Micarta handle material?

V-1

V-1

Joined
Apr 14, 1999
Messages
1,469
I have never owned a knife with a handle made of this substance. But thanks to a good man known as maddog 2020 I have one coming in the mail. So what are some of it's properties?
 
It looks good, feels good, is smooth so it won't wear a hole in your pocket or grab your hand when you reach into your pocket for something else. I'm a sucker for micarta Spydercos, I've got a couple Goddards, a Viele, and a J.D.Smith.
 
Are a lot of kitchen knives made with micarta? The handles on my mom's Henckels knives look and feel pretty similar to the Jot Singh Khalsa that I fondled at a show a few months ago. (I like my mom's kitchen knives...my apologies if they turns out to be inferior stuff...)
 
Micarta is one of my favorite handle materials. It's dressier than G-10 makes the knife clip and unclip from the pants pocket real easy. I've got about every model Spyderco made with micarta, plus Blade Tech's Pro Hunter (the custom that the C48 is based on) also in micarta. That particular knife feels great in the hand and is feathery light for a knife that size with handle slabs that thick. I believe you'll like micarta
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Dexter Ewing
Knife Reviews Moderator
AKTI Member # A000005
 
Man, thanks for all of the prompt responses. The mail can't get here soon enough.
 
I like micarta. Its a tactile material. It is smooth yet has a 'touch' a 'feel' and if you grip it harder it responds. As much as I try, I can't get the same feeling for the carbon fiber on my Dragonfly, the G10 on my Military, or the almite on my Walker(as slick as teflon) I hope that Spyderco continues to use micarta in their line.

The Viele is one knife that I don't even have to open to appreciate, just roll and tumble those slender, sloping, swooping, swirls of black micarta and fitted and exposed polished stainless steel liners in my fondling fingers, always in control, the texture of the underlying fabic always available in the sculpted contours........

Excuse me
I have to go clean up
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><CHINOOK*>
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Cleverly Disguised As A Responsible Adult
 
Although it is one of my favorite handle materials, micarta with a smooth or polished finish is quite useless for a hard working (or defensive if that is a consideration) folder. Don' t get me wrong, micarta is an excellent handle material but just try using it with an untextured finish when your hands are in contact with oils and chemicals and any other human liquids! Bead blast or checkering is the solution. On the other hand they would serve well for simple tasks. Just my experience.

L8r,
Nakano
 
My first micarta handled knife was a large Calypso that I bought recently. It's pretty cool stuff. Smooth but not slick. As others have pointed out, you'll really notice a difference clipping the knife into your pocket; it doesn't "grab" onto other materials.

On the downside, I've heard that micarta can get beat up over time, and it's true that fluids can make it slippy. However, there is always a trade-off with these types of properties.

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Cerulean

What the hammer? what the chain?
In what furnace was thy brain? - Blake
 
For my purposes it sounds like it will be perfect on my Calypso Jr. What is it actually made of?
 
Linen micarta is made from layers of linen cloth that are bonded together with a phenolic resin. This mixture results in a strong yet lightweight material. Micarta is referred to as "the steel of plastics". Linen micarta can be buffed to a polish (as evidenced with the Calypso Jr and J.D. Smith models) or left as a matte finish (like the Jot Khalsa model).

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Dexter Ewing
Knife Reviews Moderator
AKTI Member # A000005
 
The fun thing about micarta is the wide variety of colors that it can be made into. It might be fun to have some of the Spyderco micarta models in tan or red or ......?
Dave Jung
 
....... or burgundy !!!

(as in Calypso Jr)
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Come to think of it.....
a Calypso/Calypso Jr set in burgundy micarta/VG10 would make my Millennium


[This message has been edited by Chinook (edited 30 December 1999).]
 
Let me second that: Calypso (Jr and Papa) in burgundy micarta and VG10. Sweet...
 
BURGANDY micarta Calpyso JR w/ VG-10 .....ooooooooooh, now THAT got my attention. It has to have the little yellow critter on clip, too! That would BE chic!
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We can always DREAM guys! I hope you get to read this one, Sal!
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BTW - ambidexerous clip of course!....LOL.



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Ray 'md2020'
 
Yes, good idea, keep bringing it up maddog2020, maybe someday we'll see one!
Brian

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A dedicated ELU
Buck Collectors Club Member
Knifeknut(just ask my wife)

 
You guys (& gals) present some interesting issues. I will try to present some truthful additions;

Micarta is a very useful material, though not as strong or stable as G-10 (another plastic), it is much "prettier" and easier & safer to work.

Micarta shrinks and expands with humidity. Not too much of a problem in Fixed blade or symmetrical folders like lockbacks.

Linerlocks (being asymmetrical) require stable liners (steel, aluminum or titanium to keep the shrinkage factor from affecting the performance of the lock where the knife is made in high humidity and then lives in a dry climate.

Regarding colors like burgundy;

Making a "run" of a colored material requires purchase of that material (usually minimum weights like 500 lbs). Burgundy is not stocked by manufacturers so they must be custom made. 500 lbs of micarta makes a lot of knives.

The general ELU at this time is not responding well to colored micarta which means we must sit on inventory for a long time.

We have learned that forumites, as loyal and dedicated (& fun) as they are, they do not purchase sufficient volume to make a special run (witness the BF Native & the Matriarch).

The only way that we can provide such variations is for companies like AG Russell to commit to a volume, like the Spyderco Horn Micarta piece that AG has.

We would be happy to make a run (minimum of 1,000 - 1,200 pcs) of burgundy Calypso Jr or full sized Calypso's for a dealer or distributor that is willing to commit and invest in the inventory.

sal



[This message has been edited by Sal Glesser (edited 31 December 1999).]
 
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