CF vs G-10 vs FRN

[wiley sharp]

in my book, excluding looks, (for CF) the proper ranking for durability and toughness would be as follows: G-10, FRN, then CF. no doubt, CF is nice, but it is out done by G-10 for no nonsense strenght and chemical resistancy.

[liko]

Strengths vs weaknesses:

CF:
Pros: best strength/weight ratio of the three. looks nice, reasonably tough.

Cons: Expensive. Difficult to work with, like any material using epoxy as a glue binder for a mesh material. Can be scratched easily, which lessens its strength. Very brittle; chips and cracks under heavy stress or impact.

G-10:

Pros: Very tough material. Much less brittle than CF, while maintaining the overall strength. Less expensive than CF. Can be made in many colors.

Cons: Still expensive and somewhat difficult to work with. Texturing wears away eventually, giving a fuzzy look that belies the knife's age and durability.

Fiberglass-Reinforced Nylon:

Pros: Cheapest of the three materials. Easy to mold and work with, doesn't produce any fibers or dust when worked that would be harmful to workers. Comes in many colors, light weight, and can be molded in just about any form. Toughest of the materials; dropping it will gouge or scratch the material, but it won't chip or break, unlike epoxy-based materials.

Cons: Flexible, which is a bad idea for knife handle material. Doesn't look as good as CF, Micarta, or even G-10. Looks cheap; not a good idea for gentlemen's knives. Not as smooth against the blade as epoxy-based materials, so there is more friction when opening and closing the blade, even with oil. Hard wear becomes apparent quickly over the life of the knife

[Pachucko]

G-10, preferably with double steel liners. Pachucks

[panguero]

xx

Edited by - sharp1 on 2/19/2002 5:45:54 PM

[liko]

Smart Knife... you mean a knife that won't bite you, but goes through anything else like butter?

[panguero]

Liko

Edited by - sharp1 on 2/19/2002 5:46:20 PM

[John Frederick]

I thought we already had the Spyerench <img src="wink.gif" width=15 height=15 align=middle>

[RYAN]

For Looks = Carbon Fiber

For Strength/Durability and Usage = G-10

For Cost and Economics = FRN

[Tightwad]

Esay choice for me.......

FRN for cost &amp; Micarta for looks and weight.

G-10 .......maybe. Carbon fiber......Nah, cost to much.