Best care for a non stainless blade?

[scythefwd]

Got one of my old grandfathers knives. Think it's standard hi carbon. Pretty grip wood, hollow brass pins. Fixed blade. There is some pitting in the blade. I want to prevent rust and other damage. What should I be oiling the blade with to keep it in good shape? Must be food grade as I do use it on carcasses, etc.

It's sharp enough to shave with though.

 

[scythefwd]

obligatory pics

 

[Meridian Blades]

EEZOX.......is my favorite. L

 

[hso]

Did he make it or someone else (nice looking knife).

I use White Lighting since it is a wax in solvent suspension. When the solvent evaporates it leaves the wax behind. You can then buff the blade with a soft cloth to reduce the wax layer.

Alternately, food/pharmaceutical grade mineral oil works well.

 

[Carl Levitian]

Just use Chapstick. Really. Trust me.

Just put a little smear of it on each side, then rub it around with a finger tip till it leaves a light waxy coating on the blade. It's water proof, food safe, and a tube of Chapstick can be carried or bought anywhere. Very available. I use it on my knives which are almost all carbon steel. I spend a lot of time on the Chesapeake Bay, which is a salt water environment, and I've had no rust issues yet. And it also worked on the carbon steel Camillus MK2's we had in Vietnam.

Carl.

 

[lobo9er]

I like vegtable oil. Alot of my knives (and even a small hatchet) come into contact with food in one way or another so I dont use petroleum products.

 

[scythefwd]

hso - was bought as a gift.

 

[hso]

Any markings on it?

 

[JVoutilainen]

It's a funny thing really, but I have still not managed to rust a single one, regardless of the fact that I do not use anything to "protect" my blades. And that goes for knives used for butchering animals.

Use, rinse, wipe. That is pretty much the only thing you ever have to do. Typically wiping the blade clean is enough to prevent rust.

 

[Marlin60Man]

Food grade mineral oil is the cheapest stuff. The wood looks stabilized and sealed so it shouldn't bother it, but maybe think about some kind of wax on the handle to help seal between the slabs and the tang.

Looks like a sweet knife. Custom made?

If it's something like 1080 or 1090 carbon steel it will develop a patina over time and this will also prevent rust. Otherwise, just keep it dry and clean. If you have to take it out in the field in a real humid place or where it might get wet, keep a thin layer of oil on it so the rust doesn't creep up on you.

Other than that, just try not to store it in the sheath since the leather will retain moisture. If you want to polish it to a real shine, use some "flitz" or similar rubbing compound, and then keep it oiled whenever you use it and put it up to keep its luster. Personally I like to actually put a patina on mine by cutting up some potatoes or apples or something like that.

 

[scythefwd]

hso - none at all. Not a single makers mark, unless it's on the tang... and I have no idea how to get to that. It's not like the wood is screwed on.

Marlin - dont think the handle is stabilized. It has been handled a lot so there is some oils in it from usage. There is a beautiful red marbling that comes out when you get the handle a little wet. It might have had a nice finish on it at one time, but it's just dull until you get the handle wet, which is something I'd like to avoid with it being wood and all. I did run some veggie oil over it and then wiped it off. Yes, it is custom. My old man bought it for him as a gift from the maker... he said that if he rememers right it was made from a file.

JV - If you'd go back and look at the pics, you'd see evidence that this knife has seen rust. There is some pitting in the blade (and it shows pretty well in the first pic). While the blade was clean when I got it, I need to keep it in mind as a preventative.

 

[HiWayMan]

I find the need to protect a blades finish depends largley on the amount of polishing that was done to it. A finely polished mirror-like blade doesn't require much for protection as the finish doesn't have as many nooks and crannies for rust to gain a foothold. A more crudely finished blade can require constant upkeep as the pores tend to be huge in comparision.

I've used motor oil, olive oil, paraffin, Johnsons paste wax, and chapstick. Some are used for storage and some are used on regular use knives. Sometimes the wrong one gets used on the wrong knife. Pepperoni and 5W-30 = yummy.

 

[Meridian Blades]

I thought this was an interesting test for preventing rust......

http://www.6mmbr.com/corrosiontest.html

 

[scythefwd]

Must be food grade as I do use it on carcasses, etc

Thanks for the advice on the mineral oil, olive oil, etc.

I try not to use petroleum products on my knives that will see food service. Keep the suggestions coming.

 

[JVoutilainen]

scythefwd,

Yes, evidence of rust, but do we know how that rust came to be? No.

As I said, under normal circumstances you don't need anything to protect the blade... if you simply remember to wipe the blade clean every time you use it. Believe me. I know.