I have a fairly inexpensive Finnish knife with a rubber type handle and I find that I like the tackiness of it very much. Any suggestions for knives which have tacky synthetic handles? I have never handled knives with Thermorun, but from the description, it sounds like it would have some stick. I suppose Kraton is also a possibility, but I have only seen one once. I am thinking something with a blade length of around 3 ½ to 4 ½. Any thoughts or suggestions would be most helpful. Thanks.
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Sticky synthetic handles, suggestions?
- Thread starter Quy4n8
- Start date
CS indeed uses a lot of Kraton. Many large manufacturers have multiple knives with elastic polymer handles. Try making a search for kraton on you favourite retailers webpage, there should be many hits, and many sites show thumbnails with searches, so you'll easily browse through the selection. Swamp Rat's handles have sometimes been said to be of superior material, but I haven't sadly handled a specimen.
As I understand, Thermorun is essentially the same as Kraton. At least Fallkniven uses both designations on which seem to be similar handles on different knives.
I'd suggest taking into account that some knives have hilts/guards made out of Kraton, which to me doesn't seem to be a durable solution. Especially so if you're going to do chopping or other hard work. Sometimes Kraton can also start peel or shear off pretty easily. If you have the chance to handle knives before you buy, it might be a good idea to check that the handle surface is intact and has no spots where it might start to peel off more readily.
As I understand, Thermorun is essentially the same as Kraton. At least Fallkniven uses both designations on which seem to be similar handles on different knives.
I'd suggest taking into account that some knives have hilts/guards made out of Kraton, which to me doesn't seem to be a durable solution. Especially so if you're going to do chopping or other hard work. Sometimes Kraton can also start peel or shear off pretty easily. If you have the chance to handle knives before you buy, it might be a good idea to check that the handle surface is intact and has no spots where it might start to peel off more readily.
- Joined
- Jul 6, 2005
- Messages
- 307
i believe that many of the current rubber coatings are not a durable solution for handle material. theyre also a lot harder to clean, and tent to attract dirt and crap that will make them wear even faster.
however if you are determined to get one, i seriously suggest going into a large knife store and actually handling it as opposed to just basing your decision on a short text description. a handle made from a silid rubberized material or with a thick rubber-like outer layer is different from a lot of the cheaper rubberized 'coatings' some plastic handles have, and these will wear off and look/feel like crap. if its coated, dont be afraid to rub/pick at it a little with your fingernail to test the durability of the coating. i was shopping for a pair of binoculars just the other week and i did this with the coating on a display model and it came off easily - this is not the type of material you want on something you are going to subject to use.
also if its a hard use knife, and appearances dont matter much, consider that you can customise many of your current knives if you wish. pull a rubber tube such as a bicycle inner tube over the handle to add a rubberized grip feel. ive done this on a few of my hard use knives - first i epoxied some thicker rubber onto the handle to change the contour of the grip/thicken it, then pulled a piece of bike inner tube over the whole thing to finish it off. worked great.
cheers,
-gabriel
however if you are determined to get one, i seriously suggest going into a large knife store and actually handling it as opposed to just basing your decision on a short text description. a handle made from a silid rubberized material or with a thick rubber-like outer layer is different from a lot of the cheaper rubberized 'coatings' some plastic handles have, and these will wear off and look/feel like crap. if its coated, dont be afraid to rub/pick at it a little with your fingernail to test the durability of the coating. i was shopping for a pair of binoculars just the other week and i did this with the coating on a display model and it came off easily - this is not the type of material you want on something you are going to subject to use.
also if its a hard use knife, and appearances dont matter much, consider that you can customise many of your current knives if you wish. pull a rubber tube such as a bicycle inner tube over the handle to add a rubberized grip feel. ive done this on a few of my hard use knives - first i epoxied some thicker rubber onto the handle to change the contour of the grip/thicken it, then pulled a piece of bike inner tube over the whole thing to finish it off. worked great.
cheers,
-gabriel
- Joined
- May 18, 2005
- Messages
- 23,093
Swamp Rat Knives' Resiprene C handles are excellent- They are grippy, dirt resistant, and tough as nails. :thumbup:
Way-O, the knife is a Normark. The blade simple says Stainless Steel, Marttiini Finland. The blade is 3/32" this, about 4" long and has a Scandinavian grind. The handle is the basic Loveless design, but done in a rubber type material. I have only seen this model once, the one I bought. If I remember, it was around $15 or $20.
Normark is a rebranding company as I understand. They distribute many nordic brands.
Marttiini makes two kinds of rubber handles:
I suspected you meant the right one kind in the picture, but the price and apparently no "T508" engraving on the blade makes me assume it's the other kind.
If that's the case, I think you'll like any (deeply) checkered Kraton handle. Many Kraton handles might feel a bit softer on the surface and perhaps a little "oily" (hard to explain).
Marttiini makes two kinds of rubber handles:
I suspected you meant the right one kind in the picture, but the price and apparently no "T508" engraving on the blade makes me assume it's the other kind.
If that's the case, I think you'll like any (deeply) checkered Kraton handle. Many Kraton handles might feel a bit softer on the surface and perhaps a little "oily" (hard to explain).