Mammoth Ivory care?

Joe58

Joe58

Joined
Nov 11, 2002
Messages
1,969
Hi guys ~ I've been fortunate enough recently to acquire a couple custom pocket knives, used, but like new.

I figured I ask about it here as I know many makers visit the forum and are way smarter than I about knives. :)

The scales are of mammoth ivory.

When used on a knife handle, has it been treated to prevent it from shrinking or expanding? Is it ok to treat it the same as other materials, such as stag for instance. Ok to get wet? I'm just wanting to know I guess how durable it is and I shouldn't be afraid to carry it. Really is nice to look at but I generally do not buy knives to be a safe queen.

Thanks! Joe
 
i'm vairy careful with mine.but at the end of the day it dat in the tundra for 10000years .prior to that a mammoth used it to dig up the ground .must be strong stuff.bit of lemon oil.
 
My experience has been that all ivory will expand and contract some, but mammoth a little less so. I put a little mineral or lemon oil on mine from time to time, but I haven't noticed any real problems.

As far as durability, most mammoth is stabilized and should be about as durable as bone.
 
Essentially, it is a rock. So you just have to be careful to not drop it. I wouldn't worry about any other special care.
 
Fossilised mammoth ivory is rock. but mammoth ivory that has been dug up from the riverbanks in Siberia ,Alaska and such is preserved almost like freeze dried is ivory -just roorly old.
Anyway they are two different materials.
 
To further add confusion I have been told/read in the past that mammoth ivory is not old enough to be properly mineralized, that the fossil term is used more to show it comes from the "Fossil Record", meaning taken from the ground as opposed to fresh. The colors seen are mineralization but not fossilization. I can't confirm, but perhaps a geologist reading can shed further light on it.

I daily carry a mammoth ivory "massage fingernail" that I made in because I have to keep my nails short. I hold it, so no need for extra oil. I occasionally carry other mammoth knives and treat them like any other handle. They go into whatever pocket they are in, with whatever else is in there- and surprise!!- none of them have ever split in half!! I've never even noticed any appreciable wear either. It's a knife, if the maker is reputable then so should the handle material be. I honestly don't get worrying about a knife, I buy mine to have and to cut, not to stay pristine. I say use away!!

I just took a picture of my mammoth slipjoints, the swayback has seen the most use, then Yukon jack, then the zebra and it's brother. I haven't used the dark handled one much so it really hasn't had much pocket time.
04338AE3-5F9D-4C01-A222-AD4EA24A141B_1.jpg


And this is the fingernail that is with me every day:
IMG_6089.jpg
 
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mammoth earwax is rare and quite expensive if you can get it.
 
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