No Longer Accepting Orders.....

JK Knives

JK Knives

Moderator
Joined
Mar 6, 2001
Messages
28,002
For cocobolo handles! I have two knives left that will be getting cocobolo, then no more! For days after using it and sanding it, I itch terribly, my eyes swell almost shut (gives my wife a good laugh), and can`t sleep due to the itching. I wear a respirator, so no problem with breathing. No other material affects me like this. Sorry, it`s not worth it to me.
 
Wow, sorry to hear about the problems John, stay clear of it and take care buddy !!!
 
Sorry to hear of your troubles John.
With cocobolo they say that either you are allergic to it, or you will be.
 
It always has bothered me, but it`s so darn pretty I hated to stop using it. I hope my customers understand.
 
You know, cocobolo is/was my favorite handle material, until I got my ebony handled scout from you. Ebony is the new cocobolo.

Then, I saw your tiger maple. I think I can live without cocobolo for awhile.

I had no idea is was such a pain to work with.
 
Sorry about the cocobolo. Very pretty wood but can be a bit nasty. I have pretty bad allergies and for some reason cocobolo hasn't bothered me....yet. I like Padauk too and it makes me sneeze/itch like crazy.
 
Stomper said:
For cocobolo handles! I have two knives left that will be getting cocobolo, then no more! For days after using it and sanding it, I itch terribly, my eyes swell almost shut (gives my wife a good laugh), and can`t sleep due to the itching. I wear a respirator, so no problem with breathing. No other material affects me like this. Sorry, it`s not worth it to me.
Click to expand...

If you want to switch my new kit knife order to the Tiger Stripe Maple, I'm cool with that. I like both, but if not working with cocobolo makes your life easier, I wouldn't mind changing at all.
 
JC in SC said:
If you want to switch my new kit knife order to the Tiger Stripe Maple, I'm cool with that. I like both, but if not working with cocobolo makes your life easier, I wouldn't mind changing at all.
Click to expand...

Thanks, I appreciate that! :thumbup:
 
I've heard about these reactions from wood before, but as I've never experienced is it more of an allergic (your immune response to the wood) or is it direct irritation from the wood dust? If it was an allergic type reaction I would assume that benadryl might help with it. Anyone tried this?

I'm not criticizing your choice at all, I agree with it, I'm just thinking aloud more or less.
 
Last edited:
Reading Bill Pentz's site regarding dust collection gives a whole lot of scary information about the subject of wood dust.
Here's a wood toxicity table: http://www.billpentz.com/woodworking/cyclone/WoodToxicityTable.cfm

Reactions to wood is one thing...the fine dust you can't really see is the stuff that really hurts you.

His site is worth a read if you work with wood. Made me improve my dust collection buy actually using a collector, wearing a mask and using an air filter. Still not the optimal solution when you read Bill's site, but it is better than nothing.
 
Glad I got one of your last ones John!

But I totally agree with your decision. Just don't stop making knives all-together!!
 
Sorry to see cocobolo go:( But I understand. I love cocobolo a very dense wood. I read somewhere that it is the 2nd hardest wood there is. A log of cocobolo will sink in water.
 
I've got a big cocobolo board in my basement shop that's about 2" thick, 14" wide and a little over 5 feet long. I got a great deal on it even though it was still a good chunk of change. I knew that I wouldn't have another chance to get such a beautiful slab of wood in a loooooong time.

The thing is I've worked a bit of cocobolo and while I've been lucky to avoid the poison ivy type reactions, I don't relish becoming sensitized to it and have a bad reaction so the board sits for now. I also want to use it on a worthy project. I just don't know what that might be right now. I know of some guitarmakers that won't use it because of their reactions. Some wear full tyvek suits, respirators and gloves and shower immediately after using it.

Too bad it's so damn beautiful, relatively stable and long wearing. Great stuff for knife scales, but not at the price of one's health. Some alternatives might be Bocote (as mentioned above), Ziricote (although it's a bit dark), Chechen (I like this one a lot although it's not all that common), Bubinga (some of the stuff is amazingly figured and it's not all that expensive in the scale of exotic woods) and Goncalo Alves (hard as hell, stable, non-porous with some great dark streaks throughout).
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top