Knife's grip is too thin for arthritic hand

N

Naphtali

Joined
May 20, 2002
Messages
148
I own a laminated steel Morseth knife with contoured grip. While the grip is nicely sized for my smaller hand, I have difficulty maintaining firm grip and control..Arthritis has caused me to need a thicker grip.

I want to thicken the grip. The grip is a Micarta-like material. I have no problem with some sort of temporary and replaceable method of thickening if something works but needs replacing or redoing every-so-often. I can also live with a less attractive knife. Replacing the grip is something I cannot do myself. Having grip replaced will be expensive, difficult, or both. I've talked with Russell [Morseth]. The current process of production is not suited for repair of original Morseth knives. Obviously I could sell the knife and replace it with similar Morseth with thicker grip. I prefer to keep the one I have. How to achieve this?
 
I like to wrap the handle in silicone tape.
It's grippy, and is comfortable.
I've wrapped many production knives with small handles over the years....


You can find silicone tape in the plumbing section of your bigger box stores
 
Plasti-dip. Available in hardware stores, and some department stores.

I used to wrap my fixed-blade handles with long strips of bicycle inner tube to increase grip and produce thicker handles, but then I tried Plasti-dip, and I was a convert, I've never gone back to inner tube for knives.

Plasti-dip is basically liquid rubber. It comes in a can for dipping items into it, and it's also available in a spry can. I've only used the dipping can (14.5 ounce can. Bigger cans available). It also comes in a variety of colors (check the sticker on top of the can, don't go by the picture on the can. Color is also indicated above the bar code).

Plasti-dip produces a rubbery grip, but without being sticky or tacky. And it can be surprisingly durable. It can also be completely peeled off without the use of any solvent.

Follow the directions on the can. One dip will not be enough. It goes on thick, but it dries thin. I use a minimum of 3 dips, but you can do as many as you want. After dipping, hang the knife somewhere tip-up. I secure the blade to a cabinet door with a spring clamp. One could also wrap the blade with tape and run a wire or string through a hole in the tape.

Do not store unused Plast-dip in it's original can. The lid appears air-tight, but the fumes from the solvent used to keep the rubber in liquid form will cause the lid to expand, then it won't be air-tight, and you wind up with a solid chunk of rubber. To store unused Plasti-dip get a CLEAN glass jar as close in size as possible to the remaining amount of Plast-dip and pour the dip into the jar. I buy jars at Hobby Lobby.

The only downside to Plasti-dip is that over time friction can cause the edge of the dip on an item to start peeling a little. But as far as durability, I was on a construction site one day, had a fixed-blade on my hip with a dipped handle, and the handle banged hard into a piece of wood as I walked by. I immediately thought to myself "Damn, I'm going to have to re-dip my knife tonight", but when I checked it the handle only had a superficial scuff mark on it, with no damage at all.

Here are a couple of my knives with Plast-dipped handles. Three dips each.

mqlVUy6.jpg
 
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You might try a luggage shop for some high end handle repair tape. I've used it for heavy instrument cases, and it looks sharp, feels good, and holds up well. You can build it up thicker in some places as it is a little elastic.

I think golfers and tennis players use similiar products.
 
Silicone tape as suggested above is NOT adhesive tape: the tape sticks to itself and the handle and can be unwrapped without issue. I'd use this or plasti-dip.
 
I also like the silicone tape. I just ook it off of a handle to sell the knife, and beside the clean spot where the tape was, it was no worse for wear. The tape didn't come off from itself, so I had to cut it, but it's not expensive enough for me to care.

I've bicycle inner tube and bar tape, because I had them in abundence, being a cyclist also, but the silicone tape has become my preference.
 
You can also use the tape they use on horses leg. Look it up that way. Sticks to itself. Easy to remove layer it to your liking Really comfy in your hands and slight tack to it means you don’t have to grip it hard. I saw an assortment on the river store that had like 12 rolls of rolls of 4” by 5 yards For 15 bucks. That would last a lifetime.
 


I'll even slit silicone tubing lengthwise and add it underneath the silicone tape, to create more girth and palm swells.
You can see that if you look closely on the 3 Sykco/busse blades on the left. I always felt their handles are too small, so I wrap them, even though I love their original texture.
 
That tennis racket tape works well. Doesn’t have adhesive on it (aside from a tad on the edges), has good grip and is rather durable.
I use it on my fishing rods, when the original EVA foam starts getting gnarly after heavy use.
 
Does sports tape used by athletic trainers stick to Micarta/Pakkawood as tenaciously as it sticks to skin?
 
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