1095 steel and rust

I am actually getting my first RC-3 for Christmas and am very excited. I plan to use it on my fishing/claming trip to the Chesapeake Bay later this year. It will be getting dunked in Salt Water on a regular basis and used to open clams. Will simply oiling it up afterward take care of any concerns or do I need to take the handles off and clean it to extreme.

Just curious,

Whitty
 
I am no pro, but as long as that powercoat is under the scales, you should be fine, as far as the handle goes.
 
Im a part time LEO in South Africa and recently purchased the RC4 in desert tan finish to go with my SWAT RC3. I took the RC 4 along on a fishing trip last week and really used it for all sorts of chores from cutting line to preparing meat for the fire to cleaning a fish or two.

I purposefully left it for a couple of minutes each day in the water where I was prepping bait and didnt dry it off or lubricate it at all during this time. When I got home it got packed away and I took it out yesterday to have a look at the blade which lo and behold had developed some small rust spots.

I wanted to end off by saying that I would have been dissapointed if there had NOT been any rust on the blade as I deliberately went all out to use it as I would in the outdoors with minimal care for the blade. Frankly I think a little bit of rust just adds some character.

BTW- I really like the kydex sheath that comes with the RC4, attached to the belt with a piece of paracord is the way to go for me. I couldnt care less for the molle clips they are just too rigid and get in the way. Also have to say that you guys at RAT have got the micarta handle down pat, just the right amount of roughness to make the knife even more grippy in wet environments- well done !!!
 
I got my RC-3 for Christmas and am stoked to go use it. The knife is everything everyone on here said it would be. I can honestly say I think it is the best designed fixed blade and the best made, that I have ever owned or held. I personally will be ordering 2 very soon for 2 of my employees birthdays. When they saw the knife they went nuts. After I get those out of the way I will decide what is next on the list for me.

Whitty
 
I use mineral oil on every knife I own at some point or another.

To the dude that uses Olive oil: It goes rancid after a while.

Beeswax is awesome. I agree.
 
All this suddenly made me wonder: is there a difference in rust and abrasion resistance between the coatings used by RAT Cutlery? Or in how thick they're applied to the knives?

I believe this has been asked before, but I can't seem to find that thread nor can I remember the answer...

Mind you, I'm kinda fanatical about tool maintenance and my RC4 (or any other knife/tool) does not rust!! Well.....not yet anyway, hihi
 
XMP said:
One thing to add might be that Tuf Cloth and petroleum oils aren't the best lubricators if you use your knife for food prep/eating. Mineral oil, which isn't harmful at all to the human body, is the best choice if your knife touches your food.
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You mention that petroleum oils are not the best lubricators for your knife. I too have many knives most sit in a drawer but the majority of my users are stainless as someone else said. I have not really used my carbon blades for lack of knowledge about rust myself. For instance I have had a becker utility 7 for about 3 or 4 years now and have probably used it twice. About once every 3 months I will take it out of its sheath wipe it off and apply some vaseline on the uncoated edge and replace. Is this bad for the blade steel or is this okay?
 
R.A.T. said:
It is the user's responsibility to keep the blades properly lubricated and cleaned. We suggest using a dry film rust inhibitor such as TUF-GLIDE or TUF-CLOTH if you want your knife to stay pristine.
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is the substance the same of TUF-GLIDE or TUF-CLOTH and just the application method different? or is there someting else different.???
 
I can remember the days when folks bought a new carbon blade and almost felt like it wasn't any good until it did get a little rust and a good dose of patina on it before they would really use it. Some would even go so far as to bury it for a while out in the yard so it would get rust and patina on it quicker. Then they would give it a good cleaning and put it on the stone and they were ready to use the heck out of it. Times change.
 
The one thing I DO NOT worry about on my using knives is a little rust or stain. Using Knives are made to USE. And if you use your knife a lot then that rust comes off pretty quick.
 
It seems like oxidation may soften or round over a sharpened edge. Does rust/staining on the blade edge degrade cutting performance or is the problem of rust just cosmetic?
 
i dont use the rc-5 every day as i dont think ppl would like it me carring it at the office
as my office isn't the jungle. so voor storage between vacation where i will use it. i want to
treat it good till i go on vacation again and use it where it is made for.
 
I know for years TUFF-CLOTH and TUFF-GLIDE have been the "standard" for blade protection it seems. However I did a test using 1"x3" pieces of mild steel, with them first cleaned with a grinder to remove rust and all contaminants, washed and dried them. They were all soaked in different lubricants, tuff glide, mil-tech, WD-40, olive oil (I use on my Mach 5 blades because they rust after a while and are expensive) a couple others, and EEZOX. I then placed them on aluminum foil and flooded them with salt solution I had made up. They all rusted pretty quickly except for the EEZOX. It had to be ten times more rust resistant than tuff glide. I don't work for or own EEZOX, but I will tell you this they are the best anti-rust protection I have found. So if your worried about your knives rusting get some of it. Now they make a knife lube, I tested the gun lube thats all they had at the time. I have a feeling they are pretty much if not the same stuff, and they come in the same oilier needle type bottle as tuff glide does.
 
I just keep my knife as dry as I can. No rust at all so far, in spite of it being out in the rain a bunch. :)
 
I pushed mowed in the rain today with my Izula in my RFP, I got pretty wet and my knife I assume got a little wet but I never checked it, I did use it a couple times between mowing and giving it a once over right now, and guess what no rust spots anywhere on it :D.

(I know its not wise to mow in the rain but it wasn't raining when I started and why stop progress :D)
 
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