Liner question?

Kev

Well-Known Member
Still learning here. Do handle liners serve another purpose besides being aesthetically pleasing? Just curious if there is a function behind the form?
Thanks
 
Liners can be very useful when it comes to a seamless looking fit between the tang and scales. Since a liner holds a layer of epoxy on each side, you have two independent layers of epoxy. Let's say you had a very tiny, but detectable gap between your tang and scale. Having a liner effectively splits this gap in half (half on one side, half on the other) and your eye cannot see any gap now.

A black liner with black epoxy can do wonders when you have scale material that has pits or an irregular surface on the tang side which would be visible along the seam when you fit the scale to the tang. The black liner (again, epoxy on both sides) fills these tiny irregularities which might have been visible against the flat, shiny tang. It is very hard for your eye to see hair-thin irregularities along a long, straight liner. Instead of irregularities your eye will just see a bold black liner.

Liners are also a way to get the desired handle thickness you want. You can stack liners to increase the width of the handle. This is especially useful when you have scale material you like that isn't thick enough to get your handle to the desired thickness you want.
 
Back
Top