Xel
Member
This was supposed to be a gift to a mom friend who kindly gave me two of her husband's family's deer antlers (with his permission, of course 
). They intended to do something with them but never got around to it, so I wanted to make them something nice in gratitude.
I prepped the antler by wire-brushing and soaking it in neatsfoot oil for about a month as suggested by a couple knife-making forums - presumably to prevent cracking down the line. Luckily I had a huge amount of the oil back from a by-gone leatherworking fancy. This step was probably overkill since it's not thin in the way knife scales and pens are, but I wanted to experiment.
(hybrid prop/handle blank from Exotic Blanks)
That blade is scary sharp, so it didn't seem right to gift it without some means of protection. The leather sheath is handmade and wet-formed; I wanted the contrast between suede and top-grain so machine sewed it with alternate sides facing each other. It closes with a hidden sewn-in rare earth magnet which just snaps shut when the cutter is inserted: no fussiness at all.
The labradorite cabochon just happened to be the right size and shape for the end of the antler. Minus the oil soak that cab getting shipped here from India took the longest chunk of time. I thought about recessing the stone into the handle by outlining the edges with a Dremel and hollowing, but for now it's just CA'd into place.
I learned:
). They intended to do something with them but never got around to it, so I wanted to make them something nice in gratitude.I prepped the antler by wire-brushing and soaking it in neatsfoot oil for about a month as suggested by a couple knife-making forums - presumably to prevent cracking down the line. Luckily I had a huge amount of the oil back from a by-gone leatherworking fancy. This step was probably overkill since it's not thin in the way knife scales and pens are, but I wanted to experiment.
(hybrid prop/handle blank from Exotic Blanks)
That blade is scary sharp, so it didn't seem right to gift it without some means of protection. The leather sheath is handmade and wet-formed; I wanted the contrast between suede and top-grain so machine sewed it with alternate sides facing each other. It closes with a hidden sewn-in rare earth magnet which just snaps shut when the cutter is inserted: no fussiness at all.
The labradorite cabochon just happened to be the right size and shape for the end of the antler. Minus the oil soak that cab getting shipped here from India took the longest chunk of time. I thought about recessing the stone into the handle by outlining the edges with a Dremel and hollowing, but for now it's just CA'd into place.
I learned:
- antler isn't my favorite smell when drilled into, but it's not as bad as I was expecting
- no adhesion issues with oil and Polycrylic though I'm uncertain about longevity - esp. if it gets wet
- I'm getting a bit impatient waiting for the restock of this kit
- there's something metal about cutting an all-meats pizza with antler
