phenolic-G10-Micarta

G

GRapp

Joined
Nov 14, 2022
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49
I seek your guidance on these materials. I did search and found a couple threads from years ago that had a bit of helpful info but that were in the Buck Knives section and had less input from makers. Google provided a head spinning amount of data but only a fraction related to use as scales. I know G10, Micarta, & other phenolics under whatever trade names are very common. What I'm concerned about is if I purchase through my usual shop suppliers McMaster Carr & Grainger, some the grades offered I don't recognize. Examples: CE, G10/FR4, G11, LE, XX, C, G7, G9 ... Carbon Fiber, Fiberglass, Garolite, Kevlar. Is there a Synthetics for Dummies I haven't discovered?
 
Hello G GRapp ,

The G10/FR4 material that you mentioned from structural material suppliers is essentially what you are seeing referred to as just G10 in the knife world. The trouble that you are going to have with general materials suppliers is that they are generally not as worried about aesthetics characteristics as the knife community and are centered more on adhering to the material properties specs. It’s kinda like shopping for furniture wood in the lumber aisle at Home Depot. It can be done , not really their wheel house though.

Hope that helps.

John
 
Most of the stuff from McMaster or Grainger will have one color choice, the natural color or whatever the material is. When you order through a knife supplier, there are often more color options if that matters to you.
 
also, it's good to support knife making supply businesses! Without them, our access to cool stuff would suffer.
 
For G10, which is what you want for knives, probably the one with the best selection, IMHO, is Alpha Knife Supply.
 
AKS (Alpha Knife Suply) and FGS (Flat Ground Stock)

FGS is in the UK but ships everywhere fast and cheap. Chuck at AKS is also a great guy to deal with.
 
Thank you all for the guidance. I'm going to give a sheet of carbon fiber based a shot and then likely move on to the cool stuff from knife supply houses. Like JV Knives stated, which supports what I suspected, the industrial suppliers are cheaper but only if you like plain colors like baby poo green. Thanks again.
 
Dont forget a respirator and good filters.
If you start using phenol based laminates you may need extra filters
 
For natural and black Micarta or G10 I go with industrial plastics suppliers. Prices are better by the foot and most will have remnants available. As long as you’re able to cut down sheets it’s the way to go. I’m blessed to have a shop close by that can even cut sheets down to size if I wish. They’re Professional Plastics and can easily be found online. They have several locations nationwide too. If you want fancy colors, knife making supply houses are the way to go.
 
What about acrylic? Wood World of Texas has scales of varying types and I'm curious about some red, white, & blue acrylics they offer. They are cheaper than G10 and most Micarta so I afraid the quality may not be up to par. I like the idea of spending locally and picking up in person too.
 
Balsa wood is cheaper than hickory, but they still make baseball bats from hickory for some reason???

I personally hate acrylic handles. It chips easily in grinding and use, it grinds too easy, and mistakes are usually unrepairable ... and it does not hold up well.
 
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