Does Isopropyl alcohol damage Emerson knives?

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xephyrind

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Oct 29, 2014
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I got a Emerson Mini-Commander 2013, and I accidentally dropped it in a bottled filled with 90% isopropyl alcohol. Now the question comes to mind... Did I just mess up or damaged my knife? I couldn't find any info online on material corrosion/damage on G-10 and nylatron with the aforementioned alcohol.... I know stainless steel and Teflon material are fine....
 
Just rinse it out and lube...Unless a solvent dissolves your knife before you can rinse it out, there isn't a problem there.
 
... Just feels stiff cuz alcohol washed off most of the oil i originally put on there. after relubing it, it was fine. I was just wondering if I made my G-10 washers smaller as in melted some of that away or made my G-10 handle deform due to plastic melted...
 
I used IPA as a cutting lubricant at work for years (aerospace shop, only thing we could use for contamination reasons), and it should not melt or deform G10. The steel (whatever kind it is) should also be fine, but as you stated the oil/lubricant in your knife is gone because it is a solvent, but a fairly mild one compared to acetone or hexanes.
 
xephyrind said:
Since I saw some light colored residue on the G-10 immediately after alcohol dried off...
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G10 does show some "white stuff" if it dries out. The alcohol probably did that but shouldn't damage or even weaken it. Just spray a little oil on the G10, that will take care of the white stuff. You're good to go. :D
 
Danketch said:
I used IPA as a cutting lubricant at work for years (aerospace shop, only thing we could use for contamination reasons), and it should not melt or deform G10. The steel (whatever kind it is) should also be fine, but as you stated the oil/lubricant in your knife is gone because it is a solvent, but a fairly mild one compared to acetone or hexanes.
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Thank you Danketch. Are Nylatrons okay with isopropyl alcohol also?
 
Washers and all other part will be fine, just a bit cleaner than before. New oil and some handling and it will be back to normal.
 
I don't think isopropyl will damage anything in your knife. I've used it, along with a toothbrush, for years to clean stuff off of and sanitize blades. It's run down into the washers, gotten on various scales, etc. with no discernible damage. I wouldn't sweat it. Just replace any lube that it's washed away and it should be fine.
 
G. Scott H. said:
I don't think isopropyl will damage anything in your knife. I've used it, along with a toothbrush, for years to clean stuff off of and sanitize blades. It's run down into the washers, gotten on various scales, etc. with no discernible damage. I wouldn't sweat it. Just replace any lube that it's washed away and it should be fine.
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The OP did say that his IPA was 90 percent pure.
 
90% pure still isn't pharmaceutical grade, it will remove a lot of the oil, aside from that it should have harmed nothing. Even the pharmaceutical grade stuff (98% pure or better) will not harm teflon bushings etc. Just put some oil on it and keep the Iso handy for cleaning.

Now if you'd dropped it in Xylene or Toluene, might be a different story...
 
I use 91% IPA frequently on knives; usually to flush out residual water after washing folding knives. Won't damage G10 at all, but might 'lighten' the color a bit, as has been mentioned.

The only material on knives that I've seen an issue with, when using IPA, is the plastic 'cellidor' scales on Victorinox SAKs. They can soften a bit after exposure to alcohol, and/or warp or shrink. I found this out when I used some IPA to wipe one of mine down, and my thumb left a neatly embossed print on the softened plastic. Good news was, all I had to do to remove that print was to wipe it with the IPA one more time and leave it to dry, after which the plastic hardens up again. I suspect the 70% IPA would likely do the same thing on the Vic scales; maybe not quite so quickly.


David
 
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Good info, David. Thanks. :thumbup: I also don't think concentration is too much of an issue. I've used both the 70% and 91% over the years without troubles.
 
It will destroy cellulose and take the sheen off of ironwood. But I think your emerson will be fine with a drop of mineral oil or frog lube in the action.
 
It's not residue. The base material has been cleaned of all oils-leaving the whitish surface. Just oil/wax/use/polish it.
 
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