Stabilized handle material ???

[dstegjas]

I have several slabs (36"x12"x4") of black walnut that has been air drying for 10 years now. I cut them out of a stump and just put them aside and forgot about them. I have been thinking about trying my hand at making a few knives and thought they might be good material for handles. My question is, just exactly what does "Stabilized wood" mean ? I keep seeing this when looking at different wood handle material. I was wondering if my wood wasn't going to be a good choice and I needed to buy the stabilized material instead.

Thanks,
Jim

[SDS-GEN]

I may be wrong, and I'm sure someone will correct me if I am, But I think the stabilized wood on the market is stabilized with resin, probably epoxy.  The wood is probably put in a tub of wet resin then put in a vacuum to pull all the air out of the wood.  The pores of the wood are filled with the resin as the air is sucked out.  Just my opinion, but I wouldn't ruin a good piece of walnut by trying to "stabilize" it, walnut is a great handle material without stabilization.

[Joel]

Stabilizing wood using the vacuum method is probably the most common method.  I did that for a while using a homemade setup.  There are actually a number of different stabilizing agents that can be used, the most common resins give the wood a "plastic" look to it.  MinWax makes a wood hardener that I use a lot.  I just throw the slabs into a glass jar with the stuff and cover with a tight lid.  After anywhere from 3 weeks to a month, I pull it out.  The advantage here is that the stuff slowly is absorbed into the wood, and you don't end up with that plastic look to it.  Black walnut is fine without stabilizing; just seal it well when you are done shaping it to the knife.  I absolutely refuse to use plain linseed oil( it never dries) or Danish Oil( it's for interior use).  I use a marine finish put out by Watco called Teak Oil.  Other folks use floor finish...it's up to you.  Unsealed wood tends to warp eventually, and possibly crack, so use something on it.

[30WCF]

A friend of mine sent some wood off to be stabilized a while back. I'm not sure which place he sent it. Stabilized wood can still move on you but it is much more resistant to swelling and shrinking. It finishes like glass.

[dstegjas]

Everyone,
Thanks for the replies to my question. Since I have quite a bit of the walnut. I might just try to stabilize a few pieces to see how they turn out. Then I can make a call as to what I will put on the knife. I am a sucker for the hand rubbed look for a wood finish. So the plastic look won't work for me at all.

Thanks again,
Jim