Buying a sebenza, need help choosing the inlay...

T

The_Guide

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Feb 1, 2009
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I will be buying a large Sebenza in the next few weeks, and I am trying to decide between the Micarta and Cocobolo inlays...

I like the ruggedness of the Micarta, but the cocobolo looks amazing as well...

Just a personal conundrum that I thought I would post, to see if anyone had any input on the matter...

So? Cocobolo or Micarta?

Cheers!
:cool::thumbup:
 
Either way you can't go wrong. Micarta rocks though, tough as nails all day long...

Cocobolo is pretty sweet too, nice way to dress up the Seb...

Hmm, that is a conundrum:indecisiveness:

How about a Large Micarta and a small Cocobolo?:emot-yarr:
 
For a user the micarta.

For a safe queen the wood.

The micarta has a better grip imo and I like how the sand blasted finish smooths out and develops a shine around the edges over time.
 
Also consider that the micarta comes with a stonewashed blade and sandblasted scales. The wood inlays come with a polished blade grind and satin scales, which show scratches more. I like both, but if I could only chose one of those two, I'd personally go with the Cocobolo.
 
this is most definitely going to be a user... Sure the cocobolo looks awesome with the polished blade/scales, and the gold trim, but I do love the look that beadblasted titanium gets over time (my umnumzaan is rocking some serious character adding wear on the titanium. I am sending it in to get refurbished, but am leaving the titanium alone :thumbup:)

I am leaning towards the micarta, but the cocobolo looks so awesome!

I am trying ot picture what the knife looks like in a year, and which one looks better with the wear... The Micarta keeps winning these thought experiments... but then I look at pics of the cocobolo, and damn... undecided again... I have a few weeks to decide, and i will have probably made up my mind 100+ times before the ultimate moment of decision... so I appreciate any and all input/opinions/thoughts on the matter...

Cheers!
:cool:
 
If it's a user then you just can't beat a plain Jane but micarta would be next in line. I would personally take micarta over any wood on a user knife any day of the week.
 
Micarta, Bocote, Ebony for me :D
not a cocobolo fan (not sure if it's the name or the color)...

keep it in a leather slip and it'll be fine :thumbup: , I have a mnandi in wood I EDC very often, after 2-3 months in the slip it's like new
 
Cocobolo.
Since you have an Umnumzaan, which is a user, you can go for the wood.
Normal use should be fine with the wood and you can get it refurbished if need be.
I tried to solve the matter with two knives, only to find out that owning two helps, but doesn't solve to conundrum. :)
Hope this helps.
Please let us know how you deceided.
red mag
 
@Mad_Maxx:
There are so many different and I might say nice variations of Cocobolo.
Maybe for your ears it sounds too much like "Coco bello".

Sorry for the OT, couldn't resist.

red mag
 
I generally point folks in the micarta direction, but for some reason it seems like you kind of want that cocobolo.
My recommendation would be cocobolo. Can't go wrong with either of course.
I recently bought this Cocobolo Mnandi and love it!:

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Have you looked at Honduran Rosewood yet? Similar to Cocobolo but looks even nicer imo.
 
Ditto on the Rosewood. Very nice wood, more durable than cocobolo (and cocobolo is pretty durable), and also less likely to darken with age.
 
I would also go with Micarta for a user, If however your choice is truly 50/50, the solution is easy. Flip a coin, say Heads Micarta, Sleep on it a day or so, If you don't like the way the coin landed, choose the other one.
 
Micarta for hard use. Wood inlays shouldn't really be exposed to blood, saltwater or grease over time. I would get a small sebenza or mnandi with inlay for EDC carry around the office and the large sebenza with Micarta for outdoor all purpose use.
 
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