5 Best Wood for Knife Handles

Like a blade, a handle is also considered an essential part of a knife. It determines how easy and comfortable you are controlling the tool. Usually, the most common material for a knife handle is wood, plastic, stainless steel, or aluminum. In this case, we prefer to discuss the 5 Best Wood for Knife Handles, the ones made of wood because of its durability, eye-catching appearance, and perfect grip.

Popular wood handles come in many variations, each of which has its strengths and weaknesses. You might often see or hear Pakkawood, Rosewood, Ebony, Walnut, or Birchwood as the handles’ material. However, you might not know how strong, durable, or attractive they are. Therefore, we will show you complete information about those woods and their suitability for your knife handle.

Our Lists of The Best Wood for Knife Handles

1. Best Pakkawood for Knife Handles: Imarku Japanese Chef
2. Best Rosewood for Knife Handles: Victorinox Swiss Army
3. Best Ebony Wood for Knife Handles: CIVIVI Elementum Folding
4. Best Walnut Wood for Knife Handles: Chicago Cutlery 3-Inch
5. Best Birch Wood for Knife Handles: Miyabi Chef’s Knife

Best Wood for Knife Handles Reviewed

Although some woods are visually attractive, it does not guarantee that strength, quality, and performance are reliable. For this reason, choosing the right handle for knives might be difficult, especially for those who do not understand wood. Thus, we will share some reviews of the best wood for knife handles on these points below.

1. Best Pakkawood for Knife Handles

Imarku Japanese Chef

Pakkawood may not be fully made of natural wood, but it provides an excellent quality as a knife handle. This engineered wood often performs best as the main material of Japanese knives. As a result, we can prove the use of this wood in the Japanese Chef Knife’s handle by Imarku. Besides, it is excellent for other kitchen utensils because this material combines hardwood and resin. Furthermore, it is durable, scratch-resistant, and also waterproof.

• An Innovative Material
  While other tools are made of natural sources, this Pakkawood combines wood and resin composite to create a strong handle. It is durable and resistant to heat and moisture, perfect for knife handles. Also, this wood is different because it is a manufactured material with a particular manufacturing process. You can get various designs and colors you cannot find in natural products.

• A Gloss Finish
  Pakkawood comes from various kinds of wood, such as birch or beech, combined with synthetic resins. It makes this material becomes more durable and scratch-resistant. Besides, its glossy finish creates a luxurious appearance due to polishing and sanding processes.

• Imarku Japanese Chef Knife
  Besides providing an excellent quality carbon stainless steel blade, this knife also uses a durable African Pakkawood for its handle. It is ergonomic, strong, and stable, making it looks more professional and comfortable. Then, it helps to prevent your fingers from feeling aches and numbness.

2. Best Rosewood for Knife Handles

Victorinox Swiss Army

Rosewood is one of the most appealing knife handle materials. Its color comes in incredible shades, from golden brown to purple, and it darkens with age. Moreover, it looks not only aesthetic and produces a fragrant scent but is also durable and resistant to pests. You can find this handle on the attractive Victorinox Swiss Army Cutlery knife that also offers a luxury blade.

• Varies in Shade
  Rosewood creates beautiful shades and gives a more aesthetic look to your knife handle. It provides rich colors that darken with age. Usually, you can get one from golden brown to purplish finish, making it seems luxurious and gorgeous.

• Pest Resistance
  Natural wood often becomes a target of pests attack, especially termites. However, Rosewood can avoid this problem because it is resistant to insects. Besides that, this material is durable, tough, and sturdy, making it perfect for outdoor knives.

• Victorinox Swiss Army
  This boning knife from Victorinox uses a stunning Rosewood handle. It is comfortable and easy to hold. Then, you can also find the triple handle rivets, which make it seems balanced and lightweight.

3. Best Ebony Wood for Knife Handles

CIVIVI Elementum Folding

Ebony is famous for its beauty and luxury. This wood is a perfect material for knife handles with stylish and attractive results. Generally, Ebony wood has natural dark colors of black, brown, and grey. It makes this material looks fancy and modern, as the one CIVIVI uses for its Elementum Folding Pocket Knife. However, it is more expensive than other woods, but the quality and appearance are always flawless.

• Luxurious Dark Shades
  Ebony can be a perfect material if you love a natural dark color touch on your knife handle. It is a beautiful and luxurious type of wood that provides a combination of shiny black, dark brown, and grey. You will not regret using this wood even if the price is higher than others.

• Perfect Grip
  Besides being visually appealing, Ebony wood offers a strong, durable, and fine-grained texture as a knife handle. It results in a perfect grip that is also safe while using it. Also, you will experience the ease of cutting and relaxing moments.

• CIVIVI Elementum Folding Pocket Knife
  CIVIVI brand in this product offers a folding pocket knife with a black Ebony wood handle. It is lightweight and practical. Other than that, the handle provides a convenient feeling for your hand and a secure grip.

4. Best Walnut Wood for Knife Handles

Chicago Cutlery 3-Inch

Walnut is practical and works as an impressive material for house equipment, including furniture, fixtures, knife handles, and many others. As for a knife handle, this wood is easy to work with and provides a beautiful color combination. It looks natural and also flexible for carving. However, it is probably low resistant to insects and not as stable as other woods.

• Easy to Carve
  This one is the easiest to carve and shape among many kinds of wood. Its practicality makes this material ideal for kitchen fixtures, furniture, gun, or knife handles. Nevertheless, finishing it takes more work, especially with its alluring patterns and texture.

• Lovely Patterns
  The Walnut knife handle provides gorgeous color ranges, from light to dark brown. It also looks attractive with a clear coating finish. Then, most people decide to use this wood as a knife handle because of its dark grain and lovely texture.

• Chicago Cutlery 3-inch Boning and Pairing Knife 
  One of the best knives with a Walnut wood handle is a 3-inch Boning and Pairing Knife from Chicago Cutlery. It also features a full metal tang with triple brass rivets. Using this product will experience stability, easy control, and safe handling. Also, it gives a classical touch to your kitchen.

5. Best Birch Wood for Knife Handles

Miyabi Chef’s Knife

One of the most awesome things about Birchwood is its environmentally friendly material. It grows around the world and is mostly found in Europe and America. Additionally, this fast-growing tree is perfect as a source of material for knife handles. It is easy to carve with various shapes. When the color changes after prolonged use, you can try to recapture it to its original appearance. In this Best Wood for Knife Handles list, we also find Miyabi Chef’s Knife uses Birchwood for its handle and combines it with stainless steel.

• Environmentally Friendly
  Birch trees grow worldwide and are easy to find in Europe and America. It is a fast-growing tree and easy to grow back, meaning we can replace it as soon as we take it. For this reason, Birch is considered an environmentally friendly plant and only spends low manufacturing costs. Besides, it works best as a knife handle for kitchen or hunting knives.

• Carved into Various Shapes
  Similar to walnuts, Birchwood is also easy to handle. If you plan to make your knife handle using this wood, you can easily carve it into various shapes. Although Birch often loses its color after a few years, you can still refinish and recapture it into its original colors.

• Miyabi Chef’s Knife
  With a 5.39-inch handle length, Miyabi Chef’s Knife provides a better and more convenient grip on your palm. Its handle uses a combination of Karelian Birch wood and stainless steel. It seems exquisite and ergonomic, especially with a luxurious Japanese style.

Best Wood for Knife Handles Buying Guides

Although many wood varieties work best for knife handles, we must choose them carefully. Whether you plan to buy the product or crave it yourself, there are some points that you need to consider. Thus, take a little time to check these things below that you can also use as a buying guide.

• Durability
  Even though wood is not as strong as steel, it is still durable enough to use for years. Some materials like Rosewood or Pakkawood offer incredible durability and are resistant to pests. In short, the longer the life of the product, the least money you have to spend to get the new one.

• Availability
  Some trees can provide an unlimited source for the manufacturers to create knife handles, while others are very limited. You need to ensure the wood you choose is environmentally friendly. It grows fast and is available in many places.

• Grip Quality
  Almost all wood handles provide better grip than other materials. Besides that, some reputable manufacturers offer comfortable and safer handles with natural or manufactured textures. Also, the quality can change over time, so when the handle is dry out, apply oil to prevent cracks and experience a convenient grip.

• Aesthetic Look
  When choosing a wooden knife handle, appearance is always essential. This wood’s natural look appears not only in its colors but also in textures. If possible, try to get a product that can provide incredible functionality and an attractive look for your kitchen.

• Price
  With more budget, you can get the best quality wood handle despite the high price. On the other hand, if you can only have little money, try to get the one with a lower price but still pay attention to the quality. Besides, carving it yourself might save more money than buying the finished product on the market.

Frequently Asked Questions