The cutler's resin Robert mentions sounds like the stuff European cutlers use/used in table cutlery. It is rather chalky and not suitable for sword tangs.
I have a chunk of tree resin out of a tulwar hilt that is reinforced with twisted copper wires a-la re-bar.
The use of the right tree is important and from what I read in old sources, the process is rather tricky to get "just right"
Also, modern artist's/jeweler's black pitch is not the same by any means as the stuff inside old Asian sword handles, BTW. Specifically, it is softer, in my experience.
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