 years of pocket carry and use in construction. It was all I had to carry.

After about five years more of the same treatment, the red/amber bone is almost black from hand oils, etc., and it looks nice and worn. It earned it.

On the other hand, I have a 16 month old Queen Dan Burke medium stockman, and the bone has worn and smoothed at light speed compared to the old 70's CASE. The bone is much softer. A call to Mike Latham (dealer here) confirmed that indeed, not all bone is alike. I was concerned about chipping the edges of the jigging on the Dan Burke knife, so I took a piece of 320 garnet paper and smoothed them out. Looks like it has been carried for a long time. Maybe that would work for someone that wants to have the look of well carried knife in their pocket.

Robert
 
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My uncle bought this Case 64047P new with jigged green bone scales in the very early 1950's and carried it every day until he retired it(then passed it on to me on a hunting trip) in the winter of 1970. My uncle was the type of fellow who did not leave his home without his pocket knife. So, 17-18 years in his right front pocket every day..

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He was a big believer in respecting ones tools. That applied to all tools, firearms, knives and all manner of cutting tools. One of his pet peeves was that he never carried anything else in the same pocket where the pocket knife was kept. He stated on many occasions that, 'you have to take care of your tools and they will take care of you'. He figured dedicating one pocket for his folding knife out of an entire pair of jeans was the right thing to do.. He was a thoughtful fellow with lots of talent and many diverse skills who taught me a lot of useful lessons. Much of his sage advice has rubbed off on me after so many years.. I also dedicate my right front pocket to my edc exclusively and carry other items elsewhere in other pockets.


Anthony
 
sunnyd said:
My uncle bought this Case 64047P new with jigged green bone scales in the very early 1950's and carried it every day until he retired it(then passed it on to me on a hunting trip) in the winter of 1970. My uncle was the type of fellow who did not leave his home without his pocket knife. So, 17-18 years in his right front pocket every day..

rsepn5.jpg


2edpmo7.jpg


He was a big believer in respecting ones tools. That applied to all tools, firearms, knives and all manner of cutting tools. One of his pet peeves was that he never carried anything else in the same pocket where the pocket knife was kept. He stated on many occasions that, 'you have to take care of your tools and they will take care of you'. He figured dedicating one pocket for his folding knife out of an entire pair of jeans was the right thing to do.. He was a thoughtful fellow with lots of talent and many diverse skills who taught me a lot of useful lessons. Much of his sage advice has rubbed off on me after so many years.. I also dedicate my right front pocket to my edc exclusively and carry other items elsewhere in other pockets.


Anthony
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What a great looking "loved" knife.:cool:
You don't see knives like that too often with smooth worn scales and not having the blades sharpened down like toothpicks.
The knife looks almost like new.
I guess your uncle was careful with sharpening as well.;)
 
Interesting thread.
Actually, I'm not a fan of jigged bone; maybe I'm not used to it, but I prefer smoother handles...or smoothened worn out jigged bone I guess :) so I'm throwing in my 2 cents.
What I would do, if I wanted to speed up the process a little bit, is use a "natural" way. I would find a piece of leather or old jeans, cut it into, let's say, 2" x 12" pieces, lay the knife in the middle (holding it somehow), and "shoeshining" the handle. It should simulate pretty well the pocket/hand rubbing that would eventually give it the same looks and feel, but in years.

Fausto
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quattromori said:
Interesting thread.
Actually, I'm not a fan of jigged bone; maybe I'm not used to it, but I prefer smoother handles...or smoothened worn out jigged bone I guess :) so I'm throwing in my 2 cents.
What I would do, if I wanted to speed up the process a little bit, is use a "natural" way. I would find a piece of leather or old jeans, cut it into, let's say, 2" x 12" pieces, lay the knife in the middle (holding it somehow), and "shoeshining" the handle. It should simulate pretty well the pocket/hand rubbing that would eventually give it the same looks and feel, but in years.

Fausto
:cool:
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I rub all my knives over with some course leather cuts to sheen the bolsters if they sit for a while...that would take AGES doing it by hand, you'd end up with carpal tunnel! :D
 
Well, carpal tunnel is easily treated surgically... :D
I assume that, if the bone isn't too hard, it would take less than ages with a coarse leather or fabric medium. I assume that the OP doesn't want to make the handle smooth (otherwise, why buy a jigged bone handled knife? :) ) but just smoothening up the surface for ease of hold (personal preference) and for the looks of it.
Also, doing it in one hour would be a bit too easy: a worn out knife is something that has to be earned, with time and effort, and even if you can speed up the fate of the handle, it can't come that easy, otherwise you would lose a bit of the bond with the knife.

Fausto
:cool:
 
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I have been EDCing a GEC #72 in my back pocket for about 4 months now, the bone has really transformed and is getting a good aged look.
I know that knife gets put through a lot more than the other knives, but it's part of the business. That knife will be worn out before any of the other knives.
 
Took me about 35 years of every day carry, except on Sunday's, when I carried another knife for it to look like this. Picture of the old one, and the new one.
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kamagong said:
Robert,

The KHnutbuster is a custom sodbuster and Kerry Hampton's signature pattern. You can specify the steel and scales used. This one has Case antique bone scales and an A2 blade.



Trand,

Both. This knife has been the closest thing to an EDC that I've had. I carried it almost every day for a year. It's been thrown in my pocket with keys, coins, phone, flashlight, and I can't remember what else. It now sports a few dings and scratches. I even dropped it onto asphalt once, taking a good sized chip out of the bone scale. Some people would probably say that I don't deserve to own a custom slipjoint. :D

- Christian
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I'd say they would be wrong. Someone who carries and uses the knife is just the type who does deserve a custom.
 
spydutch said:
What a great looking "loved" knife.:cool:
You don't see knives like that too often with smooth worn scales and not having the blades sharpened down like toothpicks.
The knife looks almost like new.
I guess your uncle was careful with sharpening as well.;)
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Yes thanks spydutch, she was, and still is loved(now by me :))to be sure!. She has been used quite a bit but well maintained. The main-master clip blade and the punch more so than the spear and the sheeps foot, but all of them have some blade loss and yet still have lots of blade life left.. I still carry her from time to time, mostly to honor my uncle Lew. My uncle knew how to maximize his tools life span. In this case he would only sharpen her on the stones/hones when they had to be done when they required a serious sharpening.. Most often he would break out his old thick leather barbers strope. He'd give all the blades a good touch up on the strope and when he was through they'd all be shaving sharp. This way there would be no blade steel wasted, just a super sharp and shiny edge profile ready for hard cutting chores.. He used to shake his head and comment with some well chosen expletives when others, mostly younger fellows, would be over sharpening they're slipjoints on the bench stone at our local hardware store / gun shop / bait & tackle, stating that most knew nothing about proper cutting tool maintenance.. The only thing I've done is to once in a while give a bit of semi-chrome polish the nickel silver bolsters and to routinely oil the joints.

Best,
Anthony
 
My wife bought me this Pocket Hunter in May 2008. I carried it everyday in a pocket by itself until July 2009. About 14 months. It has seen maybe 3 weeks of off and on pocket carry since then.

Unfortunately I never did take a photo of it when it was new but in this case, I would say the bone has worn very little. The high spots in the jigging are rounded off a little but that's about it.

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1scooter said:
Took me about 35 years of every day carry, except on Sunday's, when I carried another knife for it to look like this. Picture of the old one, and the new one.
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Those two knives continue to impress me, wearing our fingers to the bone:D

Too bad CASE doesn't offer that model any more. The GEC No.56 Pruner is somewhat similar.

Great shots, thank-you.:thumbup:
 
willgoy said:
. . . Too bad CASE doesn't offer that model any more. . .
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I wholeheartedly agree here, Will. The Loom Fixer pattern, if memory is serving on par today. A good stout working mans - hard tasking slipjoint to be certain!.

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:thumbup:

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Anthony
 
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Thanks WILLOGY, don't know if you sceen it after I finished modding it. I had to grind of some of the toe of the knife so it would feel more like the old one. Kind of a warncliff blade on it now. BOY DO I LOVE IT NOW. I've carried it every day since I broke the old one,, just starting to break in. Use it quite a bit. I soaked it in Oil for 3 days before I started carrying it. I do that to all my knived ocassionally, as I have for 20 or more years. I hope bye the time im about 85 or so it will look like the other one with out a broken blade if im lucky...LOL
 
Fine knife Anthony, thanks for showing it.

Great mod on that knife 1scooter!
 
Does anyone know if derlin wears out over time? Particularly that odf a Schrade old timer? My 34Ot is one of my favorite knives, but I don't like that saw cut jigging at all.
 
Yes, it will. My old 8OT is getting pretty smooth. It's the top one in this pic.

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1scooter,

I too am impressed with the pic of your 2 loom fixers. I'd be curious to know what took the place of it on Sundays.
 
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