Best handle ever?

[Johnny.B.Good]

Quite a collection, RiffRaff!

 

[Burl Source]

A guy I know who does a lot of trail blazing has knives with good looking handles wraps them with tennis racket tape when using them in the forest.
Then when he gets home he removes the tape so the knives don't look so dang ugly.
With the hunting knife crowd there was a flurry of knives being made using horse stall rubber mats.
Supposedly they were grippy and performed well, but once again ugly and never caught on.

 

[bikehunter]

Burnt chestnut is a great wa alternative for good grip....

Owned a Victorinox Fibrox handled 10" Chef for years and it's hard to beat for a good grip (and yes...ugly as sin). I must agree with NO ChoP as well. I have a 240 gyuto by Yoshikane and that Burnt Chestnut is as grippy as any wood wa handle I've ever used.

 

[olpappy]

Fibrox gets a huge thumbs up from me, even with all the fancy custom knives I have not thrown out the Forschners precisely because the Fibrox is so comfortable. The shape of the handles isn't great but the material seems almost indestructible and the perfect degree of grippiness not too much nor too little, cleans up easily after sitting in disgusting filth, everything you could want in a handle material. Victorinox/Forschner is sitting on a gold mine IMHO, this material should be used in all shapes and sizes of handles. I think the ideal handle would be a big fat Sabatier handle made of Fibrox!

 

[boomchakabowwow]

on a butcher/hunting knife, it is tough to beat fibrox. my buddy takes apart animals with one. kinda nice how easy it is to get clean streamside with camp soap. my handles seem to hang onto the grease longer..
when i worked in the family restaurant, i could mow thru onions with a victorinox. it was the only knife my stepdad let me abuse. i used to hammer open big soup cans with the heel. not smart at all. but my stepdad bought alot of those beaters.

 

[Keith Sinclair]

I think the Fibrox handles look ugly but work well,they are cheaper than the Rosewood Forschners,for knives that are not taken care of they are more sanitary.The bolsterless Rosewood wt. crappy knife care,develope separation fr. the tang & can get pretty funky.

A forum member turned me on to the Kanetsugu Pro-M.I like the handle on this Gyuto,very comfortable.Lite,thin profile,sharpens up easy & even comes wt. a Saya.A couple of my culinary student's have ordered them.

 

[RiffRaff]

Fibrox gets a huge thumbs up from me, even with all the fancy custom knives I have not thrown out the Forschners precisely because the Fibrox is so comfortable. The shape of the handles isn't great but the material seems almost indestructible and the perfect degree of grippiness not too much nor too little, cleans up easily after sitting in disgusting filth, everything you could want in a handle material. Victorinox/Forschner is sitting on a gold mine IMHO, this material should be used in all shapes and sizes of handles. I think the ideal handle would be a big fat Sabatier handle made of Fibrox!

+1 I've come to prefer the thinner profile Sabs, and a Sab Nogent with Fibrox-like handle and properly heat-treated stainless at 60+ HRC, well, there's your gold mine for all.

 

[Matus]

The best handle I have used is a birch bark one on my Finish Iisaki Aito knife. It never gets slippery and feels great in hand. Never seen one on a kitchen knife though.

 

[RiffRaff]

The best handle I have used is a birch bark one on my Finish Iisaki Aito knife. It never gets slippery and feels great in hand. Never seen one on a kitchen knife though.

Photos please. . . .

 

[Matus]

Photos please. . . .

here

I have bought in the past (as a present for a friend) a knife from Jukka Hankala - Ikari, which also has a birch bark handle which is absolutely sublime (Ikari is also much more expensive than Aito):

here

 

[Matus]

The above post took me more than 30 minutes to write from my phone - I guess I need a ew one

 

[RiffRaff]

The above post took me more than 30 minutes to write from my phone - I guess I need a ew one

Very beautiful and a reminder of what natural materials can be at their best

 

[Marko Tsourkan]

here

I have bought in the past (as a present for a friend) a knife from Jukka Hankala - Ikari, which also has a birch bark handle which is absolutely sublime (Ikari is also much more expensive than Aito):

here

I have been thinking about birch bark handles for a while, but I am not sure it would be hygienic enough for the kitchen. Bark is porous. I do like the look though.

M

 

[Andrew H]

View attachment 13944

I hadn't anticipated a beauty contest since my original post was about a favorite ugly duckling. But I couldn't resist showing a few more of the beauts my lowly Forschner Fibrox has to compete with including (left to right)

Daniel O'Malley's quilted redwood on a Hattori KD 150 petty, O'Malley's snakewood/synthetic on Carter nakiri, O'Malley spalted maple/black horn on a Shig santoku, "Heavin Forge" warthog tusk/ebony on a 210 German-style damscus chef, O'Malley afzalia burl on a 240 Hattori KD, and an Isaiah Schroeder zebrawood (very good grip, not too polished) on a Heiji stainless 240

The handle on that KD 150 is tiny. Does it feel good in the hand?

 

[Matus]

Concerning the hygiene and birch bark - I would say if one is capable to keep carbon knives in the kitchen in a good shape, than it should be no problem. I have already considered to try to make such a handle, but it is not easy to get a good quality birch bark around here. In fact I would love to have such a handle on some of my kitchen knives (and the Mora 2000 which could really use a better handle)

 

[Marko Tsourkan]

Concerning the hygiene and birch bark - I would say if one is capable to keep carbon knives in the kitchen in a good shape, than it should be no problem. I have already considered to try to make such a handle, but it is not easy to get a good quality birch bark around here. In fact I would love to have such a handle on some of my kitchen knives (and the Mora 2000 which could really use a better handle)

I have a source for quality bark. It goes for about $10/SF

 

[RiffRaff]

The handle on that KD 150 is tiny. Does it feel good in the hand?

As you can probably guess, it doesn't fill the palm of your hand as a full-size handle would. It stays in the fingers when using it for slicing, and it's damn good for a pinch group where your fourth and fifth finger (only) wrap around the handle. Sounds more complicated than it is. Daniel O'Malley also did me the favor of rounding the spine, so it's especially comfortable.

 

[franzb69]

I have been thinking about birch bark handles for a while, but I am not sure it would be hygienic enough for the kitchen. Bark is porous. I do like the look though.

i'm just talking out of my butt, but maybe stabilizing it would help? =D

 

[Marko Tsourkan]

i'm just talking out of my butt, but maybe stabilizing it would help? =D

I am not sure it is possible or if it is worth the effort. Bark is between 1/8 and 1/16 thick. If I make one, it will be natural and would require a periodic application of wood conditioner

 

[franzb69]

ohhh okay. would look cool though.