Handle Material

This was the first material used for handles in TT blades. We can all agree that wood is beautiful, some more than others of course, but there is enough variety to cater to all tastes. Overall, natural wood is very durable, the color does not fade with time and use, but some species are more prone to oxidation. It generally has good sweat absorption qualities, but of course this also depends on the species. The color palette is somehow limited, most woods come in shades of brown, from light to dark, with some more colorful exceptions of course, but those are harder to find. The problem is that color is intrinsically tied with density, and darker woods, which are the general preference aesthetically, also tend to be heavier and harder. That limits the design options most of the time, but in some cases this can also serve as an advantage, for example by using a very heavy wood on the bottom of the handle and a light one for the rest, as a way of maximizing a low balance. Durability usually depends on density too, with denser woods being more durable. A big downside is that there is a big variation in density, even within the same species, which makes it unpredictable to work with. For mass production this is very inconvenient, as two exact blades from the same model could have very different weights and balance. For these reasons, the industry slowly moved from natural wood handles to fineline.

Ok, so what is fineline? Fineline, also called reconstituted wood, is simply made with pre-dyed, thin wood veneers, that are glued together to form a block. Why? That has to do with how handles are made. Basically, first we make a solid block, then we remove material until we reach the desired form. The problem is that it’s very hard to dye a piece of wood all the way through, so that the color remains after you remove material. 

So, this is how fineline was born, it is much better to dye thin sheets of wood (although still a complex procedure), and glue them together to form consistent blocks. This opened up many possibilities. Fineline is usually made with a light base wood that accepts color well, the most common example being Ayous, which makes the final product relatively light as well, but more importantly, very consistent and homogeneous. In terms of mass production, this is a huge advantage as it greatly decreases the weight discrepancies between blades of the same model. It can also be produced in a vast array of colors, which is something not possible with natural wood. With the development of technology and tools, it eventually allowed the creation of more complex patterns and designs. The sweat absorption properties depend on the base material, but they are generally good. However, it also has disadvantages, because it’s made from light woods, it’s not as durable as some solid woods, and the color will fade with time. It also has a smaller weight range, and while that is mostly an advantage, it can be a disadvantage in terms of custom blades, for example if you want a really light solid handle, or even a really heavy one. 

Big brands make thousands of these handles per day, so for them they are really cost effective. However, I’m just a small builder and I’m making my fineline from scratch and as requested, mostly one design at a time. The process is very time consuming because it requires many gluing phases, and waiting time between each phase until the piece has settled. That is only to get the raw material to work with, then comes the woodworking part. This is why I charge more for fineline handles.

Occasionally I also make dyed handles, but personally I’m not a big fan. Visually they look very good, as we can achieve a fading effect not possible with Fineline, but they have some disadvantages. A dyed handle needs to be sealed, otherwise it will come off with time. The problem is that a sealed handle can become slippery if you sweat a lot. Some players have no problem with this, but others do, like me, so I always warn the customer about these issues.

There is in fact a way of coloring a piece of wood all the way through: "Wood stabilization is a number of processes which use pressure and/or vacuum to impregnate wood cellular structure with certain monomers, acrylics, phenolics or other resins to improve dimensional stability, biological durability, hardness, and other material properties." The resin can be colored, achieving visually striking effects, however it has some big disadvantages. Stabilized wood is very very heavy, which greatly limits its use. It also provides no sweat absorption, since it’s basically a glass like surface, so it becomes slippery. Personally I like to use it in small portions of the handle, rather than the whole thing, because we can minimize these downsides.

"Cork is a natural, renewable material harvested as the outer bark of the cork oak tree (Quercus suber), primarily in Portugal, without harming the tree. Known for being lightweight, buoyant, elastic, and fire-resistant." It’s very comfortable in the hand and it provides excellent sweat absorption. It is also the lightest material I use for handles, which is very important in some cases. It does have one downside, while it has a good durability in terms of degradation, visually it loses its appeal with time because it becomes dark from oxidation. Still an excellent choice if it fits the requirements of your particular blade, and you value practicality over looks.

There are other handle materials out there, but I don’t normally use them. I do need to make one final note for extruded PVC, which is basically a light, foam-like plastic. Just for reference, this is the stuff used on the Timo Boll 30th Anniversary Blade. This is something I’ve used since the beginning, because the colors are vibrant and do not fade with time. However, the material is very soft and easily dentable, and being a plastic it provides no sweat absorption. So, I don’t like using it for whole handles, but it makes for very nice appointments, for example when it comes to flag colors.