DEET and kraton

tidefan

tidefan

Joined
Nov 23, 2004
Messages
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Sorry, I don't have the ability to search so I would like to ask all you folks with kraton handled knives what effect DEET has on them. I've heard that DEET will cause kraton to melt or cause damage. Here in Florida, mosquito repellant is a must. Will it harm handles like Fallkniven F1 thurmarun, or Cold Steel master hunter kraton, or do I need to look for micarta or G10 or something like that. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks, jim
 
I haven't heard of this before, but I am a firm believer in deet, so I am definitely curious.
 
I think DEET was the main ingrediant in those little OD green bottles of bug repelant the army gave us. If you handled anything made out of plastic after rubbing it on, where ever your hands touched, the plastic melted.
 
I don`t know how deet effects krayton handles, but I know lots of guys who had problems with krayton in hot environments. The rubber softened up and the handles would move around on thier knives. This was mostly in the middle east, but I assume a parked car in Florida gets as hot as Saudi.
 
I know that the miltary used to use a 95-98%% deet solution and most of the commercial products are 26% deet. The cut versions have much lower solvation power than the full strength one. Of course, there are a few places where you can get the full strength stuff still.

I haven't used it around kraton before, but have had my watch band (cheapie) melt from its use in the past.
 
Stay away from 100% DEET. It has no real advantage. Even the army has stopped using the 100% formula. The army has done many tests that state repeatedly that 25% is plenty and it is effective for up to 5 hours and it doesn't bridge the skin/blood barrier as readily so you have less of it built up in your body. The only 100% that I remember seeing all the time is Bens.

DEET is a plasticiser, meaning it dissolves plastics and nylon items. I have melted nalgene (lexan) bottles with it in 100% concentration. It isn't nearly as bad at 25% but I am always careful with DEET on my hands handling any plastics or nylons. I try to clean my hands of it as best as I can.

KR
 
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OT but, if it melts petrol based products, what does it due to your body on a cellular level? I used to live on s fla and did coastal research as well as research around the litoral zone of lake o. Just learned to live with getting bit I guess. Never really trusted Deet, but did use it a few times. It seemed to work better than other options. I did modify my clothing options and that made a big difference.
 
gdtrfb said:
OT but, if it melts petrol based products, what does it due to your body on a cellular level? I used to live on s fla and did coastal research as well as research around the litoral zone of lake o. Just learned to live with getting bit I guess. Never really trusted Deet, but did use it a few times. It seemed to work better than other options. I did modify my clothing options and that made a big difference.
Click to expand...

There certainly is nothing wrong with using other methods (non chemical) to keep skeeters away. If you need something that is effective and heavily tested, nothing has been tested as much as DEET. It has many millions of man hours of use and no one has found any detrimental effect that I am aware of. And it is also very effective. I use it only on the worst of days but I carry it because I know it works both through my own experience and repeated tests.

What is does to plastics has nothing to do with what it would do to your cells. Unless you are made of petrolium products. :p:D

KR
 
just playing devil's advocate. The suns radiation is pretty bad too. I've used it on bad days but sparingly, but I do remember reading about neurological issues with long term use, etc. (no article(s) to cite at present) Depending on the prevalence of vector borne pathogens, it is a trade off I guess.
 
gdtrfb said:
OT but, if it melts petrol based products, what does it due to your body on a cellular level? I used to live on s fla and did coastal research as well as research around the litoral zone of lake o. Just learned to live with getting bit I guess. Never really trusted Deet, but did use it a few times. It seemed to work better than other options. I did modify my clothing options and that made a big difference.
Click to expand...

The research seems to show that DEET can have some toxicity reactions in rare cases. And is not to be used around infants, openings in the skin (cuts, scratches, ect) and should be washed off after. And yes it will damage some plastics, ect. I don't use it beyond 30%.

If you really want something that wont damage plastics, try Icaridin based repellents.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Icaridin
 
I've started using Cutter Advanced with what I consider to be good results.

The reality is that for the most part I wouldn't use DEET because I hated the feel of the stuff and the damage he did to gear.

Now I actually use the Cutter Advanced all the time ... and I greatly reduced the bug issues ... and my gear is finally safe.
 
The Cutter Advanced product looks pretty cool. I will have to give it a try. I am curious how well it holds up to really nasty conditions. The one thing about DEET is, even though many have mentioned not liking it, the higher the DEET concentration is, the more oily the formula seems to become. While not pleasant, one application seems to stay on for a long time through hot weather, when you are sweating a lot. Lower concentrations need to be re-applied more often.

100% Deet is still readily available in many forumlations, including jungle juice.

I will try the cutter stuff, but I am always wary of new things too. Everyone seems scared of deet, but Picaridin could have yet unknown side effects. We will probably never really be able to answer those questions.
 
The picaridin products are fantastic. They don't stink after the initial spray, they don't leave you feeling greasy, they don't melt plastics, and they work pretty well. AMK has a new formulation with 20% picaridin that they say is as affective as DEET. I am no scientist, but that has proven pretty accurate in my backyard and on the trails. It actually worked better than DEET for me when dealing with ticks and black flies on Cumberland Island, GA, which has obnoxious insects during the summer if you've never been there.

Target had the aerosol spray cans of Cutter Advanced clearanced last year at 75% off, so I bought probably 10 cans. Then REI had the two packs of the Cutter Advanced spray bottles clearanced for something like $.83, so I bought 25. I have quite a bit of picaridin based insect repellent these days. :o
 
I've used the cutter advanced stuff in pretty bad bug conditions in Maine, and it didn't do squat. The 25% deet did work there though.

The cutter advanced has seemed to work when the bugs aren't that bad out, but I normally wouldn't use any then.

but of course, this isn't anything scientific, just my experience. It may be biased.
 
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