Micarta Handles

D

DgrantD

BANNED
Joined
Oct 21, 2002
Messages
420
How are these? are they durable, How would they hold up on a military type environment, how about chemical restance and grip in a wet environment? I am specrificly wondering about the busse combat blades with these handles or should i just go with the respirine.

Thanks
 
I love Micarta handles. The sort on the Busse knives are not just matte finished for effect. There are also machined for a sort of aggressive texture. Very effective yet comfortable. Canvas Micarta is probably teh best for hard use knives, while Linen and paper Micarta polish up nicely but are quite slippery in the end. The Resiprene versions I haven't tried before but if they are anything like Kraton, it should be quite practical.

I'd still prefer Micarta because it is a solid material and by that very point, more durable. Also, even though the rubbery materials have a nice softer grip while dry, when wet they lose a lot of their grippiness, which goes against conventional thinking. You should try it for yourself. I could be wrong.

Cheers.
 
I don't know a darn thing about Respirene, but I know Micarta and like it a whole bunch. I do not find it a problem when I have handled wet Micarta. It does not seem to get slippery. I don't know about chemical resistance. It is also very tough (not paper Micarta, but Linen and Canvas are very tough). It can be broken, but not easily.


Edited to correct spelling.
 
DgrantD,

Welcome to the forums!

As stated, micarta is awesome. It is often referred to as the steel of plastic. It is tough stuff. I've heard of people dousing it in gas and lighting it on fire to no ill effect.

As far as chemical resistance, G-10 is actually better than micarta for this. I recall a post on the Strider forum where Mick talked about why they decided to use g-10 and cord wrapping. Mick said that g-10 resisted chemicals that micarta can't, and so they chose g-10. If you have specific chemicals in mind, please tell us what they are and we can help find out how Mciarta would hold up to them. If youa re trying to decide between a resiprene and a micarta handle, get micarta!
 
Guys, I use much more micarta than G-10 on my working knives. I thought that G-10 would be a lot tougher than Micarta, but a few weird qualities came out when trying out some brand new nifty-looking G-10 in red and bright blue on my "can't-lose-them" bush knives.

Weird, but the G-10 seemed to almost go all gummy and scorch very quickly when grinding. The glass fibre weave material is definitely what gives strength to the composition but the resin seems to be actually quite soft. What the ...

Canvas Micarta has that slightly rough surface texture that becomes even more tacky when wet. The tiny fabric fibres exposed at the surface just wick up and grab skin and gloves. Underneath that immediate surface, the fabric weave is heavily compressed within the phenolic resin. It doesn't soak up dirt, moisture or other fluids. I use unpolished Micarta on my hunting and kitchen knives and never had a problem so far. Any muck or blood washes off.

So for me, I'll still use Micarta because I THINK Micarta is still tougher. I might be wrong. There's probably not a lot of difference between G-10 and Micarta in terms of strength and durability. They'll both probably outlast the steel on your blades and in 2000years time, your blade will probably be unearthed by an enthusiastic archeologist. It'll be a pile of rust with Micarta handles.

In terms of chemical resistance. No commonplace chemicals I know of seem to affect MIcarta. Then again, I don't work with or expect to be immersed in jet fuel or industrial solvents any time soon.

Cheers.
 
Busse´s Micarta provides a good grip, but I simply love Resiprene C. It might not be as durable as Micarta, but the difference is IMO marginal. I don´t think that even while using the knife for hard work, the Resiprene C handle on my Camp Tramp could be seriously damaged. It´s much harder than Kraton and very comfortable.
 
Micarta is my favorite of the man-made handle materials. I can't say enough good things about it.
 
Jason,
the G-10 doing this is normal when your working it, the fact that the fibers are soft has no bearing on its durability, and wearing characteristics. Ive worked G-10 and micarta and both materials are durable, but personally I feel G-10 wears better.
 
Hello,

Micarta, especially the Busse variety, is certainly my favourite, though I prefer G10 on folders, wher I find polished micarta, just a wee bit too smooth for safety.. What I would like to know though, is, What the heck is Resiprene?

Regards,

Doug
 
I've got a Basic #3 and #9 and the grip is fanastic. Unless I'm mistaken, I believe Busse tested Resiprene C and found that it holds up very well to a lot of chemicals such as DEET. It stands up to Gun Scrubber, which is very hard on a lot of synthetics.

I've also got a Newt Livesay NRGS neck knife that has electrical grade linen micarta handles, un-polished. They are extremely tough and provide excellent grip even when wet.

Is canvas micarta another name for electrical grade linen micarta? If not, does anyone know how they differ?

Ray
 
Codeman,

"electrical grade" is probably a funny term, as all micarta was designed for, originally to be insulators in electrical systems, or something like that. So, all micarta is "electrical grade".

The difference between canvas and linen micarta is the material that makes it up. Micarta is just layers of base material and resin. material,resin,material,resin,material,etc. Add heat and pressure and BAM! You get micarta! Awesome stuff. Anyways, linen micarta uses one type of cloth (if I remember correctly, it ISN'T linen though), while canvas micarta uses canvas for the base material. There is also paper micarta, wood micarta (rare), rag micarta (holy grail of micartas, superrare!). The nature of the material used will determine its properties. SO, paper micarta gets a smooth, even, deep color and finish. White paper micarta can be scrimmed (scrimshaw). Black paper micarta looks like horn! The linens are a nice inbetween, as they look smooth and rich but the layering is still quite evident. Canvas micarta really shows its grain, and you can feel it too. The graininess of canvas micarta aids in its increased gripability.
 
Dgrant...

Micarta is nearly Bomb Proof...

It is very, very good handle material...

ttyle

Eric....
 
Micarta is very strong. when I was in the AF our c-130's cokpit electronic panels were micarta, and so were many other items on the planes. Our parachutes used a form of micarta for stiffeners in the parachute pack. we also made our parachute packing tools out of micarta. we had some that had been around for years (and took a great deal of beating).
 
The knives I have with Micarta handles have all held up well I find Micarta to be slicker compared to new G-10 and I stress NEW G-10 because every knife I have with G-10 handles the G-10 has gotten slick over time with use and most at this point do not have any better grip then the Micarta, where as the Micarta has stayed the same on the handles from the beginning, Most knives the shape and contours of the handles make more of a difference in the grip then the handle material will when comparing similar handle materials. Go with what looks best to you and feels best, you can't go wrong buying something your happy with.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top