"The Way It Feels"
I actually had no idea what really was.
http://composite-laminates.com/g10.htm
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But that still doesn't mean I like the way it feels. A friend told me a few years ago that Spiderco wasn't so much a knife company as it was a cult. I'm begining to see what he meant. They're all your fellas, I'll stick with what I have.
The way it feels is largely a function of how the material is finished.
It can be finished rough (which is common in knife handles) or it can be finished smooth -- almost glassy.
There's another composite used in knife handles, primarily by Buck Knives, called PaperStone. It is used, among other things, for counter tops and cutting boards. Pretty durable stuff.
Buck uses it for the handles of their new EcoLite series knives (the 110 and 112) and also in the Vantage series.
In the EcoLite series, the PaperStone is finished to a smooth, satin surface. Feels nice in the hand, goes easy on pocket fabrics.
In the Vantage series, it's finished rough -- almost sandpaper rough -- and, while it's very "grippy," it's also hard on pocket fabrics.
I don't know how to smooth that finish, but I know it can be done since I have the same material both rough and polished. If I ever mean to pocket carry the PaperStone Vantages, I'll have to mitigate that rough finish first.
This same thing applies to G-10.
Knife makers typically finish it rough for a better grip. I have a Kershaw
Pack Rat, however that has less "roughness" in its finish -- it's still a bit rough, but not so much.
I wouldn't blow off a line of knives because one of the handle options feels wrong in my hands; instead I would look for designs using a different handle material.
Of course, if the aesthetics of the brand didn't appeal to me, I wouldn't bother shopping for one in the first place..
I don't own a single Spyderco. The aesthetics have never really appealed to me.
However, my sense of "aesthetic" has gradually changed as I've grown to understand what makes a good grind and what makes a good bevel and what attributes of a profile make for a good cutting tool. I'm beginniing to realize that Spyderco's blade shapes embody a lot of those attributes.
I still don't consider them "pretty" alongside my preferred brands, but while I don't
lust after them, I'm gaining an
appreciation for what they are.
Go with what you like -- it's hard to love a tool whose design you don't like -- but be willing to re-examine what you like about your tools as you rack up more miles on them.
I carry knives today that I shrugged off eight or ten years ago.
Those knives haven't changed, only my understanding has changed.
Allow your understanding to grow. It can take you more places if you do.