Damascus washes off??!!

[Prince of Peace]

Why didn't anyone ever say that Damascus washes off! I would have never polished my blades with cleaner! I thought I was doing something good for them polisihing them with Maas creme.
Then much to my chagrin when I had finished polishing off the last of the creme
the color and clarity of my damascus steel blades was almost gone!

Just a faint remainder of what it used to be! Why does noone ever talk about that fact? Such a crime. All that beautiful work and MONEY washes off!!!

Dumb.

 

[Daniel Koster]

Maas creme is a polishing compound - made to remove tarnish/rust/etc.

Damascus steel is reveled best by etching it...in other words, tarnishing it....speed-rusting it...etc.

The good news is that you can reveal it again yourself. The bad news is, it's very tedious.

If you're interested, there are plenty of folks here who can guide you through re-etching the blade.

 

[rebeltf]

Sorry for laughing but that is pretty funny

The good news is that you can reveal it again yourself.

What Daniel said.

Thankfully what you did is not irreversible , do some searching on here and you'll find plenty of info , let us know your progress.

 

[Prince of Peace]

Where should I check.. perhaps the makers forum? I bought my last blade from a maker here.
Feeling dumb, but better...
Daddy

 

[Gollnick]

Damascus consists of usually two types of steel. If you see raw Damascus, it can be hard to see the pattern at all. One of the steels is often high-carbon and the other high nickel. The contrast in Damascus comes from oxidation of the carbon steel usually accomplished by soaking the blade in a mild acid solution (lemon juice is sometimes literally used).

Chemical polishes like Maas remove metal oxide chemically.

To restore your pattern, the blade must be re-etched. This is a bit tricky since different types of Damascus respond best to different treatments. It's best to contact either the maker of the knife or the steel to find out how best to re-etch your blade.

 

[stevenbusch]

I sent an email to you when I got your email. As everyone has said this is "REAL" damascus of 1095 and 15n20. It is still damascus just can't see the pattern and the background black was eliminated. I will re-etch and send back the same day....just keep it wiped off with a light coating of oil in the future. If you want to I can buff if the balck background is not desired.

Here is a picture of the knife for anyone interested. Not the best photo though.

Steve Busch
www.buschcustomknives.blademakers.com