3/32" Mosaic Pins - Design Element, or Waste of Time?

[redsquid2]

The only custom knives I have seen IRL, are the ones that me and my brother in law have made. We never used the mosaic pins, but I keep seeing these pins online, and I can imagine how sharp they would look, in combination with certain scale materials. For example, smooth, dark paper micarta, or a tight-grained wood, naturally dark, or stained.


So, my question is, do they lose their visual impact, once they get down to 3/32"? Better to go with silver nickel or some other solid color?

--Clueless in Chicago

 

[RandomAyes]

I reckon this question would get faster answers if posted in the Knifemakers Q&A forum

 

[Bastid]

Well I will go ahead and move it to shop talk, even though I am not a knife maker and do not even play one on TV.

As a collector mosaic pins can be a nice touch on some designs and materials and out of place in other designs and materials. I do agree that on some micarta handled knives it can be a very nice touch. At 3/32nds if you are looking for something different that might be to small for mosaic pins and if you are considering something a little fancier than plain pins maybe a touch of engraving or file work on domed pins would work.

Edited to add:
Although obviously not a fixed blade. Here is a small doctor's knife whose pins might create a little inspiration even though it is not a good picture.

 

[Remyrw]

I think at that size it wouldn't show well enough, but that depends on the design of the pins too. A simple triangular layout might show ok and add an nice extra touch to a clean handle. With a busy handle material like most woods or even a contoured canvas micarta or almost any G10 I'm not sure the small mosaic would be noticeable.