I love this approach. As a hobbiest "maker", I like to re-purpose whatever I can find to exact an end result. Dead Magnolia trees on my property turned out to be a wonderfull find as the wood was naturally cured, medium density, and had beautiful grain patterns. Likewise, being a machine mechanic, I found high carbon steel parts from over-haul leftovers making my knife builds even more affordable. Thanks for the video. Looking forward for more!

I've been using walnut from Home Depot (43 bucks, 1.25 x .75 inches x 8 ft), Looks good with walnut oil, and Tru-oil finish. I've got a crap load of Mesquite for firewood going to try some of that but I've spent hours and hours chasing wood down the rabbit hole and then tossing it. . The safest way to cut non-square wood (other than a handsaw) is to make a sled that can safely hold the wood secure and a draw knife to rough flatten and a jack plane to smooth it. I'm 63, less muscle, more sharp blades :) Nice work.

Thanks for the video. I especially like the tips on drying wood. Just wanted to share a method for flatting that I use and that is to use some spray adhesive to stick some coarse sandpaper to a flat surface and then take the wood to the sandpaper because it does a better job than trying to take sandpaper to the wood. Thanks again and thumbs-up!

Great video, you might consider a small sled for your tablesaw for cutting and squaring your pieces of wood. Take a thin piece of whatever you have for the bottom and attach a small plank at 90 degrees to the thinner bottom piece. Use short drywall screws to attach the chunk of wood to the sled. Run one side through the saw to give you a flat face to start with, take out the screws and finish squaring the blank. Next cut out you scales. You can use the little sled over and over. Mine is made from scrap and is probably 15 years old. It’s pretty simple but works good.

Good 👍 info. I’ve been searching for videos that explain this process simply. I have chestnut oak limbs that I’ve wanted to process, but wasn’t sure how to dry them, other than the slow way. Thanks for the video and just subscribed. I’m a hobbiest from Pennsylvania

Jon freakin' Helm! It's BATCH in Ms. Man how things have changed since the simpler times busing tables at Up The Creek. I'm making blades myself these days. Good to see you doing well.

You sir need to keep these videos coming you are very enjoyable to listen to and very informative!

I live in the Ozarks. I love using native woods that aren't common in saw mills for handle scales. I currently have Walnut, Persimmon, Redbud, Poplar, Plum, Cherry, Sassafras, Sycamore, Pawpaw, and Sumac drying in my basement. I'm still looking for Dogwood, Buckeye, and Possumhaw. If it's a tree or limb that I'm cutting out of a fencerow or road I ring it for a year which kills it and starts the drying process. If you do it after the tree has leaved out fully the leaves will pull out some of the moisture before they wilt. After a year I cut, mill, and stack it. I never thought of using a dehydrator to speed the process. I'll have to give that a try. I cut my pieces longer, around 16 inches, the length of the bar on my chainsaw. That way I can run them through a planer and loose a couple of inches from each end if need be.

Thanks for sharing your process. I will come back to this video when I get my hands on some likely looking wood, kinda hard up here in alder and fir country.

a lovely, in-depth tutorial, thank you!

Hi. looked for video on stabilizing you mentioned. Couldn't tell which one it might be. Can you point me in right direction. ✌️ Like your channel. Great stuff.

Great video! Oak makes great knife handles, but you're right about how boring it is. I've been experimenting with light washes of paint, and then stain. You can get some interesting effects!

I live in central Texas. We have alot of oak and Mosquite. I love Mosquite . It's a family Tradition to BBQ With only Mosquite wood . For the last month or so everyday I been making a knife . With different kinds of handles . Deerhorn, jawbones with the teeth , tire tread.. my father inlaw sells fire wood he loads up and goes to SanAngelo , Or Towards Horseshoe Bay. Anyways Mosquite has that rich red color . And it's hard as a rock. I got a log yesterday from him for handles.. I'll give it a shot . This is how I found your channel, get a little info before starting ...

That was awesome, thanks for sharing ✊

Thanks for the video. Most detailed I've found so far. Planning on trying my first knife making attempt very soon. Would like to see how mulberry would work as a handle, since we have one. I'll be watching your wood stabilizing video next 😀

thanks i like your ideas

Greetings, Thank you for sharing your process. The video is very detailed and informative. Regards, Christos

Excellent video thank you for your knowledge. What are your thoughts on spruce and pine for knife scales? I am aware these are soft woods but does that actually make a massive difference in structural integrity and wear and tear? I am open to anyone else with tips as well!! Thanks in advance

Really Fantastic diy video. PS, I'm betting you could resin cast that less-stabil wood.

#Helm Woodshop and Smithy You might consider for splitting wood like that a Shingle Froe.They are made to be batoned and leave a fairly straight split..And aren't hard to make (seeing as you are a Smithy)

Hi just found your channel, great video, everything very well explained and informative, your scales turned out great, the grain looked really sound. I had been looking for tips to split a small 6x2 inch walnut branch also for knife scales, I wanted a flat surface for the tang of the knife to sit against. I like to keep the curved surface of the branch for the natural shape of the wood, I will work it to size on my belt sander. Thank you for your tips and safety advice throughout your video Take care and be safe Sam (N.Ireland)

Throw your wet wood in the freezer overnight. Then, split while frozen.

11:50 my dude be like captain america in that one scene with the fire wood

what dehydrator do you have that this fit into? lol. \

How old was that piece of wood? I have maple logs around my place about 3 months old. Could I make scales with that?

this guy can explain me something about wood and still look me scary in the eyes

Once the wood is dry, heat it to 150 to kill any bugs or eggs.

Hi do you sell any of your knife scales? That firewood is awesome looking ☺

I'm surprised that you haven't damaged your anvil. You can make a much more proper hot cut by taking a chunk of leaf spring by taking a section and squaring one end with a 90 degree shoulder so that it sits on the face rather than wedged in the hardy hole

I think I found some siding that is close to micarda

you should rename this to talking about making handle scales i saw like 30sec of what your doing 😂

That’s way too much work, the table saw would of cut it down once you split it. I use the air fryer set at 180, let it heat up for about 10-20 min then let it cool and let the moisture equalize for several hours or over night.

I have to ask... Since people were making knife and sword handles for thousands of years before the first stabilisation process was performed, isn't all this messing around just a waste of time, and a barrier to making fast and satisfying progress through a piece of work? Wouldn't just getting good wood in the first place and getting the job done, be better than spending tens of hours waiting for crap to dry, vacuum, or pressurise? I can promise you the Vikings, the Japanese, and the Romans weren't pissing around with epoxy for upwards of a day, just to make handles and scales for their weapons and tools!

He talks too much!