The Woods We Use

Palosanto factory is a one-person workshop in Korea. Every tool is made by one pair of hands — shaped, fitted, and finished slowly.

The woods we use

A handle is the part of the tool you feel most. These are the woods we work with.

Lignum vitae

Exceptionally dense and heavy, with a naturally smooth, almost oily feel in the hand. The handle wood we reach for most — bevelers, edgers, awls, knives, creasing irons, hammers, mallets, and mauls.

Ebony

Deep black, fine-grained, and reassuringly weighty. As a natural wood, white or brown grain can appear within the black. A calm, classic handle used across nearly every tool we make, from edge bevelers to the wood slicker.

African blackwood (mpingo)

Dalbergia melanoxylon — almost entirely black, exceptionally hard and dense, with a fine, close grain that feels almost metallic in the hand. Long prized for clarinets, oboes, and other fine woodwinds; we use it for premium tool handles.

Bubinga

Warm reddish-brown with a gentle figure. Slightly softer in feel than ebony, and a favorite on bevelers, edgers, awls, knives, and brass hammers.

Amboyna burl (red)

A richly figured natural two-tone burl — a remarkable contrast of white and deep red in every piece. No two handles look the same. Offered on our edge beveler handles and the wood slicker.

Wenge

Dark brown with a bold, open grain and a dry, grippy texture. Available on edge beveler and French edger handles.

The tools we make

Edge bevelers and French edgers for clean, even edges. Stitching awls and scratch awls for marking and piercing. Japanese and Euro knives for cutting and skiving. Creasing irons for quiet decorative lines. Brass hammers, mallets, and mauls for striking. Replacement blades and handles, so a tool can be renewed instead of replaced. Blades are HSS-M2, made to hold a sharp edge for a long time.

Made to order — usually ships in 3 days · Free resharpening for life · Worldwide shipping