-
The BladeForums.com 2024 Traditional Knife is ready to order! See this thread for details: https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/bladeforums-2024-traditional-knife.2003187/
Price is $300 ea (shipped within CONUS). If you live outside the US, I will contact you after your order for extra shipping charges.
Order here: https://www.bladeforums.com/help/2024-traditional/ - Order as many as you like, we have plenty.
Recommendation? Can anyone recommend some uk hardwood suppliers please?
- Thread starter steve.15
- Start date
- Joined
- Dec 11, 2000
- Messages
- 1,044
Damn man, I didn't know that 5am existed on Saturday mornings! 
I can recommend you sign up to Edgematters, a UK forum, good local info.
What kind of knives are you looking to make? Typically for fixed blades you will get only one knife set of scales from a block sold for knife handles. If you are making really thin knives you might manage more, but 9-10mm thick scales are the norm, and with a block you have to account for your saw kerf and loss from flattening. The main value of blocks for scales is that you can get thicker handles than you can often get with pre-cut scales.
Are you talking about stabilised wood, or natural un-stabilised?
How do you propose to split a block into scales? Do you have a bandsaw or will you have to do it by hand? If by hand, what saw you you have? I used Japanese rip saws for years with generally good results, but also broke a lot of teeth on stabilised blocks that were harder than the saws are really meant to cut. There is a knack to splitting a block to have a straight cut and flat faces.
Although I am based in the UK I have not bought stabilised wood blocks from any UK suppliers (I have bought from the US and sent my own wood to the US for stabilising). I do however know of a number of suppliers who are reputable and from whom I have bought other stuff with good results. Also, I have bought big bits of wood from timber yards and cut them down for knife handles. The problem with that is that knives need tighter patterns than most other wood projects so you need to be picky, best to pick in person or from a place that shows photos of the exact piece on offer.
Forum rules, cannot post links to businesses, but can give names.
Moonraker knives
English-handmade-knives
Exotic Hardwoods (aka Timberline, based in Tunbridge. There is also an Exotic Hardwoods UK Ltd in Staffordshire)
GRS Knife Supplies
All the best
Chris
I can recommend you sign up to Edgematters, a UK forum, good local info.
What kind of knives are you looking to make? Typically for fixed blades you will get only one knife set of scales from a block sold for knife handles. If you are making really thin knives you might manage more, but 9-10mm thick scales are the norm, and with a block you have to account for your saw kerf and loss from flattening. The main value of blocks for scales is that you can get thicker handles than you can often get with pre-cut scales.
Are you talking about stabilised wood, or natural un-stabilised?
How do you propose to split a block into scales? Do you have a bandsaw or will you have to do it by hand? If by hand, what saw you you have? I used Japanese rip saws for years with generally good results, but also broke a lot of teeth on stabilised blocks that were harder than the saws are really meant to cut. There is a knack to splitting a block to have a straight cut and flat faces.
Although I am based in the UK I have not bought stabilised wood blocks from any UK suppliers (I have bought from the US and sent my own wood to the US for stabilising). I do however know of a number of suppliers who are reputable and from whom I have bought other stuff with good results. Also, I have bought big bits of wood from timber yards and cut them down for knife handles. The problem with that is that knives need tighter patterns than most other wood projects so you need to be picky, best to pick in person or from a place that shows photos of the exact piece on offer.
Forum rules, cannot post links to businesses, but can give names.
Moonraker knives
English-handmade-knives
Exotic Hardwoods (aka Timberline, based in Tunbridge. There is also an Exotic Hardwoods UK Ltd in Staffordshire)
GRS Knife Supplies
All the best
Chris