Warped Mammoth Ivory

[Kevin Cross]

I recently received a set of Mammoth Ivory scales from a guy who gave up on knife making. The problem is they are only 3/16 thick and are slightly warped. Not thick enough to grind flat, so is there some way to straighten them (flatten them), Steam them like wood maybe? I appreciate any ideas you can offer. Thanks Kev

 

[A C Richards]

See if you can get a hold of Charles Turnage. He does a lot of mammoth scales. Or Chuck Bybee at Alpha Knife supply.

Chuck

 

[winstonknives]

Yep, they are probably no good now. Send them to me for proper disposal.

 

[Don Hanson III]

Some scales can be soaked in water and pressed flat but it is risky, they can crack and or break. Also when ivory drys out again, it is likely to go back to the shape it was before.

Best to grind flat and if you need thicker, just glue them to a piece of micarta of the thickness you need.

 

[richard j]

i have some piano keys that you could probably glue up to use as spacers. send me an email.

 

[Chuck Gedraitis Knives]

You can certainly flatten them. You can boil them for about 10 min, clamp them up to a flat piece of steel and put them somewhere and forget about them. Let them dry for about a month and they should be fine. I have done it with great results.

It's just like steaming wood, it should stay flat as long as it's dry.