Kitchen knife handle

[Bisamratte]

I found that the rubber and plastic handle of one of my kitchen knives has perished, so I spent half an hour hacking away at it and now have a 4 inch blade with a 1.5 inch tang and a very good excuse for my first knife project.

I have never put a handle on a knife before but I have a rough idea of how to go about it from the tutorials on here and BB, but Im sure I will have lots of questions along the way.

So my first question is what wood and finish should I use? It needs to be durable, food safe and washable. It also shouldnt be too fancy as it would never get used by swmbo

Cheers

Andy

 

[swagman]

I think maple is a nice and you could put some olive oil on it.
I have a solid wooden chopping board and i was advised to put olive oil on it now and again.

Swagman

 

[bushwacker bob]

I've been working my way through my Sabatiers as they break.I've used walnut on a couple and sapele on one and the next will probably be Oak. I soak them in danish oil for 24 hours and then give them an extra coat if they look like they need it. I havent had a problem with any of them coming apart.I use epoxy and home made brass rivets,although investing in real cutlers rivets would probably make it easier.

 

[philaw]

I put a new handle on my wife's chinese cleaver after the old one fell off. The wood was a bit of an old curtain rail that I found in the garage. I simply chiselled out the tang shape from one piece and then epoxy-resined another piece to it with the tang in the middle. Then I broke out the power sander and finally used some pine varnish (also found in the garage) on it. Total cost: Nothing. IT get's used more than any other knife in the kitchen.