Do your handles darken?

[tk59]

Most of my handles darken over time. Anyone else notice this?

 

[JBroida]

yup... par for the course

 

[TamanegiKin]

Yes, to the point where I dislike the look of a new handle now

 

[JohnnyChance]

Y'all need to wash your grubby hands.

I guess a little. Not a ton.

 

[tk59]

I like them a lot better darker, myself. I can't remember who I was talking to but they seemed surprised by this. What types of wood darken nicest?

 

[JohnnyChance]

I like them a lot better darker, myself. I can't remember who I was talking to but they seemed surprised by this. What types of wood darken nicest?

It was me. I am sure mine are darker from use and wax/oiling, but not so much that it is easily noticeable.

 

[zitangy]

Most of my handles darken over time. Anyone else notice this?

oil from the hands naturally. and it becomes the patina on the wood..

having said that, i have also seen handles that has not been oiled from time to time and the wood shrinks. Had a ferule that became loose. Soaked it in oil for abt an hour and it became a tight fit again...

~david

 

[Citizen Snips]

my ebony handles have gotten considerably darker. i agree that they look better once they darken up

 

[Delbert Ealy]

Actually, in unstabilized, or poorly stabilized woods it is more likely to be UV exposure that causes the darkening. Most woods, especially rosewoods, and acaia are subect to UV darkening. Yes it could be grubby oily hands, but UV is more likely.
Del

 

[SpikeC]

The handle on the Fowler passaround is much darker now than in the pictures of the knife at the start of the passaround. The grain pattern is almost indistinguishable now. I believe it is ironwood.

 

[tk59]

I have a knife from Pesky right now where the darkening is definitely due to hand grubbiness. If you've ever seen how I work with my knives, you'd know that isn't going to be the source. The darkening is very consistent on the entire handle. For example, my DTITK (cocobolo) is now almost black unless you look at it under a nice, bright light, then you see all the reddish and hazel tones. I hadn't considered the UV but since my windows block almost all of it and never hit the knife area directly, I am fairly certain that is not the case.

 

[Marko Tsourkan]

I have seen darkening on a number of oily natural woods like rosewood, ebony, snakewood, Lignum Vitae, as well as on Arizona Desert Ironwood. As Del pointed out, it's due to exposure to the sun light and air.

M

 

[Dave Martell]

I have a knife from Pesky right now where the darkening is definitely due to hand grubbiness.

So just to clear....you're saying that Pesky has grubby hands?

 

[El Pescador]

I have a knife from Pesky right now where the darkening is definitely due to hand grubbiness. If you've ever seen how I work with my knives, you'd know that isn't going to be the source. The darkening is very consistent on the entire handle. For example, my DTITK (cocobolo) is now almost black unless you look at it under a nice, bright light, then you see all the reddish and hazel tones. I hadn't considered the UV but since my windows block almost all of it and never hit the knife area directly, I am fairly certain that is not the case.

I don't know what to say!

 

[tk59]

So just to clear....you're saying that Pesky has grubby hands?

The knife handle does not lie, Dave.

 

[Vertigo]

Don't worry Pesky. I just shot a knife off to TK with bacon grease and egg yolk all f*cking over the handle.

 

[Dave Martell]

My favorites handles are the stinky fish ho jobbies.....yikes!

 

[tk59]

Nice...:slaphead:

 

[NO ChoP!]

Yah, from swarf...

I am meticulous with just about everything in life, but I am a messy sharpener. I am usually standing in a puddle of water, with swarf up to my elbows...

 

[apicius9]

Yep, at least all the natural wood ones do, the stabilized wood ones to a lesser extent. Especially the rosewoods (cocobolo, king wood, Honduran rosewood etc.) darken quite a bit to an almost black-red.

Stefan