Rust on my Santuoku **UPDATED**

[giant1]

Ban

I recently received a Santouku from you (one of the Aussie bunch that you did). We put it to use in the kitchen and have just noticed rust spots forming on the spine. The knife is washed and dried after use and stored in a make shift kydex sheath which is quite loose and has no chance of holding water or moisture.

Any ideas why this is happening and what should I do?

[Ban]

Sorry to hear about this. Do you happen to have a pic so that I can see what possibly may be the problem? Is the rust on the actual spine or is it on the side of the blade near the spine?

AEB-L is suppose to be very stain resistant and was one of the primary reason I chose to use it for kitchen knives.

[giant1]

Sorry to hear about this. Do you happen to have a pic so that I can see what possibly may be the problem? Is the rust on the actual spine or is it on the side of the blade near the spine?

AEB-L is suppose to be very stain resistant and was one of the primary reason I chose to use it for kitchen knives.

Ban,

The rust is on the spine and on the side of the blade. This is first for me, I really was not expecting it to rust. What do you suggest?

Some pictures as requested. Sorry about the quality but you will be able to see well enough the extent of the problem.

[PARK]

Just polish the rust off and put mineral oil on the blade,that will solve your problem.
Thanks,
Michael

[giant1]

Just polish the rust off and put mineral oil on the blade,that will solve your problem.
Thanks,
Michael

I should not need to put mineral oil on kitchen knives. They should not rust in the first place

[Ban]

Most all steel knives can and will rust given the right conditions. Stainless steel only means stain resistant not stain proof. In anycase, the rust on the santoku looks to be surface rust. You can try to polish it off with some flitz and keep a close eye on it. Just make sure that the sheath and knife is completely dry before storing. You can also just send it back my way and I will renew the finish and edge.

[giant1]

Most all steel knives can and will rust given the right conditions. Stainless steel only means stain resistant not stain proof. In anycase, the rust on the santoku looks to be surface rust. You can try to polish it off with some flitz and keep a close eye on it. Just make sure that the sheath and knife is completely dry before storing. You can also just send it back my way and I will renew the finish and edge.

If I send it back to you to renew the finish will that fix the problem or just remove the current rust until more comes along after the next time we use it??

Here are some pictures of other very cheap knives in our kitchen which are used all the time. They are the oldest ones I could find in the draw (at least 15 to 20 years). We use them, throw them in the dish washer then put them away!! Your Santouku is only hand washed and dried. You will see some tiny stains on the old knives but nothing like the Santouku after 3 weeks use.

[Ban]

I cannot say for certain without knowing the conditions and reason of why or how it rusted in the first place. Did the rust just appear overnight or did it happen slowly? Was it subjected to salt water? Was the knife still moist when stored? Was there water, moisture, or any other sort of substance that was accidentally inside the sheath during storage? There are a bunch of variables that may be involved that are out of my control.

Without jumping into conclusions and wasting time... I propose a refinish solution to solve the immediate problem. At the very least it will completely remove the existing rust. It will also allow me to examine the knife and take further actions if required.

[dasman]

Sounds like a solid start to a solution. Good craftsmen stand behind their products. Well done, Ban.

[Morrow]

Use it, wash it, dry it and store it without the kydex sheath. If it doesn't rust again, you've likely found your problem.

[giant1]

I cannot say for certain without knowing the conditions and reason of why or how it rusted in the first place. Did the rust just appear overnight or did it happen slowly? Was it subjected to salt water? Was the knife still moist when stored? Was there water, moisture, or any other sort of substance that was accidentally inside the sheath during storage? There are a bunch of variables that may be involved that are out of my control.

Without jumping into conclusions and wasting time... I propose a refinish solution to solve the immediate problem. At the very least it will completely remove the existing rust. It will also allow me to examine the knife and take further actions if required.

Did the rust just appear overnight or did it happen slowly?
We had been using the knife for a few weeks and my wife then noticed some rust appearing

Was it subjected to salt water?
No. It is used under the same conditions as the other knives pictured in this thread.

Was the knife still moist when stored?
No. Always hand dried before stored.

Was there water, moisture, or any other sort of substance that was accidentally inside the sheath during storage?
No.

This knife is used in a domestic kitchen to prepare food that our family eats. Not sure what variables you might be expecting??

I will send the knife back for you to inspect and fix but please be aware that I am not after a temporary fix because I really don't want a rusty knife in my kitchen. After all I could polish the knife myself. I am more interested in knowing why it is rusting in the first place.

[Ban]

I too am interested in knowing why it is rusting in the first place to better understand the situation and figuring out a solution. Variables are exactly that....in this case....anything that is/may be causing the knife to rust. For instance, a stainless knife just does not rust for no reason. I have never had a AEB-L knife rust on me when I wipe it down after use. Even carbon steels will not rust when properly wiped down after use. Rust cannot just automatically appear without some sort of catalyst. Some variable has to come into play in order for it to rust. ie. temperature, humidity, moisture, salts, storage, surface contamination, flaw in the steel, etc....

Do you store your other knives in sheaths as well? Instead me trying to play detective to figure out the variables. Just send the knife back for me to inspect. I will do my best to resolve the issue for you.

[giant1]

Fair enough Ban. Please PM me your address and I will send it ASAP.

[Cabra]

Ban you are a gentleman offering to fix the immediate problem and check on what's happening.

All steel can rust. Even the minerals in the water you used for washing it can make it rust.
I have seen real expensive chef knifes get rust just like the one in the pic.

I'm interested on what Ban finds out.

[PARK]

I have an idea why the the blade is rusting even though you are washing and drying the knife by hand, micarta will absorb water and dry after you put the knife away.Most kitchen knives have a plastic handle and will not absorb water so the steel and handle dry at the same rate.Micarta as it becomes wet will not become slippery,it will become more grippy because the fabric raises up from being wet.Most material have benefits and negatives and the person has to make a decision on what is important and take precautions for the negatives.
Thanks,
Michael

[giant1]

Thanks to Ban and everyone for your input, after thinking about it I have decided that I will not send the knife back. It's just too much hassle sending a package from Australia to the US for something that I can do myself.

I am disappointed that the knife rusts so easily but it's not the end of the world and I really think that a finer finish on the blade will alleviate a lot of the problem. Some elbow grease and fine wet & dry will do the job

[Ban]

Seriously man...send it back to me. I want you to be happy with the knife and will do my best to fix your problem. Give me a chance to make it right.

[dasman]

My opinion, whom asked right?! Send it back Giant . If for no other reason, let Ban answer some questions he maybe asking himself. You might be helping others down the road. Not my business really. That's what I'd do.

[MRpink]

I’m not an expert in kitchen knives or steel, but you can’t really compare cheap $5-$10 kitchen knives to a custom. Not all stainless/stain resistant steels are the same, depending on the type of steel they vary in carbon and chromium, which make them more or less stain resistant.

I don’t know why your Santoku rusted, but comparing its stain resistance properties to those cheaper kitchen knives isn’t fair since they’re different steels. I own that same Kiwi butcher knife you have pictured, also for about the same amount of time, and it’ll probably never rust in its lifetime, but that doesn’t make it a good knife. Performance wise, it’ll never get as sharp or hold an edge like Ban’s Santoku.

There’s some fine custom kitchen knives out there that are high carbon steel and will rust if you look at it wrong. It’s kind of like comparing a Honda Accord (my car) to a BMW M3 (one of my dream cars), my Accord has 212,000K miles and still running strong, but it’ll never compare to the fine piece of machinery like the M3, which requires much higher maintenance. (Glock vs custom 1911s for you non-car guys )

Again, I have no idea how stain resistant AEB-L is supposed to be and I don’t own one of Ban’s Santoku, but I know he does exceptional work. If you decide to send it back, I'm sure he'll make it right.

[giant1]

Seriously man...send it back to me. I want you to be happy with the knife and will do my best to fix your problem. Give me a chance to make it right.

I have to admit I was pretty annoyed that the rust even happened as it was the last thing I would have expected, but I am over that now and really don't see it as a big enough problem that I should send it back. I appreciate your offer to make it right and have no doubt that you would do so but it is not necessary