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So who likes orange handles?

I don't have any orange handled knives at this time.Might have to get one in the near future.I sure like your orange handled knife,looks real sweet.
 
I agree that orange G-10 is here to stay. I just wish I could find it from my regular suppliers more consistently. Offhand, I don't know of any other commercial materials available in blaze orange, and some folks just plain want that color. And why not? Except for dropping your knife in the woods in fall (where orange might actually blend in pretty well with the leaves on the ground) or serious military ops where everything should be camouflaged, bright orange seems like a decent choice for a knife handle.

I honestly don't like working with G-10 much; it's a real bear to cut and not much better to grind. The very fine dust gets everywhere (eye and lung protection definitely required) and if you grind it too aggressively, although it doesn't actually burn, it scorches and turns black and 'fibrousy' and it takes a good bit of very gentle grinding to get past the scorched part.

Due to the cost of the material itself, and the labor involved, I have no choice but to charge a bit more than I would for micarta or natural, oiled wood. Cost-wise, G-10 is more on a par with highly-figured, stabilized wood, although for different reasons.

I don't find the pattern of it nearly as pleasing as a figured wood. It looks a lot like canvas micarta.

But once you get it to shape, it takes a comfortable, yet very grippy surface quite easily. Being wet doesn't seem to hamper that. In that respect, it is generally superior to figured, stabilized wood finished to the same grit.

I have a client who's sending me yet another knife to be rehandled with G10, the fourth I've done for him. He's one of those who likes to go hiking/camping and really beat the snot out of his knives. :) He loves the texture and toughness and is willing to pay for the somewhat high cost of the material. I can't argue with that.

In short, G-10 isn't my personal first choice, but I understand why so many people like it so much. If you want bright orange, I don't know of any other choice except BFC member fod, who can make blaze orange laminates with the added coolness of glow-in-the-dark powders mixed in. Very cool! :thumbup:
 
I agree with the fact it would be great for a hunting knife. Even though G-10 is a tough material, I really prefer some type of micarta on a hard use knife. Wood looks nice but it is a natural material that is unstable. You can stabilize wood, but I think it makes it look fake. Desert ironwood is the only wood I've found that doesn't "move".
Scott
 
I LOVE orange! This summer, at a remote walk-in campsite in the Boundary Waters (MN), I could look all around our campsite and easily spot my gear scattered all about because it was orange or wrapped in orange paracord.
Helps me not leave anything behind.
 
That is a cherry knife. Very nice orange. I try to use bright colored lanyards on my outdoor knives for visibility.
 
I'm not a huge fan of orange but two of my go to blades have orange handles. I have a Graham Razel that is my all time favorite utility knife around the house and yard that has orange G10. I like it a lot because I can see wherever I lay it down. I'm notorious for not putting the knife back in the sheath right away if I'm going to be using int a lot.

I like the utility of an orange handle, not the looks if that makes any sense at all.
 
Great looking knife Scott. I have a few customs that I ordered with orange handles so you can say I like it.
 
Some of my JKs.

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I have perhaps eight orange handled knives. Some are sheath knives, some folders, all are from one division or another of Imperial Schrade. I bought them for that sole reason. Not because I have a love for orange knives, but because the were odd, uncommon, and weren't very big sellers on the retail market. And as such, they make interesting examples in my Schrade collection. I understand the high visibility aspect for outdoorsmen, and in fact that was the advertising mantra used by the chief SFO buyer of the orange Schrades, SMKW. I am yet to actually use one though (like land, they aren't making any more). I have not been too prone to lose the more natural colored knives over the years.

Michael
 
Nice knife Scott!

My GF's favorite colour is orange which is why I ended up try G-10. I was puzzled why it threw sparks when i tried to cut it on my bandsaw - it chipped off all the teeth! Tough stuff.
Here is a pic of her knife:
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I have been thinking of making one for myself. Typically when I'm gutting a moose I do some cutting set the knife down to do some pulling....look for my knife to do some more cutting, set it down to turn the moose some.....look for my knife again, do some more cutting, roll the moose.....where did I set my knife??? I'm thinking I need a knife with some orange in it :)
 
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