All About Pocket Knives

just a quick one.

i know casein has been with us now for a bit.

i was wondering if anybody has any pieces? any pics?

if you have owned it is their any gassing?

does anybody know for sure if it does or doesnt gas or shirnk?

thanx family.

I have a Great Eastern 73 with handles of this material. I have't had any problems like those associated with celluloid as of yet. It is apparently an early plastic derived from milk proteins. Here's what Wikipedia says:

Galalith (Erinoid in the United Kingdom), derived from the Greek words gala (milk) and lithos (stone), is a trade name for one of the earliest plastics.

It was invented in 1897 and patented in 1899 by (Friedrich) Adolph Spitteler (1846 - 1940) and Wilhelm Krische and made from the milk protein casein. At the beginning of the 20th century, a French chemist, J.C. Trillat, discovered the means to insolubilize casein by immersion in formaldehyde.

This material revolutionized the button industry with its capacity to create structural effects and imitate all sorts of material: horn, tortoiseshell, ivory, wood, etc. It was also used in the 1930s for jewellery, pens, umbrella handles, white piano keys (replacing natural ivory), etc. World production at that time reached 10,000 tons.

One of its great qualities is its porosity, making it ideal for dyeing, by immersing white galalith in coloured baths. Galalith cannot be moulded, and is manufactured in the form of sheets of different thickness, sticks and tubes, and is therefore worked by hand.

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galalith"

Hope this helps!

though I could potentially see it decomposing under the right circumstances, I don't think the act of it doing so would have the effects of celluloid. Casein was a shot at making an early plastic without the dangers of many of the other early plasics (aka... factory goes BOOM)

It's nice looking. I't really difficult to tell from elephant ivory. Here they are side by side.

Pete,

I recall reading somewhere (but I don't recall where), that it will soften a bit when it gets wet. Not sure if this is true or not but I'll try to find the source. Definitely doesn't gas out though

Eric

A nice ivory trapper, Jack !

Wendell Carson ?

Fran

I also have a GEC with this handle material and recently noticed (while cleaning) that the handles have shrank considerably on both ends, enough to slide a piece of copy paper in the gap (and the gap is large enough that friction does not hold the paper).

I have been meaning to send it back in in the hopes that it can be replaced. First problem with a GEC that I have ever encountered.

I think the material looks very nice but it has enough possilbe drawbacks that I don't see it catching on (just MO).

Thanks Fran. Yes, a Wendell Carson. Here's another couple "ivory" WC's. Gunstock trapper/jacks, I believe.

Pete, the only knife I have owned with Casein handles is a Queen toothpick. Never had any problems with it; shrinking or out-gassing.

Jack nice mini trappers; I have had a few of those; I like Wendell's blade configuration on that pattern.


Paul

I own a couple had you for about 5 years now.......no problems here.

I think its ironic to have a cattle knife with casein handles...since casein is a Dairy bi-product.

I must confess I have never heard of casein being used as handle material on knives;I am familiar with it as a type of old style paint mainly used to whitewash fences and rough surfaces.It is also used in fine art.I guess you learn something new every day.

I have one of those cattle knives like Johnnie's. No problems here either.

James