Wood kitchen knife handles

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flphotog

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Jul 10, 2014
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A friend has a set of CC Walnut Traditional knives that I'm going to and refurbish. My plan is to initially soak the handles in Mineral Oil, they are pretty dry. Does anyone have any suggestions on a good cover coat, I'd prefer not to put anything to hard on them but some addition protection would be nice.
Thought of Tung Oil but in this case the odor would be an issue.

Thanks
 
Tru Oil is a mighty fine product. Can be left gloss. Can be 0000 steel "wooled" back to a satin or flat finish. Can be thinned to penetrate into the wood, or left full strength for a glossy layer on top. Very versatile. Not as hard as a poly top coat. I use Watco Danish and Tru Oil on all my walnut handles.
 
samuraistuart said:
Tru Oil is a mighty fine product. Can be left gloss. Can be 0000 steel "wooled" back to a satin or flat finish. Can be thinned to penetrate into the wood, or left full strength for a glossy layer on top. Very versatile. Not as hard as a poly top coat. I use Watco Danish and Tru Oil on all my walnut handles.
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Thanks, I'll take a look at that.
Looked at both and they do look good but I was looking for something more kitchen/food friendly.
 
I use a beeswax mineral oil mix on my wood handled knifes,wooden spoons,and cutting boards.Don't know the exact ratio melt some bees wax in a double boiler add a little mineral oil.If you heat them first really soaks in and works better.
 
Mineral oil is great for cutting boards and wood handles. I've used it for years and it works great.
 
I'll give the beeswax mineral oil mix a try. Vinifera, I've also used mineral oil for a long time but it does require maintenance which is find for me but these are a friends knives and I don't see that happening that's why I'm looking for something a little more maintenance free.
 
The mineral oil beeswax is not maintenance free it last a lot longer than mineral oil alone but has to be reapplied it is not a permanent finish.
 
Walnut handles on kitchen knives are almost worry-free anyway; not much reason to worry about them, as walnut is very stable. I'm sure that's at least partly why it's used so much on kitchen knives. My mother has used a set of Chicago Cutlery walnut-handled kitchen knives for the last 30-40 years. She used to use (I think) some vegetable oil and/or mineral oil (a.k.a. 'butcher block' oil) on the handles, though I don't think she's reapplied it in the last 5-10 years, maybe longer. In spite of that, they've held up fine. They do have some verdigris around the brass handle pins; I think that might've come from the acidic nature of the vegetable oil, as it degrades and reacts with the copper in the brass. Vegetable oil and other food-based oils also tend to get gummy/sticky when old; some of my mother's CC knives still have some stickiness in the handles in spite of having not been oiled in several years, at least.

If anything, mineral oil should do fine on them. The aforementioned Danish Oil should also do well with them; I used some of that on a Walnut-handled Opinel folder of mine, and it's worked out nicely. Once it cures in the wood, essentially nothing will erode it or remove it, short of sanding it out.

I'd also point out that washing the knives by hand, and NOT IN THE DISHWASHER is likely a good way to extend their useful life. Automatic dishwasher detergent is very caustic stuff, and can ruin most anything in the heat & humidity of the dishwasher.


David
 
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Pure unmodified Tung oil (not tung oil varnish) is a very excellent finish - used to protect the Great Wall of China - which means that your knives would be visible from the moon. :D

One source - http://www.woodcraft.com/product/153794/woodriver-pure-tung-oil-pint.aspx

Big down side to pure tung oil is that it needs to be applied very thinly for 5 or 6 or more applications and that it can take a month for it to thoroughly dry. Easy to recoat (but not necessary) once a year - another 1 or 2 thin applications of more tung oil or at that point any food oil like olive oil - just to maintain the color. The Tung oil properly applied penetrates and builds on itself very well and in essence becomes part of the handle. No real need to add more after the first session.

A very excellent - super hard and water resistant finish is a product called Waterlox. I prefer the original finish not the stuff that has been reformulated to protect us. No dishwashers with any of these oil finishes.

One source - http://www.woodcraft.com/Product/37J21/H)-WATERLOX-ORIG-SEALERFIN-QT.aspx?gclid=CjwKEAiA8ee0BRD1l7vV6JHe0zISJADxYItm0uKJw2c3_z1sijUH7A1F6uJHdLZi6RR-OERteeAUnhoCF3rw_wcB
 
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RayseM said:
Pure unmodified Tung oil (not tung oil varnish) is a very excellent finish - used to protect the Great Wall of China - which means that your knives would be visible from the moon. :D

One source - http://www.woodcraft.com/product/153794/woodriver-pure-tung-oil-pint.aspx

Big down side to pure tung oil is that it needs to be applied very thinly for 5 or 6 or more applications and that it can take a month for it to thoroughly dry. Easy to recoat (but not necessary) once a year - another 1 or 2 thin applications of more tung oil or at that point any food oil like olive oil - just to maintain the color. The Tung oil properly applied penetrates and builds on itself very well and in essence becomes part of the handle. No real need to add more after the first session.

A very excellent - super hard and water resistant finish is a product called Waterlox. I prefer the original finish not the stuff that has been reformulated to protect us. No dishwashers with any of these oil finishes.

One source - http://www.woodcraft.com/Product/37J21/H)-WATERLOX-ORIG-SEALERFIN-QT.aspx?gclid=CjwKEAiA8ee0BRD1l7vV6JHe0zISJADxYItm0uKJw2c3_z1sijUH7A1F6uJHdLZi6RR-OERteeAUnhoCF3rw_wcB
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That Waterlox looks great, going to give it a try.
 
Tung oil and tung oil based products are my favorite finishes for wood handle knives and other small items, especially light colored ones.

Pure tung oil, waterlox, minwax, formby's, etc are all good.
 
flphotog said:
That Waterlox looks great, going to give it a try.
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Waterlox is by far my favorite finish for table and bar tops - virtually indestructible to the effects of daily use. I have used it on a number of knife handles. I think you will be very happy with it.
 
Will have it on Wed so we'll see. But after looking at it online based on the specs, I expect it will do fine.
 
Waterlox is indeed a really great product. I've used it on floors, picture frames and a bed I built out of Black Walnut. One nice thing about it (and Tru-Oil as well) is that if the finish does get damaged, hit it with some fine grit sandpaper and add another coat.

The best advice I think in this thread is keep your knives away from the dishwasher. Wood products have survived many decades and even centuries with a bit of care. Take care of your tools and they will take care of you.
 
My guess is that most food is more harmful to you than licking a tung oiled wooden handle knife, providing it's properly cured.
 
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