mineral oil

K

knife_nut73

Joined
Jun 25, 2006
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So I went out and got some of this stuff as I've used it before, and I read on here how a lot of people use it on their khuks for handle and blades whether its wood or horn. now if the wood handle as a slight crack but doesn't seem effective should I apply the oil anyway? Any poor effects using mineral oil on horn?
 
now if the wood handle as a slight crack but doesn't seem effective should I apply the oil anyway?
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Best to fix the crack first -- some liquid super-glue fed well in would suffice if it's only slight. Oil so it soaks in thoroughly - but only after tidying up the repair.
 
I'm not a big mineral oil person. The times I used it it seemed like it softened up the horn too much and I got stress cracks on the back of the handle when I chopped hard stuff.
 
What do you use on horn? Something easily available that you don't have to special order(so you don't run out and have to wait a few weeks to get more) Do these handles just fall apart without treating with something? Short life?
 
some people like to use lanolin on the horn when the weather is dry, i use it every few months on my non-khuks with horn handles, apply for a few hrs. or overnite then wipe off. available from most pharmacy or drug store, chemist depending on what you call them medicine selling stores....all my khuks & most knives have wood handles & get wiped with mineral oil/balistol monthly without any problems. any cracks repaired with superglue or epoxy before their 1st oiling. never had a problem with the horn handled choppers i've got. some people have had problems with untreated handles of wood and horn in extreme climates.

i recall someone here saying that the nepalis go thru handles rapidly, every 20 years or so they need to get a new one, the blades lasting thru only five or six handle changes under heavy use.
 
I've used mineral oil on wood and horn handles (and the blades) without any ill effects, but I don't soak it in. I generally just get my hands oily and kind of work it in.

The only bad effect I've had using mineral oil is discoloring a light brown sheath.
 
So for any cracks, horn or wood can be filling in with super glue? Also found something called plastic wood that seems rugged for the wood cracks. Anyone use it before?
 
So far, I have had good luck with the thin liquid super glue. I apply a small amount to the crack and position it so that gravity lets it run down into the crack. I give it a few minutes, then apply another coating. Repeat until the crack is fulled. A finally sanding usually yields an almost invisible fix.

I have also heard of, but never tried, fixing a really bad crack with epoxy mixed with fine saw dust or charcoal (in the case of horn) as a permanent fix with a little camouflage for the ugly spot.

As far as mineral oil goes, I use it a lot. I use it on all of my blades and handles both wood and horn. Not really a soaking, but a good rub down with an oil cloth works well. Mineral oil is nice because it doesn't go rancid, if fairly food safe, and wipes off pretty easily. Another product that folks use on horn handles (especially in dry climates) is Hoof Flex. You can pick this up at most feed stores that cater to horse owners. It helps condition the horn so that cracks don't develop. In my area of the country, I could only see using this product in the winter. In the spring and summer, it's so doggone humid that a horn handle has plenty of moisture to drink right out of the air.
 
Ballistol is just mineral oil with some additives, and it's good on wood, leather, horn and metal. Never a prob and it took me 4 yrs to use a gallon. :D Pretty good mileage.


Mike
 
plastic wood
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If it's what I think it is, then strength and adhesion/absorbtion wise it would probably be inferior to a good strong epoxy resin (Devcon 2-ton or the like) - as mentioned, with some wood dust mixed into the outermost surface of it to disguise the repair.
The epoxy would also run down better into the split - goes more runny if it's slightly warmed (oh, and stick masking tape along either side of the split first, to keep epoxy off the rest of the handle).
 
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