Finishing Micarta - Tricks and Tips?

[Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith]

In a recent thread I was discussing the problems with finishing Micarta.
Paper Micarta takes a great shine. Its main problem is that it will burn in sanding and buffing if the grinder and buffer are too fast. It also sometimes feels "funny" in the hand....sort of sticky.

Linen Micarta is wonderful stuff for me. It works easily, takes a nice satin finish, grips well, and looks good.

Canvas Micarta is a workhorse handle material. Grippy and tough. The main problem is that it looks pretty unfinished when it is "finished".



What tricks and tips do you have for finishing and working with Micarta? ( especially canvas Micarta) I especially want to know first hand experience, not what you heard or read. How doers various finishes or soaks affect the feel of canvas Micarta. Is it sticky or slick?

 

[Calvin Robinson]

With canvas micarta I like a bead blasted finish the best. It never gets slippery when wet or bloody. I have a fillet/boning knife that I made for myself about 8 years ago and sometimes use it up to 8 hours at a time boning venison. There just couldn't be a better material or finish for this type of use.

 

[S.Alexander]

I agree Stacy that canvas micarta does look rough when finished. I have finished it to 600 grit and then danish oil, and finally paste wax. It's not the most water proof option but it felt nice and silky in the hand. I suspect that higher grits would make it even better.

I have found the buffer works very well for making a nice smooth finish on linen micarta. I haven't tried the buffer on canvas but it might be worth an experiment.

 

[tim37a]

I have been using paper micarta for handles on kitchen knives. I wet sand it to 800 grit and then buff it with a 9" hand buffer which is typically used for automotive work. I have only used black compound and it looks fine. You could use finer compounds and go to higher grits if you want a mirror finish. I like the hand buffer because it doesn't heat up the micarta and there is no chance of the knife being grabbed and ending up in my thigh.

Tim

 

[Grayzer86]

I have had pretty good luck polishing up canvas in the past. What I found worked best was to wet sand the hell out of it. I mean starting wet from 220 or so on. It seems to maybe swell the fibres a bit making them easier to sand off flush with the resin. I will take them to about 1000 grit and then Hit the buffer lightly, rubbing the handles first with ren wax, carnauba wax, or something similar, and using a clean dry wheel. There will still be a slight texture that let's you know it's canvas but polishes up well. Black canvas can end up looking almost like polished carbon fibre this way.

 

[Tin.Man]

I prefer using canvas micarta for knives that are meant to work. I use g10/linen micarta when its more of a show piece. I have to echo I love the consistent texture that comes with bead blasting either material, but my working knives I sand up to 220 on the radius/contours and the flats/middles get a 60 grit finish. I then wash the handles with warm water and dish soap and a tooth brush, then dry then soak in CLP for a few hours then wipe dry with a clean towel.

Looks fantastic, still has grip and texture, while being consistent. But I also never buff handles for the same reason I would never buff an axe handle, or a hammer handle, or a chainsaws grip. My hand wraps around it and the first goal of a handle is to grip/use the tool. Just my two cents.

 

[LARRYZ10]

Here is a piece of Micarta that took some buffing to get a decent glow...first with green chrome compound and then with a white compound called 5100 which I was told is akin to 1500 grit. The scales felt smooth but might get slippery. I don't know for sure because I sold the knife. I really like the linen Micarta for knives that are used for hard work. Larry

 

[Lo/Rez]

With canvas micarta I like a bead blasted finish the best. It never gets slippery when wet or bloody. I have a fillet/boning knife that I made for myself about 8 years ago and sometimes use it up to 8 hours at a time boning venison. There just couldn't be a better material or finish for this type of use.

This sounds interesting. Could you please post some pics. It sounds like a good option for a hunting knife.

 

[Calvin Robinson]

This sounds interesting. Could you please post some pics. It sounds like a good option for a hunting knife.

It shouldn't be too hard to imagine a bead blasted canvas micarta handle and I would post pictures but my membership level here won't allow me.

 

[jawilder]

The one on the left is machine sanded to 220. The one on the right is machine sanded to 400 then hand sanded at 400. Then it is buffed with pink scratchless compound. The buff makes all the difference.

 

[Nathan the Machinist]

I try to avoid finishes that require a substance be present on the micarta because it can wash off. So, things like oil, wax and WD40 don't appeal to me much.

We mill our scales here. Dull cutters and cutters designed for steel leave a somewhat chalky surface finish that I don't like. For best results I like sharp carbide designed for aluminum, moderate SFM and a healthy chip load to prevent rubbing.

We mill them, rub with 800 grit paper then buff on black compound (medium grit) for a satin finish.

You can take micarta all the way to a mirror polish, which looks nice on certain kinds of work.

I'm careful to try and use domestically produced material, I learned early on that import material that a lot of places sell is false economy.


Micarta is my personal favorite synthetic scale material. It's light and strong and feels and grips great.

 

[Justin Presson]

When you guys are bead blasting are you taping everything off, what about thebpins do you just let them get blasted and what media?

 

[james terrio]

The only thing I can add regarding paper micarta or any light-colored material is, sand it wet when you get down to final shape. I mean completely dripping sloppy soaking wet... that helps prevent mushing little bits of steel and grit (from the bolts/pins/sandpaper etc) into the tiny scratches or pores in the material. I've had good results using watered-down window cleaner to keep the gunk suspended. Failing to do that will make "ivory" micarta or hunter-orange G10 look absolutely filthy and gross, and it's a huge pain to clean once that swarf is pushed down in those tiny spaces. An ounce of prevention... :thumbup:

I'm so over canvas micarta that it's not even funny. The days when it was THE STUFF for high-end knives were 40-some years ago. Y'know what canvas micarta brings to my mind today? Factory knife handles that are so-barely-finished that I consider them, well, not done. Frankly, they're an insult to everything we stand for.

I really, really do not like working with it at all. I suspect my troubles with it come from the fact that I have yet to find a source for really high-quality, consistent material. Makers with much more experience than me talk about clean, lovely canvas micarta from back in the day, or from current sources I simply don't know, that finishes up nice and smooth like the Loveless handles I grew up admiring... but that's not helpful to me at all.

Every single damn piece I've worked with has had at least one "weird" soft spot that just won't take a nice smooth finish when sanding. I have maybe a pound or two of canvas micarta left on hand, and when it's gone, I will not be ordering any more.

The mythical "grippiness" factor of canvas micarta (wet or dry) is, in my experience, absolute nonsense... ANY material can be "grippy" depending on how rough you grind it, just like any steel can take a "toothy" edge depending on how you sharpen it. I sincerely consider that "truth" to be right up there with edge-packing and differential-quenching.

Clients who ask me for canvas micarta in future are just going to have to go somewhere else... the stuff just plain pisses me off and frankly, G10 is easier to work with, available in many more colors, and holds up better anyhow.

I try to avoid finishes that require a substance be present on the micarta because it can wash off. So, things like oil, wax and WD40 don't appeal to me much.

I agree, no matter what the material is. Surface treatments WILL wear off, most likely sooner than later. I do not use that sort of thing on my own knives, because quite frankly it's stupid and pointless and a total waste of time.

Having said that, my knives sell quicker and my clients like 'em better when I wipe down any handle material with some sort of oil. They look shinier that way. It does not matter one whit when I explain to 'em that it accomplishes absolutely nothing, in terms of the durability of the knife. So when I put knives up for sale, I oil 'em and burnish 'em. It doesn't hurt anything, soo... *shrug*

 

[jawilder]

James, I get my canvas micarta from Pop's and have never had a problem with it, and I've used at least 10 square feet of the green, black, and natural. I do have some from Zoro that does have problems in places. There is an obvious difference between it and Pop's.

 

[Nathan the Machinist]

James,

I use "Accurate" phenolic for my Micarta. It costs a little more than the import stuff, but it is hard and dimensionally stable like the Westinghouse material was. No soft spots. I'll be ordering a few sheets on Wednesday, you can piggy back on my order if you want.

As far as it being grippy, I think it is. You can take some polished Micarta and get it wet, and take some sanded Delrin, also wet and the micarta just sticks in your hand better. Makes a difference if you're cutting up a bunch of potatoes etc.

I like G10 okay too, but it's so heavy and unnecessary in most applications and I don't think the epoxy base ages as well as the old phenolic base does. Looks nice and dead stable though but hard on cutters so it adds about $15 to a knife while making it heavier.

 

[PT Doc]

The one on the left is machine sanded to 220. The one on the right is machine sanded to 400 then hand sanded at 400. Then it is buffed with pink scratchless compound. The buff makes all the difference.

The one on the right just seems nicer. Richer. Nice to have options.

 

[james terrio]

Interesting stuff, gents; thanks for your input. I will take that under consideration. Sorry to drift the topic.

 

[Brian Avila]

For me the special step for micarta (linen and canvas) is burnishing with green compound with a leather piece. I do it all by hand because I have no buffer.

Sand with wd40 and work my way up to 1500grit. Wash with soap and water. Then apply the compound to the leather and buff the hell out of it.

P.s. I hate working the micarta. It never seems easy to me compared to g10. But the burnishing was the step that made the final product good for me.

 

[StuNY]

After starting mostly with G-10 and Stabilized Woods I gave some paper micarta a try- I was really happy with it once I figured out the finish I was after. The first time around I sanded then buffed to glass like shine- looked like cheap plastic! Took it back to grinder with a fine scotch brite belt- which happens to be my favorite look for the steel as well. Really like the look and feel.

 

[tump]

I use coats of ca with sanding between coats. Then fine steel wool at the finish. This gives a satin type finish.