Pros and cons of using carbon fibre scales..

Ken Lau

Ken Lau

Joined
Oct 3, 1998
Messages
152
I am considering getting a folder with carbon fibre scales....pros and cons?

Its light, strong and looks fantastic.

But does the surface wear well? Will the surface be susceptible to sratches more than say G10 which is hard as nails.

Actually how does it compare in strength to G10? It has G10 licked in terms of strength to weight, but out and out strength, which is stronger and will last longer?

THanks for any input.

Ken
 
Ken,
I can't give you any insight on strength to weight ratios, etc., etc. for these materials, but I can say that I currently own two folders with carbon fiber scales, a Kit Carson and a Larry Chew, and the carbon fiber has resisted wear very well on both of them. The Carson large Mod 4 in particular has become my daily user for the past almost three months and despite the continuous carry, shows no signs of wear whatsoever. I haven't had any real mishaps with it, however, so I can't give you any specific examples of abuse that it's withstood. I'm sure there are others on the forum that have been carrying carbon fiber scaled knives for much longer that I. They may be able to provide additional insight.

As an aside, I'm not sure how G-10 got the reputation for being so hard. I recently purchased a new BM 710HS (sorry Marion, don't know what else to call it
wink.gif
) because I wanted to give the new axis lock a try. My only complaint with the knife was that the height of the scales made it a little hard to snag the thumbstud when opening the blade. I grabbed a small round file with the intention of grinding out a small semi-circular scallop to improve access to the thumbstud. To my surprise, the file ate through the G-10 like it was hardly there. Maybe I was expecting too much based on what I'd read here, but I didn't think the G-10 was that hard. BTW, I was finished in about two minutes, and the mod worked great.

------------------
Semper Fi

-Bill
 
I, too, would like to know if anyone knows of any specific disadvantages to CF. I'll be re-scaling a BM705 (
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) in CF, and want to know if there's anything specific I should watch out for.

Bronco, G10 is hard in a differnt way than, say, steel. I would expect it to machine easily (as in filing), but it should resist casual damage fairly well. Any material can be damaged, but of the materials used for knife handles (other than stone), G10 is fairly high on the list. Especially considering that a lot of knives in teh same general 'area' as G10-handled knives are Zytel-handled, so the G10 is quite hard in comparison. I don't want this to turn into a thread about various handle materials, though, so let's stop the G10 part right here and answer Ken's question.

--JB

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e_utopia@hotmail.com
 
Bronco,

How did you carry your CF folder? Mine may travel in the same pocket as some loose change and maybe keys (no clip! more of a gentlemans dressy type of knife). I was wondering if the surface would get quickly scratched. I'm sure that if I carry my G10 scaled folders in the same way, they would be fine.

I'm not so much worried about structural integrity cos I'm sure that I wont be pushing the knives that hard to test it at the limit.

cheers

Ken
 
Ken,
I wish I could give you a more definitive answer to your question, unfortunately my Carson Mod 4 is fairly good sized for a folder (approx 5.5" closed) and would be a little ackward to carry unsupported in the bottom of a pocket. As it came equipped with a pocket clip, I generally carry it clipped to the top of my front pocket. Kit's clip design allows the knife to ride deep in your pocket making for a very comfortable and inconspicuous carry. But the clip does keep the knife suspended above most other loose items that might be in that pocket, and beyond that, I personally don't carry many things in my pocket anyway (I think it was that military training
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). I can only vouch for carbon fiber's excellent resistance to damage from occasional impacts with desks and doors and the like, encountered while walking around. I would expect CF to show scratches if carried loose with keys and coins, but suggest that you continue to hold out for info from someone with direct experience carrying a CF scaled knife in this manner.

JB,
I added the G10 observation only because I've seen posts here before where folks have decided against modifying their G10 scales because they thought the material would be too difficult to machine on their own. However, I completely agree that Ken's question hasn't really been answered yet, and support your efforts to remain focused
smile.gif
.

------------------
Semper Fi

-Bill
 
It depends on the finish that you get on the carbon fiber. If it is highly polished it will scuff and scratch , but it is a very hard material so the scatches will not be very deep and you should be able to get them out.
If it is not as highly polished the marks will not show as much, though the knives that I have seen all seem to a very smooth finish.
By the way my experience with carbon fibre is with bike frames and not knives but it should work the same way.
 
I have a CF Dragonfly that I use as a keychain knife. It travels in my pocket with my keys and pocket change. CF holds up well for this but so does G-10 too. CF is very strong also but this may be a different property from how easy it is to scratch.

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Roger Blake
 
Thank you all for your posts. I appreciate the info.....gives me a but more to think about. On folders with CF scales though, does the CF have some sort of "backing" or does it have a thickness for liners etc. to screw into?
 
Ken,
As you might expect, both Carson and Chew produce folders that are very solidly built. The liners are responsible for the structural integrity of these knives while the CF scales are simply secured to the liners via screws in the same manner that wood (or bone, or ivory, etc.) scales would be attached.

------------------
Semper Fi

-Bill
 
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