In my opinion, this handle has way too much complexity and randomness to have been created by a human hand simply for the use as a handle. If you look at all of the "molded" stag type handles that companies like Schrade, Wostenholm, LF&C, and others produced over time, you will see patterns which are fairly uniform and consistent, while still employing a pleasing "stag" type look. No offence made at the appearance of this knife handle shown, (I personally like its character) but I can not imagine that someone would have created this extremely intricate and less than the most visually pleasing pattern for a mold.wlf wrote:Well Lyle this one,whatever it is, is not horn. I heated a very small nail red hot and nothing but a small scorched pin point, as can be seen just to the right of the corroded center pin.
Molded rubber handles and molded horn handles have different outcomes due to the process of each. Molded synthetic handles as seen on many LF&C knives will have wonderfully sharp and precise shapes, while molded horn handles will always have "rounded" edges and far less sharpness of their synthetic counterparts. Enclosed is a picture showing two similar knife handles from the early 1900s. The top one has carved horn handles, while the bottom one has pressed horn handles. Notice the sharp edges on the carved model versus the rounded edges on the bottom one. Even though pictures can be quite good, they are never as good as the knife in hand with good light and a strong loop.