How to repair Stocker knife with cracked wood scale?

[IParker]

So this is my first post on Blade Forums... here goes.

I was given this knife by my fiance and it has a great deal of sentimental value. I am not looking to sell this knife, nor do I care about the value. It appears to be a knife made by Matt Stocker, a knife maker from Nova Scotia, Canada. I can find very little information about the maker or his knives. The blade and sheath are numbered 148 and the handle has a cracked scale.

Here are some pictures of the damage:

What are my options for repairing the handle? I assume gluing it in place is my best bet. I am also not opposed to having it professionally repaired as it appears to be a high quaility, hand made knife. I welcome any information or suggestions on how to proceed.

Thanks for looking,
Ian

 

[Bill DeShivs]

The handle appears to be ebony. Ebony is an oily wood that doesn't glue well. That said, I suggest trying to clamp the piece back in place. If you can get it to fit properly, loosen the clamp and apply super glue, and re clamp. Once cured, file the joint down with a fine file and dry sand with 400, 600, 1000 wet/dry sandpaper. Polish with a buffer and rouge, or Simichrome (or similar polish) by rubbing briskly (shoe-shine style) on a soft cloth. Wax the handle with paste wax. You might look into sanding/polishing the entire handle(s) to match the finish. Any knifemaker could do this repair for you.

 

[IParker]

Thank you Bill. That seems like something I could do. I figured the handle was ebony... its a pefect match to a guitar I have with an ebony fretboard. I've only had the knife for a day and its pretty special. Its super comfy in the hand. The choil and jimping work really well together. I'm really itching to use it but the handle absolutly needs repair first.

 

[wiredbeans]

I would use epoxy instead of crazy glue for the longevity. Since you have a black handle it's pretty easy and hides well.

There are also wood repair lacquer that you can melt and fill it in.

Not sure which part of the country you are in but this is where I get them in Canada;

http://www.leevalley.com/US/wood/page.aspx?p=42999&cat=1,190,42997&ap=1

I wouldn't recommend clamping it after you fill with epoxy because naturally the crack area is trying to expand/open, the crack is actually happening to relieve tension. I think the hole for that bolt was a little small and it was forced in to create seamless but it actually put a lot of stress on the wood especially on that thin area.

I would fill it and shape the handle if necessary, but don't clamp it back or it will likely crack again

 

[Bill DeShivs]

The wood has already moved. Clamping it won't put the wood back in the original position, and the bigger the crack, the more it will show.
Ebony cracks, especially at stress points, but it's not going to crack there again.