Corrosion from leather sheath

B

Blankwaffe

Joined
May 8, 2012
Messages
28
Hey folks,
Im having an ongoing issue with corrosion on some carbon and even stainless steel blades that seems to be coming from the leather sheaths.Its also staining/pitting brass and silver bolsters etc..
No matter what I put on the blades,with the exception of long term storage grease like Rig Universal,the corrosion develops.Obviously not a type of lube I want to use on the knives in use,particularly around food etc..
The Knives that seem to have this problem more seriously is my Bark River Sliver and my old early 80's Western Bowies.But like I said I have a couple stainless knives that are getting rust freckling and discolored brass etc.

Some of my other knives are stored in the sheaths for extended periods with no issue while others suffer corrosion.
All the knives are stored in an open air cabinet inside the air conditioned house.So I can't see how the knives in storage could be affected just as much as the ones I carry around daily.

My question is,can I do anything to neutralize or wash the tanic salts/acids from the leather sheaths?

What other advice can yall give?

TIA
 
I have an old sheath that turns my blades green. I don't use it anymore because of this. Interested to what folks have to say.
 
Over in the Randall Made Knives subforum they claim storing a knife in its sheath is a keel hauling offense. Well, maybe being lashed at the cart's tail. I don't remember.

Leather soaks up moisture from the air, so your knife lives in a damp environment.

But that's not all. The leather itself is a significant variable. Vegetable tanned leather is less corrosive than chrome tanned leather.

The simple way to make a chrome tanned leather sheath less corrosive is...

Replace it with a vegetable tanned leather sheath. :D
 
What Raymond said. If you insist on storing knives in their sheaths, you can wipe a light coat of food-grade mineral oil on the blade (or the whole knife for that matter), wrap it in Saran-Wrap, then put it in the sheath. That's how I ship my knives.
 
I've had good - very good luck by melting some paraffin into the leather using a hot air gun. Started back when I had several carbon steel knives in Kydex sheaths and they would take it on the chin in the summer. Using a hot air gun and block of canning wax I rubbed the leather down and melted it in. repeat till the leather is pretty much loaded and allow to cool. Form leather to fit in Kydex (helps if the sheath is held together with screw hardware, but otherwise the Kydex can be heated to accomodate. Apply Goop, place leather in sheath, pack with furniture foam and allow to dry. Re heat Kydex and form to desired knife - no more rust or tarnish issues. Worked so well I went back and did some of my leather sheathes - made a pile of wax shavings, pressed 'em into the sheath and carefully heated with hot air gun, melting it in as even as possible. This makes the leather rigid, very tough, and very resistant to sweat and water. No more rust or tarnishing issues. It takes a lot of patience to retromelt the wax into a sheath like this - I believe if you have a double boiler you can actually dip the entire sheath in the melted wax, pull it out and allow to drip dry upside down, and you'll get a similar if not better effect. I bought a Mora Classic from Ragnar that came with this treatment as an option - he details the process here.

I like to use a mixture of wax and beeswax. I don't find the exact ratio of beeswax to parafin to be critical. I've varied it from about half and half to mostly parafin. The more parafin the stiffer, but the difference isn't dramatic. Carefully melt the wax in a shallow pan long enough to hold the sheath. Bread pans work well. It's safest to to do this in a double boiler arrangement. If you use direct heat you might want to do it outside in case it flares up. At the very least, be sure you have a suitable lid to smother it if necessary. Do not leave it unattended while it's heating! Just after all the wax melts it should be warm enough. If it is too hot it will shrivel and damage the leather quickly. If it is too cool the wax won't penetrate evenly. Briefly dip the sheath into the melted wax mixture. It helps to have a piece of bent wire (coat hanger stock works fine) to manipulate the sheath. Watch the surface of the leather. As it takes up the wax it will darken. As soon as it is evenly darkened take it out. If you leave it too long it will shrink and distort. When it cools, it will be hard, durable, and waterproof. If the color is uneven, or if you have lumps of wax on the sheath you may want to use a hair dryer to melt the surface and wipe it down. If you don't want it to be quite so hard, add more beeswax, commercial waterproofing, or even neatsfoot oil to the mix.

Don't put the knife into the sheath until it's cool. If you put it in too soon the hardening wax wil bond to the handle, and it will be almost impossible to get it out. (Do you hear the voice of experience here?) After waxing, the sheath will have a rich dark brown color. Waxed sheaths can be very durable. I have several that have been in use for many years.
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yeah if you can avoid it dont store them in their sheaths, that being said sometimes its just not feasible so then just check them from time to time
i also wouldnt try washing the sheaths, that opens a ehole can of worms and youre likely not gonna like the results.
If the sheaths were made of decent leather, i dont think it will leach much out, if its a homemade job outta mystery leather then you might need to be more careful. I bought a WW2 era Catt 225Q Knife 3 years ago or so that i'm fairly certain was probably stored in its sheath for god only knows how long, no real scary corrosion but definitely mild staining. I would think environment has alot to do with that (humid damp, etc)
gene
 
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All good information,thanks fells's.
The Sliver gets rust on it just from carrying it daily,and I wipe it dorwn with Break Free CLP every day.The sheath has also started to etch the silver bolsters.Only thing Ive found to stop it is coat the knife with grease which is not practical when Im using/wearing it.
Most of my knives are stored out of the sheath,but for some they are stored in the sheath.I will stop that habit.I will also call Bark River and inquire about a new sheath.
 
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