Humidity and Natural Materials

[ptradeco]

I have read much about the shrinking and expanding of natural materials on knife handles. I have experienced this myself primarily with ivory and bone. Not so much with stag. I have been fortunate that none have ever cracked and they seem to always go back to where they should be depending on the time of year. I like to keep the higher end of my collection secured but obviously cannot store them in the gun safe as lower humidity is preferred for the firearms. I have considered placing the knives in a cigar humidor and keeping the humidor in the gun safe. Without rambling on anymore my question is this:

Does anyone know the optimum humidity range for storing knives with natural material handles?

Thank you for your responses.

 

[hlee]

If you are concerned about movement of handle materials, then the optimum humidity is likely the humidity of the region where the knife was made, during the season the knife was made. It was then and there (and under those conditions) that the knife handle dimensions were set, and it is those conditions that are least likely to cause movement. That is, given that the handle material was cured properly before use... If a knifemaker in Arizona is sourcing wood from Washington state, that wood should be cured in AZ before use. The same would be true if a maker in Connecticut was sourcing desert ironwood from AZ.

Spyderco had this exact problem with their original bushcraft knives. What they thought was stabilized maple burl was shipped to Taiwan for assembly into knives. Those knives were made in the humid environment of Taiwan. The knives were shipped back to the relatively dry environs of Golden, CO where most of the handles experienced severe cracking. Those knives were sold as seconds. Many of those knives went to regions much more humid than Golden, like the SF bay area of California. Buyers in these humid regions reported that the cracks that were observed initially, diminished significantly over a couple of weeks. Most then sealed what cracks that remained (if any) with super glue and then sealed the handles with boiled linseed oil or tung oil.

 

[ptradeco]

hlee,

That does make perfect sense provided the material was stable when fitted. It also makes for an impossible storage solution as I have knives from many parts of the country and the world for that matter. My biggest concern is the extremes. I have been fortunate but fear one day I will lose one or more due to the expanding and contracting. I have inquiries placed with a few museums and will post their advice on this matter when I hear from them. Thank you.