Buffed or not buffed, that is my question.

Nathan the Machinist said:
They're buffed with a ~200 grit cutting compound that reduces the roughness of the milled finish. It looks better, and it feels smoother to my dainty machinist hands, but offers less grip. It's not like buffing a car where you're polishing it to a mirror finish. There are buffing compounds that will do that, but that's not what we're doing.
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Thank you kindly.
 
JustinFournier said:
I think it is accurate to say the unbuffed if more grippy. Holding one I think that is the case.

The part that I am not sure of, is does the unbuffed add enough grip that it offsets the ugly.
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Absolutely the unbuffed is much more grippy than the buffed. The unbuffed is very rough when new. I have found that my FK with the unbuffed scales is taking a polish over time and use though. It is much smoother now than it was, and I like it very much. Having said that, Justin, I'm not sure you're going to like it. If you decide to go for it, don't inspect it man. Just use it and find the beauty in its use because you WILL find something on the unbuffed that is less than, well, finished.
 
I am in the camp that says handle shape affects the grip the most. All my handles are smooth, including my grips on my carry pistols. Now, I'm not out shooting in the rain and the mud, nor using my knives under such extreme conditions, but for 99% of their use, smooth is fine and it looks so much better.
 
Unbuffed, better grip, added with the shape makes a more secure handling in use
G2
 
I've only had buffed so far but have not had an issue with slippage.
Water, blood, guts, oils, and snow but have always felt my grip to be solid while using both the FK and EDC. The well designed and executed handles and scales play a big part as well.
I'd like to give an unbuffed handle a try still. Perhaps on SK or a LC.
 
Hard Knocks said:
Absolutely the unbuffed is much more grippy than the buffed. The unbuffed is very rough when new. I have found that my FK with the unbuffed scales is taking a polish over time and use though. It is much smoother now than it was, and I like it very much.
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I have both, and I agree with you HK. My first was the FK in buffed natural, then the LC in unbuffed black. I liked the unbuffed so much I ordered a spare set of unbuffed natural scales for my FK, which I haven't used yet. My EDC has buffed maroon scales, and I think this is perfect for the design objective, and esthetic reasons, since my EDC hasn't seen uber hard use with wet/bloody conditions, and most likely won't...
 
Cobra5 said:
I have both, and I agree with you HK. My first was the FK in buffed natural, then the LC in unbuffed black. I liked the unbuffed so much I ordered a spare set of unbuffed natural scales for my FK, which I haven't used yet. My EDC has buffed maroon scales, and I think this is perfect for the design objective, and esthetic reasons, since my EDC hasn't seen uber hard use with wet/bloody conditions, and most likely won't...
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I think that's a good point, that the EDC is a excellent candidate for buffed micarta or even g10. The amount of leverage Lorien incorporated into that design is impressive, and I don't see it slipping with either material. Just my impression after initial handling of one though, not through use. The great thing about the CPK's, the end-user can grab a spare set of scales without breaking the bank, and they swap out perfectly.
 
One of these days I hope to capture an EDC and it will get unbuffed scales. I want the added insurance of the extra grippiness even though all of Nathan/Lorien's handles are well-shaped and machined for secure grip. The main reason, especially for the EDC is winter use, snow, ice, and frozen dog slobber on my mittens and frozen hands inside them ;)
 
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