The longevity of Wood Inlays

expidia1

Gold Member
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Feb 18, 2018
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Before my next wood inlay model purchase I've been noticing pics of some of the members knives that the wood is cracking in small areas. I don't know how old the ones I was viewing becausee it was in the no yak yak posting a pic only of your CRK thread.

So Im sure they were old examples. But has CRK made any in-roads into making these wood inlay models last longer. Maybe some type of newer process or coating etc.

After seeing those i'm leaning towards CG handles. Sure cracks in the wood shows character like imperfections or grains in fine leather, but if the wood inlay splits in half with age its not so classic anymore.

Thanks. This is a tough one to search through the threads for as there are so many inlay references.
 
Stabilizing all of the woods is a different process depending on the species and some will fair better than others in durability. CGG is alternative, but almost 180 degrees from the exotic wood inlays. Seems to me your choices are:

1) Look at it but don't actually carry or use it
2) Carry but always in a sheath and use great care in handling
3) Avoid anything "spalted" since it's primarily the stabilizer anyway (but that can make it more durable)
4) Buy Snakewood when you can find them! Snakewood is the second hardest wood on the Janka hardness scale after Lignum Vitae
 
Stabilizing all of the woods is a different process depending on the species and some will fair better than others in durability. CGG is alternative, but almost 180 degrees from the exotic wood inlays. Seems to me your choices are:

1) Look at it but don't actually carry or use it
2) Carry but always in a sheath and use great care in handling
3) Avoid anything "spalted" since it's primarily the stabilizer anyway (but that can make it more durable)
4) Buy Snakewood when you can find them! Snakewood is the second hardest wood on the Janka hardness scale after Lignum Vitae

Thanks for that quick reply. Good tips. I actually really like snakewood in the Mnandi's I've seen offered as I'm partial to the darker hardwoods.
So now my parameters to what Im looking for is shaping up nicely. Now I'm looking for a large seb 21 with darker snakewood handles and a DT raindrop Damascus in a bolder pattern.
 
This abeit a small and Im looking for a large, but how is Macassar wood on the hardness scale compared to snakewood. Does CRK still offer snakewood in a large sebenza? Most sites I just searched say out of stock. I just looked up the Janka hardness scale. There are so many different woods. Does CRK put out any charts as many of the names their nmaes I don't see listed. Learning about this wood stuff is like another career :D

chris-reeve-knives-a-47__84742.1518027171.jpg
 
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Snakewood was discontinued in 2017 but some online shops still have them. Otherwise it’s the Exchange on the forum here.

If I remember Macassar is about 1/2 the hardness of Snakewood. Do a Google for Janka Hardness scale and you’ll find lists to confirm.

Big Oak is another hard wood in the condition it’s used in- partially fossilized, but it does not have the beauty of grain patterns most of the time and is 3,000 to 6,000 years old, so you’d need to treat it with respect.

Check your PM inbox
 
Snakewood was discontinued in 2017 but some online shops still have them. Otherwise it’s the Exchange on the forum here.

If I remember Macassar is about 1/2 the hardness of Snakewood. Do a Google for Janka Hardness scale and you’ll find lists to confirm.

Big Oak is another hard wood in the condition it’s used in- partially fossilized, but it does not have the beauty of grain patterns most of the time and is 3,000 to 6,000 years old, so you’d need to treat it with respect.

Check your PM inbox

Wow, this is fasinating stuff. A whole nuther side of CRK knifeology!

And thanks for that link. I saw that page in my first search for snakewood. If it had a Devin Thomas Damascus RD blade it would fit my bill! There are a lot of Janka charts out there because of hardwood floors it seems.
 
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Before my next wood inlay model purchase I've been noticing pics of some of the members knives that the wood is cracking in small areas. I don't know how old the ones I was viewing becausee it was in the no yak yak posting a pic only of your CRK thread.

So Im sure they were old examples. But has CRK made any in-roads into making these wood inlay models last longer. Maybe some type of newer process or coating etc.

After seeing those i'm leaning towards CG handles. Sure cracks in the wood shows character like imperfections or grains in fine leather, but if the wood inlay splits in half with age its not so classic anymore.

Thanks. This is a tough one to search through the threads for as there are so many inlay references.

A little bit of history before you stick your foot so far down your mouth you won't be able to breath.
The original poster of the thread(Dave H) is deceased and was a well known and liked member. So, in honor of his memory, everyone limits comments and posts pics only. That's why some comments have been removed and unnecessary commits are frowned upon.
It's everyone's thread to contribute to if they so choose, if you keep alienating yourself with your snarky remarks, people will be less willing to help out and what fun is there in that.

I've got 4 wood inlays, two of which I use and two for collection pieces. The two for use gets a fair shake and I don't hold back on using them. So far, there's been no issues. Can't say I use the wood inlays in a wet environment because I plan on keeping them for a while. IMO, for normal daily use, the wood inlays will hold up as well as any other CRK.
 
Wow, this is fasinating stuff. A whole nuther side of CRK knifeology!
Another way to handle this is you have your EDC without frills & kept the fancy pants wood inlay for Saturday Night going out for Din Din type stuff! Also your hardwoods like Snake can check on you. Natural products are natural ..
 
Macassar Ebony is 3220 on the Janka scale, Snakewood is 3800.

Various Ebony woods, including Macassar, have been used for knife handles for many, many years because they are very durable. Use Macassar Ebony with confidence. Snakewood, although harder, can show small cracks over time.
 
A little bit of history before you stick your foot so far down your mouth you won't be able to breath.
The original poster of the thread(Dave H) is deceased and was a well known and liked member. So, in honor of his memory, everyone limits comments and posts pics only. That's why some comments have been removed and unnecessary commits are frowned upon.
It's everyone's thread to contribute to if they so choose, if you keep alienating yourself with your snarky remarks, people will be less willing to help out and what fun is there in that.

I've got 4 wood inlays, two of which I use and two for collection pieces. The two for use gets a fair shake and I don't hold back on using them. So far, there's been no issues. Can't say I use the wood inlays in a wet environment because I plan on keeping them for a while. IMO, for normal daily use, the wood inlays will hold up as well as any other CRK.

Before you jump down my throat I said yak yak because the rules of that thread stated to only post pics and comments should be in another thread. And when people don't pay attention to the rules B Hyde would step in and say no yak yak, pics only. Never did he mention the symbolism of the thread you are talking about.

This is the thread I referred too where I was viewing many CRK pics to get ideas for my next purchase.

https://www.bladeforums.com/threads...rt-other-threads-for-comments.463786/page-170

If I'm such a dick, read my feedback . . . here is a comment from Lyall from my last purchase:
Great guy, very nice to deal with. Awesome communication and very quick payment. . . . Looks like you are on the wrong side trying to tear me down.

And its too bad when I see comments on other knife forums regarding bladeforums.com some avoid this place as its way too aggressive to new members and others. But after two months I can see its only attempting to be controlled by a handful of high posters. Great moderation here, but I'm sure B Hyde did not sign up to be a Kindergarten teacher.
He's suggested to me to avoid getting into conflicts.

I was waiting for someone from the old guard here to step in and try and start trouble when we were all having a nice pleasant and and very informative conversation about the woods CRK uses. Your snarky reference comment only puts you on that much closer to my ignore list button which has really cleaned up this place for me. The only reason you are not on it already is from time to time you "almost" seem like a decent contributor and I've appreciated "some" of your input. Please don't be just another one of your buddies whose main goal it is to get my threads closed or have them sent to whine and cheese forum. I'm here to learn, not spar with people.

I appreciated your last comment, just not your first part. Hang in there though, be nice, contribute, have an opposite opinion, I like to hear all sides of an issue or just move on and skip over my threads. I'll survive :rolleyes:

Ajack on another note or another responder . . . since youv'e been around here so long see if you can help me on another issue I have. I bought a lrg seb 21 with beechwood inlays here (I luv this knife) just wish it had a DT raindrop blade.

It came with a light scratch but not enough to feel with your fingernail. CRK said they could try and polish it out, but there will be a charge plus my shipping to them and another $17.50 to ship it back. I don't want to lose my favorite EDC for 4-6 weeks. I figured I'd try and polish it out myself since I can always send it back to CRK. And on another forum the poster suggested to me they can't polish knives with wood inlays. They only way that it can be done is removing the inlay.
So I figured I'd try it myself. I tried a soft buffing wheel on my dremel with a little .50 and .25 diamond spray. That just served to put very fine scratches on it over the scratch. Rubbing with brasso didn't help, so I didn't want to rub too much.

These scratches are very fine which by the first pic can't be seen by the naked eye very easily. But the next pic I increased the magnification and at certain angles you can see the fine scratches. "I" know their there and if it is to stay in my collection, it has to be corrected.

So short of sending it back to CRK what product can order or might have on hand that I can use or what method can I use to polish the scales to remove whats showing in the 2nd pic.

IMG_6467.jpg IMG_6458.jpg
 
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Resin + denim. :-/

I meant to show that it's a stabilized burl wood and obviously in very good condition after much use.

It came with a light scratch but not enough to feel with your fingernail.

So you contacted the seller or dealer?

CRK said they could try and polish it out, but there will be a charge plus my shipping to them and another $17.50 to ship it back.

Seems reasonable to charge for shipping and work done on the knife.

I figured I'd try and polish it out myself since I can always send it back to CRK. And on another forum the poster suggested to me they can't polish knives with wood inlays.

This is true, they can't repolish the handles because the inlays obviously stick up above the handles preventing it from being polished.

So I figured I'd try it myself. I tried a soft buffing wheel on my dremel with a little .50 and .25 diamond spray.

:eek:

Doesn't sound like this was a good idea. Glad you learned this lesson early on.
 
So you contacted the seller or dealer?
No I would "never" do that! A deals a deal with me. It was a nice seller here. The knife was represented exactly as described and at a fair price. I knew I could always send it back to CRK if need be.

Regarding the shipping:
Well, I was used to Benchmade doing their own Spa treatments and shipping back at no charge. But I don't mind because CRK is in a different league and put their knives back to new at no charge for me for the 3 I've had to send back.
Im lucky enough that it only cost me $4.50 to use my office fedex account. And after the last few knives I've sent back now I see on their service form they have a spot for my fedex return shipping number.

What lesson learned?
Its only Titanium metal and someone here will know how to polish it Im sure. I enjoy learning how to do things myself as to me its all part of any hobby. I wish I knew which ones Im keeping though because I don't like a factory edges.
I leave the factory edge on for those that I'll resell. Problem with this hobby is I have to buy them, just to try them!
and I've invested over $1400 in a Wicked Edge sharpening system which puts on a gorgeous edge making a CRK EDC even sweeter. I'm not one to buy a knife and keep it in a safe to resell someday. I'll probably just give the ones I'm not crazy about to family or friends.
 
recent polishing inlays thread-likely there are others
https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/polishing-inlays.1571514/
Thanks Peter, you’re the best!

Seems GG was using a variable dremel where my older model is one speed and was turning way to fast for proper polishing. He mentions which attachments to use. I'll oder a new variable dremel off amazon along with the other stuff he recommends for polishing.

This is also why the first thing I order with a new knife is a deep carry clip from MX Gear especially for my CRK's. The worst thing one does is put his knife in the same pocket as his keys. With a deep carry clip not only does the knife not show sticking out of your pocket, your keys if put in the same pocket won't scratch the knife. Polished finishes are extremely susceptible to scratches as most of us already found out. I don't baby a knife, but I hate "any" scratches.
 
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I have not really seen or heard much about CRK wood inlays cracking. I've had some old wood inlays and never a problem.
 
recent polishing inlays thread-likely there are others
https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/polishing-inlays.1571514/

$1400 WE really?
Ya, its a lot easy to spend $$$ on a decent WE system as you would think. The method is the same for their 4 models and the better models come with better and faster clamping system. I can justify what I spent on the system as between my family and myself we probably have 50-75 knives mostly kitchen knives and maybe 35 folders. I used to use a $200 chefs choice sharpener, before I knew any better. It really tears up the edge and wastes a lot of metal. Watch a youtube vid by a member here Josh from "Razor Edge Knives" to see what our system can turn out.
I've sharpened knives with whetstones for years, but the Wicked Edge system turns edge sharpening into an artform. Not the 15 second edge done on a grinding wheel that the knife companies turn out. My Pro Gen III unit is $899 and it doesnt take long to watch the dollars add up with extra diamond stones, diamond lapping films, various strops etc and accessories.
 
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