Alan Wood Woodlore

[Mat]

Afternoon everyone,

I have an AW Woodlore and have recently noticed that the handles (forgive me but I'm not really into knives - are these also known as the scales?) have somehow swollen so that they are fractionally bigger than the metal of the blade. It's not really too much of a problem but after spending most of the weekend using the knife it did make my hands feel a little sore. The 'lip' between wood is very small and I can live with it, but I wondered if there is anything I can do about it? Normally if a piece of wood is too big, you would sand it, but I reckon this is probably the last thing I should do!

It's a great knife and I'm more than pleased with it, but perhaps I'm just being picky - are all Woody's like this?

Any thoughts?

Thanks,

Mat

 

[soup_monger]

I would suggest letting the handle dry out in a warm room for a few days and then rubbing in boiled linseed oil (or oil of your choice, olive, sesame etc) and then if the scales are still bigger than the tang (metal) sand them down to fit.
It sounds like they have absorbed moisture (from the atmosphere) since they were originally made.

Cheers

 

[Andy]

was it like this when you bought it?

I'd contact woodlore and alan wood. It could be that it needs some minor treatment which may include sanding but for the sort of money these things cost that minor work should be done by Alan (IMO)

 

[capacious]

I agree with Andy. And besides, it can't hurt just sending AW an email.

 

[leon-1]

Mat, have a look over on British Blades, I recall people having mentioned this before to different degrees so the guys over there are normally pretty well placed to point you in the right direction.

 

[Mat]

Thanks for your replies. I like the idea of putting the knife in a warm place for a few days. I guess sending Alan an e-mail is a good idea as well, but I don't have his address - anyone know it?

Thanks again,

Mat

 

[tomtom]

i would try letting it dry out slowly so perminant (sp) warping doesnt take place.. dont let it be too hot!

if it does go back to normal i would look at the various threads here and on BB about sealing wood and try to re-seal it..

as a natural material the wood is likely to move a bit.. however it is the the extent that the usability of the knife is compomised i would contact alan and im sure he will sort it as the would should have been seasoned to the extent that it would not creat complications such as this.

 

[g4ghb]

I'm happy to swap it for my plastic handled mora if you want! - no warping problems there

 

[scanker]

a.wood-atsign-knives.freeserve.co.uk I think

 

[Shing]

Wood will always absorb and release water and will swell and shrink as a result. I don't know any commonly available products like drying oils that will make a wooden handle completely waterproof so it would not swell and shrink. Some naturally oily woods like cocobolo are more stable than others. The only complete solution if you want a wood handle is to use stabilise wood which is wood that has been completely impregnanted with monomers under vaccum than cured. Unlike all finishes that are surface treatments, stabilisation goes comletely through the wood and can't be worn off or deterioate and need to be reapplied.

 

[jason01]

Wood will always absorb and release water and will swell and shrink as a result. I don't know any commonly available products like drying oils that will make a wooden handle completely waterproof so it would not swell and shrink. Some naturally oily woods like cocobolo are more stable than others. The only complete solution if you want a wood handle is to use stabilise wood which is wood that has been completely impregnanted with monomers under vaccum than cured. Unlike all finishes that are surface treatments, stabilisation goes comletely through the wood and can't be worn off or deterioate and need to be reapplied.

It does seem to be the bane of all full tang wooden handled knives and I think it is inevitable to some extent. I have hot air central heating at home which create quite a dry atmosphere and my scales tend to shrink below the level of the tang even with lignum vitae and cocobolo that has been cut to size and air dried for a year. I'm not convincd that stabilising is even a complete solution, I have a knife here with a stabilised rosewood handle and it suffered the same old fate, shrinking scales after a couple of years (only a fraction of a mm admittedly but enough that I could feel it), easy to correct but annoying.

You could always keep em in a humidity controlled cabinet and just look at em

 

[Klenchblaize]

Consider having the scales changed for something more stable such as Micarta if you can't live with the 'warmth' of wood. Such can still look quite cool.

Cheers

[/IMG]

 

[Mat]

Normal service has been resumed! A few days in a warm-ish room has seen the wood shrink back to a perfect fit.

Now, how do I stop it happening again?

 

[jason01]

Normal service has been resumed! A few days in a warm-ish room has seen the wood shrink back to a perfect fit.

Now, how do I stop it happening again?

Its impossible to guarante it wont happen again whatever you do to it, but best try and seal it. My preference would be leave it soaking in a linseed oil bath for as long as you like, days/weeks as long as you can be bothered, the linseed oil in the wood will harden over time (12-18 months) and it should be less inclined to absorb moisture.

 

[soup_monger]

Glad the warm room tactic worked Jason.
I've found that placing the knife vertically, handle first, in a container with Boiled Linseed Oil covering the handle for 2 or 3 days works well.
The Boiled Linseed Oil (about £3 from a hardware store) cures faster so you just need to wipe it off when you remove it.
Then a couple of coats of Creamed Bees Wax and it's very water/moisture resistant.

 

[Mat]

Thanks for you help guys. I've also e-mailed Alan to see what he recommends. I might store the knife in boiled linseed oil when I'm not using it ....

 

[tomtom]

Thanks for you help guys. I've also e-mailed Alan to see what he recommends. I might store the knife in boiled linseed oil when I'm not using it ....

You don’t want too much on there.. When you treat it remember to wipe of the excess, if you have too much on their it will harden on the surface like a varnish and when you use the knife it will melt and stick to you hand.. This can cause blisters and it pretty un desirable really.. You just want the wood to be sealed, it is better just to apply some periodically let it soak in for a while the remove the what is on the surface while it is still liquid with a cloth.

 

[jason01]

You don’t want too much on there.. When you treat it remember to wipe of the excess, if you have too much on their it will harden on the surface like a varnish and when you use the knife it will melt and stick to you hand.. This can cause blisters and it pretty un desirable really.. You just want the wood to be sealed, it is better just to apply some periodically let it soak in for a while the remove the what is on the surface while it is still liquid with a cloth.

It shouldnt form a gooey varnish on the surface as long as its submerged it will just keep soaking in, I prefer unboiled because it penetrates better and with things other than knives I actually submerge them in hot boiling linseed oil and then leave them to soak for really good pentration. Obviously thats not a good idea with a knife, the stel and the wood will expand at different rates and you could get it hot enough to affect the temper. IMO you cant get too much linseed oil into the wood, if you do get a gloopy residue on the outside its easily wiped off with fresh linseed oil and some fine wire wool.