how do i convert a piece of antler into a handle?

[Man of Tanith]

Evening
i have a lovely montengue(sp?) style crook knife blade that i want to rehandle
i have a piece of antler that fits well in my hand that i think would make a fine handle i just dont know how to insert/fit the blades tang into the antler
any help appreciated

 

[Bucketosudz]

Drilling the antler would be the first thing that I would try. I would drill the hole so that the tang would fit correctly and I would take a skinny piece of antler, brass, horn, wood or similar and fit it to the tang proper and then you can epoxy the bits together. The skinny piece will cover any deviations you had in the drilling and make it look nice and then you can sand any residual epoxy if needed.

If you have a saw and feel comfortable with it, you can slice your antler in half and scribe both sides to the profile of the tang. Chisel out just enough space for the tang and some epoxy and glue the halves back together with the blade tang recessed. Any of that make sense?

 

[Mesquite]

I think I've heard that you can soak it in water for ages so the spongy part goes soft and you can then just shove the tang in. When it dries it's rock solid

 

[Dogoak]

I think I've heard that you can soak it in water for ages so the spongy part goes soft and you can then just shove the tang in. When it dries it's rock solid

Yep, that will do it. It can be worth taking it out once you've got it in, let the antler dry and then re-fit with some epoxy.

 

[Gailainne]

If you put the antler into a pot of boiling water the core will go soft enough to force the tang into it, I just left it in for a minute or so then tested how soft it was with my thumb nail, I had the blade set up in a vice, and just forced the handle over it, I used a wooden mallet for the last bit. When it had cooled it was rock solid. The only thing I would say is the tang on my blade was small maybe 1mm thick by 4mm wide, if yours is a lot bigger it might be an idea to drill a small pilot hole before hand.

 

[Man of Tanith]

i shall measure the antler piece and the tang and decide if i need a guide hole first
thanks folks

 

[lannyman8]

hey Sam, id do it by drilling a hole then cover with brass or somthing, or carfully fill the hole with dyed resin...

i never knew antler could be boiled to soften it like that, thanks chaps....

 

[Man of Tanith]

another good idea there
hmmm i might try the boiling method see how it goes first