Just finished two knives using White micarta, and have discovered a couple of things about working it, that make it easier(for me anyway). I get a lot of orders for it, because (one), it looks like high quality bone and colors up(ages/yellows) a lot like it, and (two), it's pretty much indestructible.
A lot of knifemakers hate the stuff because it smudges like crazy, especially when using black spacers or Mosaic Pins. I'll have to admit that that is true, but there are ways to alleviate that problem. Two of my "personal" knives use white micarta, and I'm actually fond of the stuff in a masochistic kind of way.
First thing is to buy good quality Micarta. A number of suppliers are selling a cheap,porous version of the Original Westinghouse brand, that is almost impossible to work with. The best source I've found for the good stuff is Sheffield Knifemaker's Supply. They have the largest variety of Micarta I've located and they sell the "good stuff". Tried a couple of other suppliers and what they sold me is junk, but I hate to dis them, because it's been several years since I tried them, and they might have changed.
Second thing is work it slowly, Use a super glue sealer, and finish it wet.
I usually start out with a sharp 40 grit belt and make sure I'm not over heating it. That can cause yellowing and cracking along the layers. Then I switch, in my case, to a Ceramic 150 grit belt to get the handle to just about it's final shape, and get rid of the 40 grit marks. We're not working steel here, so the big jump in grit size is possible on the grinder. After that is all hand sanding; 220, 320 and 400. At 400, I stop and put two or three layers of Superglue over the handle, making sure everything is coated. By the way, At 400 I stop and wash the handle well to remove any black/dirt that might be there. Use WARM water and a lot of dish soap. I also scrub with an old soft toothbrush. Dry it under a lamp for a few minutes to remove surface moisture before layering on the super glue. I get it on the handle by puttin a bunch of drops on it and spreading with a masking tape covered finger(make sure the masking tape is clean). I then let it dry for 24 hours. that's important to me. I originally tried waiting only a couple of hours, and ended up with a sticky,dirty mess on the micarta. Needs to be REAL dry. After that, I go back and start sanding it down with 400 again, but this time, I'm doing it WET. I keep a spray bottle on my work bench, and spray it liberally before I start sanding. Get this wet dirty mess, that amazingly enough, wipes right off with a clean paper towel. I keep doing this with various grits up to 1500. After wiping that last one, I've found I didn't even really need to wash it in soap, but did anyway. By the way these knives both used black/red spacers and 1/4" mosaic pins by Frank Jacobs. Man makes the best pins I've ever seen. Actually I do give it the soap/warm water treatment out of force of habit, then buff, on a slow 1700 RPM, buffer with pink rouge,keeping the wheel away from the mosaic pins. Was totally amazed at how clean and downright pretty the handle came out going that route. Further care in finishing involves taping the handle while finishing the guard/bolsters, and keeping the handle covered while doing the final polish on the blade. I've,in fact, started sanding all my Micarta's wet(except canvas), starting at 400 grit, even those I don't use SG on. Doing a burgandy linen one now, and it's also coming out nicer/easier than just dry sanding. Just my thoughts on this subject.
