Recommendation? Perceval Le Francais G10 or Carbon handle?

[cataphract]

Hey guys, hope you doing fine! I'm struggling to decide which handle to select for the above mentioned knive in regard to my EDC usecase.

I am a guy who likes to keep his stuff always clean, sometimes more then "normal" people . This means the knive and handle would often be washer with water, sometimes with an additional drop of dishwasher detetegent and during our current days also with desinfectant (Isopropanol 75%)

So i am not a fan of wood or horn, this means i need to decide between the G10 handle and the carbon fibre one ...

 

[herisson]

Such a prestigious traditional themed knife deserves a natural handle, IMO. And they have some pretty nice ones... (juniper ! hmmm...). Honestly, I have dozens of traditional knives scaled in natural materials : all sorts of wood, horn (even very cheap one), bone... They did age beautifully over the years with minimum care : wash by hand from time to time, let it dry in the open (not in the sun !), drop of oil in the pivot and smear some of it on the apparent steel and the scales. If you like synthetics, you can get rid of some of the care but it's still a folder... Periodical cleaning and oiling the pivot is still a thing. By the way, some woods like cocobolo, ebony or osage are so saturated in natural oils that they repel water. Still, I give them the same care and treatment because I want them to stay nice.
Here under : all low carbon steel and cheap horn scales, with no love ever over 40 years (just some washing in the sink and cleaning out the pivot every five years or so...) Not bad !

 

[Grandmaster]

I’m with Herisson, it needs a classic material, wood looks awesome, I dont like wood handles, but such a nice piece deserves some really nice traditional material, CF is overused IMO

 

[cataphract]

I really really appreciate your recommendations! I choose some dark wood variants but that’s just not me... if does not fit with my style. Not to my watch, not to my Portemonnaie ...

 

[herisson]

I understand the attractivity of CF (there are some very good looking scales with metal webbing inlays) or G10 because it's just bombproof. A Perceval could look good in such a dress. But, hey, I'm a hopeless traditional nerd. Here's some turkish walnut for you. Same material, awesome diversity... :

 

[herisson]

And I dare you that ebony or bog oak wouldn't match your style, watch or dress... Well, if the natural materials are too pedestrian, there is still pakkawood. Looks like wood, behaves like synthetics... Win, win...

 

[cataphract]

O guys you really are so close to make me reconcile ... there is really no one yet who supports one of my decision haha ... but it’s not something I judge from pictures ... I checked and had hands on them ... black ebony and rosewood

 

[herisson]

You touched ebony and rosewood ? And you are still looking for CF or G10 ? No worries, you do you. Hope you find your grail.

 

[cataphract]

It feels great! It’s just the wood optic that bothers me

 

[herisson]

This one will probably bother you (optically) to the max... (it did bother me to be honest, even to hold in hand...) But it's now my favorite EDC, always in my right pocket. The first I reach for, and all that. It's as if it was molded to my hand.

 

[Alberta Ed]

This one will probably bother you (optically) to the max... (it did bother me to be honest, even to hold in hand...) But it's now my favorite EDC, always in my right pocket. The first I reach for, and all that. It's as if it was molded to my hand.

That's a beautiful skean dubh. Where did you get it?

 

[jstrange]

That's a beautiful skean dubh. Where did you get it?

Yes, really cool. I’d like to know as well.

 

[herisson]

A Alberta Ed jstrange Made by Paul Baleta (on Blade Forums' Knife Maker's Market). He also has a web site, Baleta Handmade. Really worth a look, even if the pictures don't do entirely justice to the incredible level of fit & finish (several Sgians to drool over). Paul is a fan of the pattern and produces some new Sgian quite regularly. The handle of this Sgian is black palm wood (with an ebony pommel). That palm wood is something special : although satin smooth it has still some grain and sits very securely in hand (a strange mix of silky and grippy...). And, although quite busy visually, it's a treat to just look at. The hammered copper bolster and pins aren't shabby either. To top it off, it's stainless (N690), so nothing to stress about corrosion.