Homemade micarta linen.

J

jtwodogs

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Feb 1, 2009
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Working with some homemade micarta linen. I have heard in the past Shadetree described some of his denim micarta as having a "Clothy" feel to it when it is done.
Is there any kind of finish I should put on it? If I used oil I think it would look better, but concerned it may soak in, and delaminated it.
 
Depends on the linen used. Corse material like denim will have a clothy feel. Smoother cloth will have a smoother feel when finished with high grit paper.

It won't hurt the handle I use wd40 or ballistol
 
You're not going to delaminate it. And nothing will soak in enough that a simple wash with soap and water won't get out. If you don't like the clothy look and feel, a flap sanding wheel will make it a little smoother/satiny. Or you can use a thin coat of super glue and then wet sand it for a smooth polish. If you don't like that, hit it with the flap sanding wheel again.

I would use mineral oil or frog lube. WD40 and tru oil will make your knife handle and hands stink like a mechanic.
 
No need to oil the handle. My experience is with Survive-Knives which is Phenolic resin and cotton.First it took a bit of time to remove the smell as the phenolic resin outgases things like formaldehyde.Mine were hung out in the sun !.No smell from the cotton. My question was how would the grips perform when wet ? Actually the cotton gave a better grip when wet than dry. A very good grip material.
 
It is actually going to be used in the kitchen. I am giving it to my wife for Christmas. I just wanted to have a deeper richer look then just the dull cloth look.
 
Keep going through the grits and you will start to achieve a smooth glassy finish.

It depends a bit on the resin and material you have used but take it to 600 grit or higher and then buff and polish.

Superglue works too but feels more like plastic than plastic does!
 
As a user, although coarse cloth and coarse sanding don't look glossy and fancy they are much nicer for using and grip. :) And they canbe finished with higher grits to give nearly as nice a finish.

That said I actually prefer the look of the coarse "clothy" finish. Its got a natural wabi sabiness to it.. LOL
 
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