handle designs and Materials questions...

[Lisa West]

Im sorry to bother you guys with all these questions but to be honest I like the feedback and you guys actually take the time to give it ..
So Id like to hear what kinds of woods you guys like for handle materials?
What color G10 you like?
Do you like stacked G10(like orange under black G10, thick not multi layered if that makes sense?)
What multi layered G10 do you like? (Like orange/black, black/green, Blue/black etc?)
Shapes? I know handle shape will large depend on the style of knife but Im talking a general purpose say..drop point with a 4" blade here
Do you like a thin knife handle, thick contoured handle?
Finger choil?
Do you like a handle with somewhat of a finger grove like this one?

Or do you prefer a straighter handle like this one?

Just curious but does anyone like this classic belt knife style?

Thanks again guys..

[Jay Henderson]

pleasingly plain. pretty never gets used and is usually pretty only because it doesn't have any other qualities to sell it. bullet proof. and fills the hand well. in fact, another half inch of blade, and the top knife would be about perfect.

[ucgreen]

Thanks for asking for some input.

Design and feel: My tastes run towards a more "hand filling" handle. For example, Helle knives do a great job of this. I think their shape and width fill my hand perfectly and give me that feeling like the knife is an extension of my hand and arm. The more simple original mora has this feeling as well--which may be one of the reasons people like it so much.

[RavenLoon]

I like the handle profile of that second one best, or even straighter with just a subtle swell. I like wood. A lovely handle of birdseye maple makes me reach for my wallet.

They all look good though. One of these days I'm going to order something from you.

[2stoves]

If I am going to pretty...which I am normally not...I like curley maple. Very subtle designs in it. Outside of that I like a handle brightly colored so I can find it when I lay it down in the woods by accident. I also prefer the style of the handle on #1. I have small hands and that style just seems to fit better for me than many of the other styles.

[rlh2]

I am not a fan of finger grooves. If gloves or mittens are worn when using the grooves almost never line up. I do like that belt knife. Beautiful.

[Paul Foreman]

no bolster/guard, and no grooves for me; prefer wood for a tail/tang knife AND full tang scales. simple, simple, simple ...

[Seeker]

I like greens, tans, browns, and black for gear colors... but prefer wood for knife handles... just something solid and dependable about it. not a big fan of micarta, but if i had to have it, it should be a two-tone combo of subdued colors. If i want color, i'll add my own with a piece of neon 550 cord.

I don't mind a choil. It has its purpose in a knife design, and I wouldn't choose or turn down a design based on its presence or absence.

I like a small finger guard, like on my Fallkniven F1 (vs a huge one, like on a Buck 119). Not a "big knife" person. 4" blade is about the max for me.

I like a plain handle (vs one with 4 grooves, one per finger), mostly because there's then only one way to hold it, and I may want to hold it differently when carving on something.

[Crco]

Based on my own observations of the bushcrafting knife community in general .... it appears that finger grooved handles, choils and the like are often rarely well-received. Regardless if we're talking a Kephart, a Woodlore, etc.

Finger grooves tend to limit different handhold configurations which are important in the myriad array of typical bushcraft tasks (carving, whittling, batoning, drilling, etc.).

[Lisa West]

Based on my own observations of the bushcrafting knife community in general .... it appears that finger grooved handles, choils and the like are often rarely well-received. Regardless if we're talking a Kephart, a Woodlore, etc.

Finger grooves tend to limit different handhold configurations which are important in the myriad array of typical bushcraft tasks (carving, whittling, batoning, drilling, etc.).

Thats a good observation..Im starting to think that too..