[Public-List] Micarta as Backer Plate Material

[crufone at comcast.net]

Hello Roger, 

I got away last summer without taking a sample of the Micarta that you have. I wonder how brittle this material is.  Lets say you drill a 3/8" hole in a sample and strike it sharply with a hammer at the hole. Will it develop cracks radiating out from the circumference of the hole; a s would happen with Plexiglas sheeting? From your photo I can't tell if the Micarta has fabric embedded in it to strengthen it. 

The compressibility factor of Micarta would be good but would it crack under an uneven or abrupt load? Almost anything would be an improvement over what Whitby provided, yet most fittings have held up OK. None of my deck hardware has fender washers or backing boards.  Maybe the idea was once the hardware ripped off the deck there would be a much smaller hole to let in sea water that if one used a backer board and ripped out a larger section of decking. 

Michael #133