The purpose of liner on fixed blade?

HuntBomb said:
Self-explanatory to most.
Others should do some research before making an ass out of themselves.
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I just thought that since this is a discussion forum where people talk about knives, that you could explain what you said; especially since you seem to believe that it's common knowledge. And I did check the Fehrman website and couldn't find any information about this.

hardheart said:
Either Fehrman doesn't tighten the bolts holding the scales on, or the liners are compressed and don't absorb impact any more than the micarta does.
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Ok good, I'm not the only one that can't make sense of this claim. The steel and scales are right up against your hand, I don't understand how a thin liner between them can cushion anything?
 
Dekz said:
The steel and scales are right up against your hand, I don't understand how a thin liner between them can cushion anything?
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It won't.
But if you tell some people it will, they'll believe it.
The placebo effect: works for things other than pills as well.;)
 
Sorry for being hateful...just a long week.
Maybe it's not as common as I thought.
I've done a lot of research on the Fehrman line, so I've read/seen several reviews on their use of cushioned liners.
I'm not sure about the physics behind the concept, or what material the liners are made from, but it used to be a highlighted selling point on their website and Fehrman owners claim they can feel a difference when chopping.
I can see how it would sound gimmicky, but I think it's logical.
 
I believe it is 99% for looks or handle thickening. I can, however, see the shock absorbing potential. If you think about it chops are rarely ever perfectly straight up and down which would result in side to side vibration. And with my understanding of waves and vibrations, is they behave differently and have a difficult time traveling transitioning through different materials. Adding another more shock resistant material such as a rubber could in theory dampen the shock slightly. I am not sure if this would happen though or even how noticable the effect would be, but it is an explanation of how it could be possible.
 
I haven't looked up the knives everyone has been talking about, but this is what makes sense according to physics.

For liners to help absorb shock, the scales would have to mounted in such a way that the scales were not "hard" mounted to the tang. Meaning, they would have to be floating to some degree. "Hard" mounting would be something like bolts through the scales that go through a hole in the tang. For instance on a Becker handle, there are three bolts through the tang that connect the scales. Doing it like this should transfer most (all?)of the shock the tang experiences to the scales.

Floating scales would need to be attached with some sort of semi-flexible glue or pins through the tang that did not really contact the tang somehow. The liners (if shock absorbant) could then help lessen the shock transmitted from tang to scales. Even then, it would be better if the tang was slightly recessed from the edge of the scales, so then your hand was less likely to touch the "vibrating" tang.

So yea, I agree with the sentiment that it is primarily for aesthetics and handle thickness :).
 
It is purely astethic, they DO NOT prevent rust, nor absorb shock. They just look cool. 2 things absorb shock, shape of the handle, and the blade to handle angle ratio.
 
Other than cosmetics, the only practical reason I've heard that sounds plausible is that liners can help with swelling & contraction of some (non-stabalised) wooden scales. Two glue joints with a tiny bit of "give" rather than scales glued directly to the tang.
 
If a liner is sealed to the tang, it would prevent water from getting between the scales and the tang - important if the blade is not SS.
 
Thomas Linton said:
If a liner is sealed to the tang, it would prevent water from getting between the scales and the tang - important if the blade is not SS.
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Exactly the same as if the scales were sealed to the tang, so why bother with liners?
See my post above.
 
Some liner materials are flexible and are easier to seal to the tang, or so I have been told by some makers.

That is not to say that is why a given maker uses liners on a given knife. Maybe it just because they look cool in his opinion.
 
Ill forego infographics, but lets talk physics.
As mentioned earlier, the liners are aligned with the tang, making any shock absorbancy null and void, for these reasons:
1. If shock is absorbed due to compression, it would be lateral compression between the scales and tang. This would cause the scales to slide along the pins/bolts resulting in deformation of the scales or pins/bolts over time. Bad design.
2. Any shock absorbed through lateral movement between scales and tang (wiggle), would result in not only deformation over time of the aforementioned parts, but would likely break any glue nearly out of the box. Bad design.

The physical purpose of scales is to adjust the thickness of handle, or to address any balance issues for those of us who believe the balance point matters.
There are some materials that are used for handles to which a bond cannot be made with epoxy and steel directly, in those rare instances scale liners do served another very specific purpose.
Other than that liners are pretty much for a dash of color, which is often nullified by choice of scale material.
Use them or don't is up to you, but don't let gimmicks kick physics out of the room.
 
HanBurgundy said:
Ill forego infographics, but lets talk physics.
As mentioned earlier, the liners are aligned with the tang, making any shock absorbancy null and void, for these reasons:
1. If shock is absorbed due to compression, it would be lateral compression between the scales and tang. This would cause the scales to slide along the pins/bolts resulting in deformation of the scales or pins/bolts over time. Bad design.
2. Any shock absorbed through lateral movement between scales and tang (wiggle), would result in not only deformation over time of the aforementioned parts, but would likely break any glue nearly out of the box. Bad design.

The physical purpose of scales is to adjust the thickness of handle, or to address any balance issues for those of us who believe the balance point matters.
There are some materials that are used for handles to which a bond cannot be made with epoxy and steel directly, in those rare instances scale liners do served another very specific purpose.
Other than that liners are pretty much for a dash of color, which is often nullified by choice of scale material.
Use them or don't is up to you, but don't let gimmicks kick physics out of the room.
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Well said. I hope @2012 learns its lesson.
 
I assume that with some material (certain woods for instance) liners may help against warping of the handle scales material. Therefore although in most cases with most manufacturers liners only serve aesthetic purposes, in some limited cases because of the choice of the handle scales material their implementation may very well be necessary.
 
"There are some materials that are used for handles to which a bond cannot be made with epoxy and steel directly, in those rare instances scale liners do served another very specific purpose."

I asked a maker - now dead - about that once at the last big knife show we've had around here. He said that proper liners, properly glued to the tang, prevent moisture collecting against the tang. This seems important and to represent quality construction, especially in a non-stainless steel knife.

Again, I suppose less important goals may exist. But the maker, Robert Waldorf Loveless, seemed convinced.
 
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