Stag handle care

tongueriver

tongueriver

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I have a fixed blade knife with a somewhat porous elk antler handle. Is there some product that would do a good job of sealing it better, and improving its appearance and durability at the same time? Thanks for any comments. I wouldn't mind dying it a bit as well; it is rather pale. I know nothing about that.
 
I don't have a direct answer for you, but I remember Horsewright Horsewright had a thread around here somewhere about finishing & staining stag. I've heard of people using leather dye or potassium permanganate & then buffing it with a quality wax. I haven't done it myself so I can't say for certain.
 
If it is not a show piece you can cure it with epoxy. I have done that for kitchen knives to seal handles with good success. It makes the handle shiny and kind of plastic looking but protects it from moisture damage.
If you heat the epoxy and brush it on slowly more can soak in. I usually do several thin coats with light sanding between each one.
 
Interesting; thank you; worth considering. The only epoxy that I am familiar with is the two-tube kind in the hardware store. What have you used? It does not sound like the same thing.
 
Thanks for a nice comment, Dave; the pommel is the worst and there is another spot on top.
 
I don't care if it's getting off track, that is one sweet project! Nice work. I'd be proud as ever on that one.

I'm big fan of linseed oil. If you have some extra pieces of antler around for experiments it might be worth a shot. After a few coats you wait a couple weeks and then buff it. If it's too thick, thin it out with mineral spirits and warm it carefully.

If you want a shiny kind of finish maybe tru-oil but that stuff can be tricky. Sometimes it looks great, sometimes it looks like poo.

The linseed could be a good option because you could reapply annually to "feed" the antler.

I don't know if these ideas are right for your handle but it could be worth a shot.
 
What a great Knife Cal! Like our friend Dave said "I really like that knife"
I purchased an old Carving Knife ( unfortunately I just had to collect them too 🙃 🤪) but this one is kind of special- and kind of rough, badly rust spotted, made by early eye Witness Sheffield ( my favourite Sheffield firm) but also stamped in the blade is " A.H WILSON, IRONMONGER, NAPIER.
Napier is now my home town and having such stamping in an Eye Witness like this is quite rare, so I plan to mount the knife with the old Black and Whites of the firm as well as Eye witness.

But the Stag Handle was very pale and I used Mineral Oil on it to bring it up ever so slightly, it did make it slightly better.
 
Well I did write a whole WIP some years back on how to process antler materials, its kind of defunct now. Apparently the software here on BF dumps any pics when they are over five years old. Kinda frustrating for those of us that try to help others out but there ya are. Maybe the text will help some:


https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/processing-elk-sheds-a-wip.1467821/

Anyhoo to specifics. Yes fill in the pith spots with super glue. Normally folks will say use thin superglue for this but I prefer Gorilla Glue Super Glue and its thicker. Let er set up and sand er smooth. If you can find some I like to use an accelerator on the super glue, then ya don't have to sit around waiting for it to dry. The accelerator also makes the glue less clear when its used which is good but not an absolute in this application. Sometimes ya may have to do another coat to get it completely filled.

As far as dyeing this is what is used, potassium permanganate (PP). Not only does it give antler that desired color that we are looking for, its primary purpose historically was and still is as a disinfectant. Ya can get small bottles of it on that big river outfit from chemical supply places for pretty cheap. Preppers use it as a fire starter but I don't know the process of that. Make up a solution of it. I take warm water and dissolve the PP into it till it won't take anymore. Then stick your elk or any antler (Sambar has all been treated with this too) for about half an hour. Take it out and let it dry on some paper towels and then hit it with a clear coat of some kind. I've been using Watco spray Lacquer and like it. I tend to use a satin but I don't know that it really matters. Then proceed with your knife building:

AsrS4vT.jpg


In your case, I would tape off your metal and using one of those disposable foamy brushes, I would paint the PP on the handle. I'd probably hold it point up and just paint it on. When I've achieved the color I want I'd let it dry and then clear coat it before sanding. Ya'll need to sand all the smooth parts back smooth and thats what produces the contrast like in the pic above. The white has been sanded and the dark left alone because its the bottom of the texture. Should warn ya that when the elk first comes out of the PP or when you are painting it on it will turn purple. Not to worry it will dry to that darkbrown black color we're looking for.

As far as feeding elk or any antler, collectors will usually give it a light coat of mineral oil once or twice a year.

Hope this helps and glad to answer any questions there might be.
 
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