Why not Hickory for a knife handle?

Status
Not open for further replies.
W

woodgood

Joined
Sep 9, 2002
Messages
815
Hickory is one of my favorite woods. I have cut down and split several hickory trees on my land and the wood has a great pattern and character. The burl wood is especially vibrant. I guess that holds true for many different trees though.

Why haven't I seen many (actually I don't recall seeing any) knife handles made from Hickory? Is this wood not suited for knife handles? It appears to be a very strong and heavy wood.

This may seem like a dumb post but it hadn't dawned on me until today that I haven't seen many hickory wood handles on knives. Of course there is the Old Hickory knife company but I think they use "hardwoods" for their handles and not necessarily Hickory.

I guess this is just one of those "Did you every wonder" questions.
 
I'd think hickory burl would be awesome, let me know if you ever want to part with some! :D

Hickory seems to be the defacto work handle material, hammer handles, sledges, axes, shovels. Maybe it's too pedestrian for most custom makers? Most of those handles seem to have fairly straight, uninteresting grain patterns. Something that I would think would be highly desirable for a hard working axe handle. The straight grain means a straight handle and strength.

So, with that in mind, maybe we never see the truley fantastic grain patterns because they get cast off as unusable by the commercial industry? I wouldn't hesitate to use it for a knife, especially if it had a great pattern to it.

Edit * Pecan is a hickory. I have some and have used it for spacers in handles. It's very handsome. I have access to a lot more from my folks farm and intend to get more when I can. *

Walter
 
I don't see a reason not to use it, especially if you have some nice burl pieces, or some with nice curl to it.
 
Byork said:
I'd think hickory burl would be awesome, let me know if you ever want to part with some! :D

Hickory seems to be the defacto work handle material, hammer handles, sledges, axes, shovels. Maybe it's too pedestrian for most custom makers? Most of those handles seem to have fairly straight, uninteresting grain patterns. Something that I would think would be highly desirable for a hard working axe handle. The straight grain means a straight handle and strength.

So, with that in mind, maybe we never see the truley fantastic grain patterns because they get cast off as unusable by the commercial industry? I wouldn't hesitate to use it for a knife, especially if it had a great pattern to it.

Walter
Click to expand...

Exactly as Walter has said most of the hickory that does not have nice straight grain gets made into smoker shavings. It will make beautifull handles.

Bob
 
I've used a piece of hickory from a broken 'hawk handle on a knife. It's easy to work with and takes a nice oil finish about like maple or walnut does. I see no functional reason not to use it.

Like the others said, if you want to get rid of some hickory burl, put me on the list! I don't think the lessened strength would be an issue on a well-built knife handle.
 
I have used hickory a few times and would like to point out that it is a very dirty wood. It has very open grain so it collects a lot of dirt and crap off your hands, if it is finished right it should not be a problem but unless you have a finish that will fill the grain then I would recommend staying away from it.

-Josiah.
 
I like hickory very much and use it sometimes in woodworking projects and have used it on a few knives. As stated above it has an open grain so you need to finish it accordingly. If you use an oil finish like Danish Oil you can wet sand a few coats using finish as the lubricant. This creates an oil/sawdust slurry that fills in the pores. Multiple coats of a finish like Tru Oil that is buffed out in between coats with 00 steel wool will also fill in the grain nicely. It's not always the most interesting grain but recently I got some curly hickory that is very nice. I'd imagine the burl is really something.

Michael

Hickory with walnut pins
brevkniv_36.jpg


Pieces of hickory stacked with walnut butt and bolster
hickory_eriksson06.jpg
 
Michael, kinda like you said, I used Watco Danish oil, lots of coats, buffed with 0000 SW after the first few. I'm fairly confident the open grain is well-sealed, and I think it looks nice next to the walnut. Your example is much nicer than mine :thumbup:
 
I picked up a plank of curly hickory for 2 bucks a board foot last year. Cabinet makers don't like that curly wood for some reason. I got 11 board feet for 25 bucks out the door.

DSCI0069Medium-vi.jpg


fea06-vi.jpg


Really looks great as is, but I think next time I might put something on it to make the curl pop more.
 
James_Terrio said:
Michael, kinda like you said, I used Watco Danish oil, lots of coats, buffed with 0000 SW after the first few. I'm fairly confident the open grain is well-sealed, and I think it looks nice next to the walnut. Your example is much nicer than mine :thumbup:
Click to expand...


Thanks James.
Maybe it's a case of "the grass is always greener" but I REALLY love the knife you posted. :thumbup:


Fiddleback said:
I picked up a plank of curly hickory for 2 bucks a board foot last year. Cabinet makers don't like that curly wood for some reason. I got 11 board feet for 25 bucks out the door.
Click to expand...

Wow on the deal you got and double wow on the knife!


Michael
 
Thanks.

In Atlanta I am blessed with 4 hardwood distributors that I know of. One is very near me and doesn't handle exotics, only domestic woods. Though, they do have Jatoba, and Mahogany, a few of the basics. But mainly domestics. They sell to cabinet makers, and they (for some reason) don't like curly wood. So I get curly maple, and sometimes others for really cheap there.

Downtown there is a hardwood store that would blow anyone's mind. Carlton's Rare Woods. They have EVERYTHING!! You go in and ask for Camphor, and you have oodles of choices.

And there are others around here too. I usually don't use them because there is no need, they're prices aren't as good as the previous two, and they're farther away.
 
Back to the hickory question... two things:

One... I like hickory a great deal and have used it for years as the handle material for swords and knives, such as the dagger in the pic. The hickory is wrapped with twisted stainless wire, so the finish on the wood is not an issue. It's actually nice to have an open grain because the polyurethane that locks in the wire has something to grip to.

Two... I've also used hickory as a handle on full tang using hunters. Yes it's plain, yes it's dirty... but that open grain gives it a very grippy surface for a real using knife. There is probably no better value in a real using factory knife than the Old Hickory knives... available in blister packs at all sorts of houshold good stores... straight high carbon steel and hickory scales... can't get much simpler than that. But when I've been stranded in a strange town without a knife... that's what I get... and then abandon it as needed when I get on the plane.

And there's something to be said for using plain materials on a custom knife. I often have new makers express the opinion that if only they could afford this or that fancy handle material, then they could make a really great knife. That is just so wrong! Design and workmanship trump materials every time!!!! EVERY TIME. If you make a really great knife with a plain hickory handle... my friend... it is still a really great knife and people who know knives will see it!! A crappy knife with a thousand dollars worth of fossilized mammoth ivory and solid gold fittings is still just a crappy knife with a lot of money spent to no purpose. So first things first... if you make knives with plain materials that people really like, then you can know for certain you're on the right track.
 

Attachments

  • WireDagger01Entire.jpg
    WireDagger01Entire.jpg
    19.1 KB · Views: 103
Last edited:
I agree Phil, Tom's post is worth reading several times until it sinks in. It speaks to the concept of making a knife that kicks much butt, performance-wise... "fancy" materials don't mean diddly if the knife is poorly designed or badly made. Thanks Tom!

tmaring said:
There is probably no better value in a real using factory knife than the Old Hickory knives...
Click to expand...
I agree 100%. When friends ask me for a "cheap" knife that will really cut and take a beating, I point them towards Ontario Old Hickory. This nation was built with knives like that :)
 
Last edited:
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top