Mammoth tooth

B

bld451

Joined
Jan 19, 2006
Messages
4
Hey, guys.
I'm brand new here, so I hope I didn't miss the answer to my question in the recent archives. How difficult is mammoth tooth to work? I just bought some scales, and they are gorgeous. I'd sure hate to botch the job. I'm assuming they will vary in hardness throughout the material. Do they tend to crack along the lines? Are they even close to durable? I know, I know, I should have asked before I bought, but my eyes glazed over when I saw them..... you know the deal. Any input would be appreciated. Thanks, BLD
 
I am one of the lucky ones to have worked mammoth tooth. Yes, it is very brittle and MUST be WORKED slowely on the belt grinder. DO NOT quench in fluid (water, etc.). Work it slow on the machine and I found that quenching on a aluminum plate is good. WORK IT SLOW and DO NOT force the work. Mammoth tooth is exceptional in beauty as my taste goes. You are fortunate to have the opportunity. Do this well and you have acheived something worth remembering. In drilling pin holes, if you designed to, again go slow IN DEPTH PER CUT and DO USE cutting oil. Do not be afraid of this material. Just go slow and do it. Get it flat too. You do not want any stess as it lays upon the tang.

RL
 
Roger has it - SLOW and NO PRESSURE and NO HEAT. Use fresh belts at slow speed.Sand to as fine a grit as you can.Polish with white or pink compound.Do not over tighten the fasteners,or peen down the rivets.Mosaic rivets are a good choice.Fill any cracks that are showing at 220 grit with cyanoacrylic resin (super glue) and continue to polish (it can take several fill/resand cycles to get the cracks filled).Hand sanding beyond 400 is also a good idea.
Stacy
 
Thanks for the input! I'm looking forward to getting the scales, and now I'm at least not intimidated. I've got some knives to make for new family, and they're shaping up to be some of my best work yet. Isn't that the way it goes. We give away our best stuff. It feels good, though, and I'll be able to see them periodically.
Any new info will, of course be appreciated!
Thanks...........................bld
 
One more thing. Anyone work with converting a Grizzly knife grinder/buffer to adjustable speeds with a step pulley setup?
BLD
 
Hate to keep bugging you guys about this tooth stuff, but anyone ever cut up one of these teeth? I managed to locate one, and am curious about whether I need a diamond abrasive blade, or a sharp bandsaw blade. I don't have it yet, and am wondering if it's going to be a real pain to deal with. I'm thinking about a hidden tang damascus dagger, and would like to get a block, but don't seem to have much luck finding one. Thanks
 
I make a good part of my living carving mammoth teeth .I no longer sell it as a handle material.It's best use is on knives that are not going to be used as does not hold well.Cutting teeth is best done with carbide or diamond grit blades.If you are going to slab a tooth make sure it did not come from the North Sea as it will probably fall apart.
 
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