User-grade ivory handle?

Daniel Koster

Daniel Koster

www.kosterknives.com
Knifemaker / Craftsman / Service Provider
Joined
Oct 18, 2001
Messages
20,978
What kind of ivory would be best for a camp knife that is going to see heavy use? (customer request)

And what fasteners (or fastening systems) are best with it?
(the knife will be full tang, 5" long and 1.5" wide at the butt)

Thanks for any help!


p.s. and will it be ok to checker it?
 
Ivory Micarta.

Seriously, using real ivory on a camp knife that will see heavy use is like putting screen doors on a submarine, as the old joke goes.

If you use ivory, do yourself a favor and disclaim all liability for the grip.
 
Ouch! Well, how about doing the ivory as a large inlay in a micarta "frame"?

Rob!
 
I don't think of ivory as a good camp knife material ,either.
Walrus is the toughest.Other good alternatives would be :
stag, elk,moose
sheep horn (look at Ed Fowler's camp knives!)
camel bone, giraffe bone
Tru-ivory (Ivory stimulant)
macarta
mammoth bone
anything but ivory
 
Acquired this last week,Jason Knight/JS,it's walrus.Emailed maker last night.Waiting for him to reply,with input on if anything can be done to stop fracture from progressing.

Doug
..it's in mineral oil now. Edited to add,don't mean to take your thread off topic,Daniel.
 
I have a few ivory handled folders out there which are being carried and used every day, they are holding up very good. I cleaned up and sharpen one just the other day, it has fossil walrus ivory and has been carried every day for 5 or 6 years. For a large full tang knife, I would recommend mammoth and have it stabilized. Nothing wrong with a guy wanting real ivory on a using knife has long as he knows it's not as durable has the synthetics and needs a little care.
 
bladsmth said:
I don't think of ivory as a good camp knife material ,either.
Walrus is the toughest.Other good alternatives would be :
stag, elk,moose
sheep horn (look at Ed Fowler's camp knives!)
camel bone, giraffe bone
Tru-ivory (Ivory stimulant)
macarta
mammoth bone
anything but ivory
Click to expand...
Ivory stimulant........Is that like a giant baseball sized Viagra for elephants? har har har:D
 
It is my experience that walrus is not particularly stable (develops cracks and checks pretty easily. Hippo is nice, but soft and also pretty prone to move.
I've had both good luck and bad luck with mammoth ivory. Some pieces will simply NOT behave while others will be as tough and stable as can be, even unstabilized.
I've hear elephant ivory is most stable.
 
Keep any type of ivory well oiled with good old fashioned Baby Oil and hope for the best. It makes one of the best looking grips out there and one of the worst for a using knife... unless you like cracking, checking, shrinking, expanding and what have you. The stuff changes shape according to temperature and humidity.
 
my concern with mammoth is finding a piece large enough - think Bowie-sized. Even stabilized, won't a piece that large have potential problems?

Plus, $$$...same with elephant ivory.

I'm open to walrus...but don't like what I'm hearing about it above. The user will keep good care of it. Stag is a definite alternative at this point. Especially if I can find a really nice piece.
 
Daniel Koster said:
my concern with mammoth is finding a piece large enough - think Bowie-sized. Even stabilized, won't a piece that large have potential problems?

Plus, $$$...same with elephant ivory.
Click to expand...

It seems to me that the customer is ultimately carrying the responsibility for material selection and its price. Best you can do is educate him on the pros and cons and then handle it properly while making the knife.
Like I said, my experience with mammoth is mixed --really, really good performance in hard-use conditions to not so good.

Some really premium stabilized Sambar stag is a good alternative.
 
See if you can get the customer to change his mind about the full, exposed tang. Then, find yourself a large bowie sized piece of walrus ivory and do a beefy hidden tang on it.
 
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