Dymondwood: Not loving it

L

Luna56

Joined
Oct 9, 2014
Messages
268
I've had a 110 for awhile now and just bought a few smaller Bucks to give to my UPS guy, my handyman, etc. All have some sort of Dymondwood and the lumpy, uneven surface irks me to no end.

The fit, finish and quality of these Bucks is beyond reproach, they're all fantastic. But why don't they spend an extra four seconds on the belt sander to create an even surface? It should be easy to get this right.

My 110 is a little crude, though acceptable. On a small knife like the 505 and 55 it looks like plastic crap.
This is my only gripe about Buck, I love 'em otherwise.

Cheers, guys.
Ed
 
Diamond wood is just dyed plywood not a fan myself it comes across as a cheap material.

Richard
 
I believe Luna likes the diamondwood. He just wishes Buck would add one step in finishing the handles flatter. DM
 
Diamondwood is strong and is used on nice gunstocks. It has even been used on airplane wings and tested to with stand the many G's they pull. DM
 
To be clear, I have no qualms with Dymondwood in principle. It's rugged, durable and won't warp or change color. My only complaint is with the finish. The surface looks and feels like plastic and Buck, in my opinion, doesn't spend enough effort to make the scales match the quality of the rest of the knife.

I'm a guitar player. I play some really great guitars.The guitars made these days, even in super tweaky one-man shops, are mind blowing. I've seen and played some pretty miraculous things and have had my jaw dropped by some truly incredible workmanship. I have developed an eye for quality. I have a deep regard for Buck and their legendary devotion to high quality. The ugliness of the finished quality of the Dymondwood scales is a stark contrast to the rest of the knife.

Cheers guys,
Ed
 
I like the way there made right now but that just my opinion

The uneven surface of the Handel makes it seem more hand made to me and gives them all a unique feel
But I can see why some people might not like it

ZTD
 
I agree with Luna. The scales on my 50th Ann 110. Need the extra to be smooth. I like the dymondwood. But the overall finish on many dymond wood products from buck are a bit crude IMHO.
 
I have a Buck Master Series 110 with a green Dymonwood handle. The handle has checkering and fleurs di lis. I think the handle (slabs) are compression molded wood Micarta (Phenolic plastic). If this is the case, the slabs can be sanded with impunity using successively finer grits to achieve just about any surface finish you desire.
 
"wood Micarta" ...???
You are using micarta and wood in the same sentence, not the same.
Dymondwood is resin impregnated wood laminate, usually birch.
Micarta is resin impregnated fabric, usually linen.

addendum..... as used by Buck on knife handles.....
 
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I wonder why Buck moved away from Micarta on the 500 series and went to wood? Cost, probably, but I loved the micarta on these smaller knives.
 
I agree, the micarta is certainly classier. The scales are so small and thin on pocket knives you wouldn't think there would be a significant cost. Dymondwood looks great on larger handles like fixed blades but tends to look plain when too small for good grain display.
 
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I believe I remember having one that seemed a little rough along the spine one time.
I have four 50th Anniversary 110's sitting here on my desk waiting to be re-handled. I checked those four out as a random lot and everyone of them were smooth and nicely finished.
 
I have seem paper, linen, canvas, asbestos, and wood micarta.
Click to expand...

Tiguy7

I’m not trying to start an argument (It is the Christmas season.), but I read your attachment a little differently than you. The attachment seems to be from a general discussion of phenoplasts with the sentence “Laminates are also made with paper (Micarta) and sheets of wood.” I think that sentence would be clearer if it was changed to, “Micarta is an example of a laminate made with paper; other laminates , such as Dymondwood ™ may be made with sheets of wood.”

USA KnifeMaker gives the following statement, “Micarta ™ is a trademark of Norplex-Micarta. The term Micarta is often incorrectly used as a common reference to what should be referred to as a phenolic laminate. Micarta is a specific product from Norplex-Micarta.”

Bert
 
Tis not the season to be arguing. I wish I could find a better description of the process, the materials, and the properties of thermoset plastics. Thermoplastics can be melted and resolidified ad nauseum by heating and cooling. Thermoset plastics are molded at a high temperature (350 F) and held at a high pressure (1000PSi) for 15 min. until they kick over and form a compound which cannot be remelted. I used to mount metallurgical specimens in phenolic plugs for measuring case hardness depth and the thickness of electroplated and anodized coatings. I am pulling some of these figures out of my fuzzy memory. Think of stove knobs and pan handles. If you heat a Bakelite pan handle, it will not melt. It will start cracking at about 600 F. A thermoplastic like methyl methacrylate (acrylic) will start softening at 180F.
The test to see if a wood micarta is micarta would be heating it to see if it melts or cracks. Or you could just call the makers and ask if the stuff is compression molded. Thermoplastics have a short molding cycle. Thermosets have a long molding cycle. If wood micarta was not a thermoset, it would not be resistant to heat. You could not safely roast a marshmallow with your knife.
Micarta took off with the manufacture of micarta radio boards. All of the components of old radio circuits could be laid out on a heat resistant, non-conductive sheet on linen micarta. The heat resistance was important because of the heat generated by vacuum tubes.
 
What I was trying to say is that "Micarta" is a trade name, not a generic term. Sometimes we get a little sloppy in our usage, for example calling all sorts of facial tissue "Kleenex" or in the past calling all photocopies "Xerox". In that context were you talking about wood micarta in a generic sense or in the Micarta trademark sense? Whichever way you answer, I will accept it since I am already in over my head.
 
Yes I was using the term in the generic sense. Some of the cold mold composites, like G-10, use a catalyzed resin like epoxy. It is possible that Dymondwood is cold molded, but the scales on my 110 Master Series folder surely look like they were molded in a die.
 
Thanks for all of the information, Tiguy7. You obviously know the subject. As for Dymondwood, I think it is a high temperature, high pressure product. It certainly was high temperature when the factory burned to the ground this past year.

Merry Christmas
 
I don't have a problem with DW and actually like it. I think the two 500 series I have look really good and I like the way on the 55/112/110 each knife looks different! You hardly ever see two that look the same, each is unique!
 
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