Dumb question?

M

Mook

Guest
Liners --

I've seen them in many of the full tang knives displayed here, but I've never used them. They seem to be fabric (?) or some sort of non-rigid synthetic material, right?

Are they used purely for aesthetic purposes, or do they serve a functional role? If functional, am I right in my guess that they help ameliorate expansion/contraction rate differences between the blade and the handle scales?

In advance, thanks for any insight.
 
The ones I use are some kind of fiber board, sold as "liner material" by the knife supply places. I use them purely for looks, but they can also help cover gaps or uneven areas in between the tang and handle material.
 
I agree with jason, but will add that all fiber spacer material isnt the same. I bought some one time at a show( was a good deal) and it would contract moisture. I put some in water and it would soak it up. The good fiber spacer shouldnt absorbe any water at all. Moral of the story is to buy from good knife supplyers and I always test the first piece to double check it when you get new stock in.

Lator Gator Billy
 
I coat the exposed edges of my liners with CA (super glue) and that stops them from absorbing water. The scales and epoxy protect the rest of the liner.
 
I have bought some in various thicknesses that seemed like thick paper. I recently picked up some from usaknifemaker.com that was a vulcanized fiber material. It is pretty thick but I am looking forward to working with it. My spacer material selection is purely for looks. I try to find a color and thickness that will work with the scales that I have selected. I am currently working with some Curly Koa wood. I selected a thin black spacer so that it would be visible but not detract from the wood since that is where I want the attention to be drawn to.

Johnny
 
I usually use it on tapered tangs because it seems to highlight the taper. It also looks cool lining dovetailed bolsters. I've had it shrink after glue up before, so I always attach it to my scales and let the glue cure well before attaching the whole bit to the tang. Seems pretty useless from a purely functional standpoint, though I've used it once or twice to widen a set of scales that was just a little too narrow.
 
I ran out of black spacer once so I used an old black plastic oil container I had lying about. Scrubbed the large piece I cut from it to get rid of oil and when I came to use the adhesive, I just roughed up both surfaces. It worked a treat. Doesn't absorb moisture and has never let go the 24 hour Araldite epoxy I use.

About the only problem I came across is that for some knives it is just a little too thick. The good thing is, there are a multitude of coloures that get thrown into the garbage bin on a daily basis. Worth considering when you run out of the real deal;).

Terry
 
Didn't Loveless say about red liners " It's like a beautiful girl wearing red lipstick, it just makes her more beautiful".2thumbs
 
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