finishing canvas micarta Q's

[Brett Holmes]

well lasttime it was linnen micarta and this time its canvas. I have heard it said that you cant polish canvas micarta but then i saw this beaut fromjohn foxwell
http://knifenetwork.com/forum/showthread.php?t=36612
so i was wondering how do you like to finish your canvas micarta, currently i have it sanded to 240grit and prob intend on going to maybe 400, but now im thinking i might buff. i see allot of blades posted with the dull colour that is evident when you leave it raw to get the wet grip tacticleness, but when buffed the colours really look great. So what do you recomend
the current blade in question is a warncliff EDC/utility with jade canvas

brett

[Ray Rogers]

Generally speaking, I use canvas on hard use knives. In those cases, I prefer to sand blast the canvas to make it tacky, then a little light wax over it to darken it and keep it from staining so easily. If I were to use it on some other type of knife, a kitchen knife for instance, then I would probably buff it ...

[Brett Schaller]

Sanding to 400 grit then buffing with pink no-scratch or green RCH gives a nice polished finish.

[DaveRuhlig]

Guys - I'm reviving this thread because I've had a couple of problems recently with finishing some micata. When I try to buff a piece of light colored linnen micarta it seems that the compound almost stains the micarta the color of the compound. The only way I can get it off is by resanding the area. Has this happened to anyone else? Any advice?

[skipknives]

Some folks buff with a compound called "white dimond"
It won't stain light color handle materals as easly as green.
on ivory handles, pink looks great (off subject)

Green canvas macarta and black canvas look good with a green rouse.
burgundy linnen macarta also looks good with pink no scratch.

DON'T bare down/ push too hard on the buffer,,work light and pull away offtin to cool the macarta so it won't burn. (keep the handle moving while on the buff)

[Carey Quinn]

I like to use a loose, well raked buff with white compound. When the buff starts to turn dark, rake it again and reapply compound. Use medium pressure. Let the buff and compound do the work.

Carey

[DaveRuhlig]

Thanks guys! I'll try sticking with white for the light micarta. I usually use green on the dark colors and it works great. I ran into the problem while making a knife for my brother - of course he had to be different - he just had to have yellow handles!