Confused about Micarta!

fulloflead

fulloflead

Joined
May 3, 2002
Messages
6,192
Just as of recently, I'm really developing a fondness for Micarta.
(Mostly due to the beautiful work of Tom Krein.)

But now I'm confused about all the different kinds.

Why is some hard and smooth and shiney like wood (like Krein, Dozier, Al Mar and AG Russell) and other times soft and dull and grippy (like TOPS, Microtech LCC and the Reeve Green Berret)?

Why is the smooth stuff usually grey and the hard stuff usually black?

Why is the smooth stuff only grippy when wet?

Why is "Green Micarta" actually brown?

What's the difference between linen and canvas?

How come I've only seen beautiful rag micarta ONCE?

Aaaahhhhrrrrr! :eek:
 
Hey fullolead-

Good questions.

Basically there are three grades of micarta readily available to knifemakers- paper, linen, and canvas.

The paper is paper based, linen is cloth based, and the canvas has a canvas base.

As you can imagine, the canvas is the toughest of the three with paper being the least durable. Paper micarta in black looks like ebony, and the white almost looks like ivory from a distance.

Mind you this is not accounting for G10 which is a different animal.

Most of the questions you had are all answered by finish, or better yet, what degree of finish the maker took the material to.

The stuff that seems hard and shiny is simply finished to a higher degree (and probably buffed).

The more coarse stuff that's lighter in color and grippy, is either only taken to a rough finish like 220x, or bead-blasted.

Many folks bead blast micarta to give it a rugged look and grippy feel. If you bead-blast olive green micarta it can look greyish green or even brown. The black will look grey.

Rag micarta used to be readily available and from what I've heard I don't think all that popular. But it's no longer made... so like all rare and unavailable things, you now have guys that would kill to get their hands on some.

-Nick-
 
Why is some hard and smooth and shiney like wood (like Krein, Dozier, Al Mar and AG Russell) and other times soft and dull and grippy (like TOPS, Microtech LCC and the Reeve Green Berret)?
Click to expand...
It's all in the finish, and type of micarta used. Paper(Al Mar, at least mine) can buff up like glass, with no grainy texture. It's made with paper pulp, mixed with phenolic resin, and compressed at high pressure, and heat..

Linen can be finished almost as smooth, but you will have a grain like appearance, due to the layers of linen used to make the stuff. Personally, I like that look, as it breaks the monotony, like the grain in ivory etc. Very subdued, but visible. It's made with a linen like material. Layers of the linen, and phenolic resin compressed under high pressure, and heat.

Canvas has more of a coarse look when finished, due to the stuff used in it's makeup, which IMO is like potato sack material really.
It can be buffed up nicely, but it's main use is on fighters, and the like with a rough finish to enhance gripping wet, or dry. Canvas micarta is often left in a very rough state, like 120-220 grit finish, or bead/sand blasted to achieve this. Made with layers of a canvas like material, and phenolic resin like the two above.

Why is the smooth stuff usually grey and the hard stuff usually black?
Click to expand...

That would depend on what color the maker used. Usually a grey appearing micarta is actually black that hasn't been finished all the way(not polished), and the black stuff is highly finished, and polished black micarta. I'm assuming were talking about micarta here, nothing else.

Why is the smooth stuff only grippy when wet?
Click to expand...
Just the nature of the beast. Ivory is the same way which was why it was originally preferred for handle material way back when. Looked nice on the belt, but in a fight, sweat or blood improved the grip.

Why is "Green Micarta" actually brown?
Click to expand...
I've never seen that! Any green I had was green when finished. Maybe what you saw just wasn't highly finished.:confused:

I've ordered tan micarta, and it looked dark brown when I got it, but when the surface was ground off, it was tan.

What's the difference between linen and canvas?
Click to expand...
That's mentioned above.

How come I've only seen beautiful rag micarta ONCE?
Click to expand...
It's pretty hard to get. It was only made for a short time before being discontinued. And that was quite a number of years ago.

There are a few makers that have some stashed, but other than that, you can't buy it over the counter, so to speak.
 
Anybody have a picture of rag micarta? Never seen it but sounds interesting. Thanks!
 
Not the best pictures but here are some my fixed blades with it from the '80s.
 

Attachments

  • OldFighters2.jpg
    OldFighters2.jpg
    40.6 KB · Views: 141
here's Paper finished well.
gray150.JPG


and some Linen finished well
gray119pix1.jpg

sorry for the bad pictures
gray132c.jpg
 
Rag micarta was used for making lab counter tops in the 60 and 70s. Used to see it all the time in campus science classes. These were mostly ripped out during the early 80s and tossed into landfills or put into surplus yards. Sometimes if you look really hard you might be able to find a counter top up for sale but it is rare. In the late 80s Bob Engnath had a special run of it made up but that is all gone or hoarded by a few makers.

Its pretty neat looking stuff.
 
Jim,
Getting in on this a little late, but agree with most of what has been said. The one point I would like to make is that all micarta darkens in color with age. That is why the green micarta's turn "brown" over time, the white micartas yellow, etc. I believe that his is due to UV exposure.

I once left a knife handled in white linen micarta on a window ledge for a couple of weeks and when I took it out of the sheath it was a distinctly different color.

Tom
 
Tom Krein said:
Jim,
Getting in on this a little late, but agree with most of what has been said. The one point I would like to make is that all micarta darkens in color with age. That is why the green micarta's turn "brown" over time, the white micartas yellow, etc. I believe that his is due to UV exposure.

I once left a knife handled in white linen micarta on a window ledge for a couple of weeks and when I took it out of the sheath it was a distinctly different color.

Tom
Click to expand...

That explains a lot. It also might be that since it's mixed with a black resin and it's green spots next to black spots that, visually, it looks more brown than green.
 
Is Micarta harmful to work with like carbonfiber and G10?

Where can I buy a few chunks (6x2x1) of canvas so I can build new scales for a factory fixed blade I'm getting?
 
fulloflead said:
Is Micarta harmful to work with like carbonfiber and G10?

Where can I buy a few chunks (6x2x1) of canvas so I can build new scales for a factory fixed blade I'm getting?
Click to expand...
Yes, very!

There have been lots of discussions on this very subject here. The last one just a few days ago.

You can get Micarta from any knifemaker supply house, but I don't know if they carry it in 1" thicknesses.

http://www.knifeandgun.com/catalog/micarta_186686_products.htm

http://www.angus-campbell.com/
These people have any size you would ever need.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top