Every collection starts with the first knife. How do I care for it?

H

Hungry Goldfish

Joined
Jul 9, 2000
Messages
18
Hello,

I recently purchased my first knife, a CRKT M16-13Z. I am very happy with it. It is lightweight, the blade about 3.5", and a very attractive design. I especially like the Carson Flipper, a projection out the side of the knife that you push to help the blade deploy.

This Flipper is so effective that, when combined with the slightest wrist movement, allows the knife to open completely and with great speed. I have never used a switchblade before, but have seen them deployed (both OTF and the other style) and I believe my knife with the Carson Flipper takes an insignificant amount of extra time to deploy the blade as compared to the automatics.

The price was excellent. But the company I purchased it from was even better. I paid $39 for it, and ordered from Marshman Brothers Knife and Tool. I would recommend ordering from them most highly. When my order was taken, I was informed that he would have to order my knife from the manufacture as he was out of stock of my design. Well, his supplier was slow in getting him the knife, so he sent it to me express. Express. He spent $11 to send me my $39 knife express! And apologized for the delay! I will definitely order the other G16 models in the future, and will buy from Marshman again.

Because I think the Carson Flipper is so effective, I am surprised the M16's from CRKT don't get more attention on these forums. The price is great, the Flipper is wonderful, and the looks are attractive. Why are not more people interested in discussing these knives?

I have had the knife for several weeks now, and it needs cleaning. I can discern much dust inside. Should I take it apart and wipe the dust away? Or should I immerse it in water? After cleaning, should I oil it? What is Tuf-Cloth? I know almost nothing about knife cleaning and care, and would really appreciate some help.

In a few more weeks, it may need sharpening. I am equally at a loss as to sharpening as I am to cleaning. Should I use stones? Those ceramic rods? And how do I keep a constant angle during sharpening? My knife has a partially serrated edge.
 
Welcome to the forums. All your questions will be answered if you stick around long enough.

Tuff-Cloth is a cloth that has mineral spirits and some "good stuff" in it to coat and protect the blade. Even after the mineral spirits evaporate or rub off, the "good stuff" is still protecting your blade. Maybe also some Tuff Glide to lube your pivot area, and a Spyderco Sharpmaker for sharpening tasks.

Again, all your questions will be answered, I just hope I'm giving you a decent start.

~Mitch
 
Welcome to the forums and congratulations on your first knife.

Your new knife does not need alot of maintenance. One of the biggest mistakes we all make is to over sharpen our knives. Just lubricate the knife every-so-often, use a ceramic stick to touch it up when it starts to get dull, and use a stone when the ceramic stick fails to give you the preformance you want.

p.s. just a little lubrication goes a long way. You really don't want petroleum oils in your food or on your clothes so go light on this. Too much oil will attract grit and actually accelerate wear on the knife.
 
A small can of compressed air works wonders on getting stuff dislodged, as well as just blowing away dust. Always remember to blow or use water to flush out all debris before going in with the corner of a rag or anything..you'll scratch the inside of the liners! And taking your knife apart shouldn't be neccessary if you clean it regularly, besides, it might void your warranty.

Welcome to the forums and enjoy your new knife! Happy cleaning, rubbing, lubing, etc
smile.gif


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You could put nacho cheese sauce on it...
 
Hungry Goldfish,

Welcome to the forums, and congradulations on your first knife. It is one hell of a good knife. I agree, the Carson flipper is very cool.

On with the answers:

CLEANING: clean your knife often so there is little chance of "build up". For the lint, hard blowing (
smile.gif
) should work fine. Q-tips also do wonders for this. You can remove as much cotton as necessary to fit the small spaces. After eac use, remove all debris from the blade, such as tape resedue and such. Wipe the blade with a cloth or even your shirt. If the knife is very dirty, flushing with water is fine as long as you get the knife dry. You can even use a hairdryer. As far as oil goes, it might depend where you live. For instance, I live in upstate NY, I am nt very close to the water. I never use any type of coating or lube, and my knives NEVER rust. The key is keeping them clean and dry. If you do want a coating, I hear that "Marine Tuff-Cloth" works wonders. Also, just to have handy I would get a good metal cleaner/polish. Flitz or Metal-Glo are good.

SHARPENING:Once again, touch up your knife often. Do not wait until it is "dull" to sharpen it. I would touch up the blade with a Butchers Steel after every couple of uses. Sometimes all a knife needs is to have the edges re-aligned. Sharpen your knife when it loses it's "Bite". As soon as you feel that it is even slightly dulling, touch it up. A touch up job should only take a few swipes on a good sharpener. I would HIGHLY recommend that you get the "Spyderco 204 Sharpmaker" for sharpening. It is a great system for the novice, and is designed to sharpen serrations also.

Good luck and enjoy this wonderful new adventure you are now partaking in
smile.gif


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Louis Buccellato
http://www.themartialway.com
Knives, Weapons and equipment. Best prices anywhere.
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"only the paranoid will survive"
 
Thank you for the help. I have a question about the Spyderco sharpener. I lifted this off the Spyderco page describing the 204 sharpener.

...There is a 40 degree angle which produces a razor sharp edge on all cutlery and a new 30 degree angle has been added for back beveling and for sharpening thinner edges typical of high quality kitchen knives. Back beveling is ideal for thinning out thicker blade edges. There is also a 12 degree preset angle for sharpening scissors.

Does this mean that I only have a choice of these 3 angles? The 30 degrees might be what I want to use, but would like the option of 25 or 20. 12 degrees seems like it would produce too sharp of an edge that wouldn't stand up well.

 
Goldfish,

You are correct about the angles. Honestly though, don't let that stop you from getting it. If you do a search on sharpeners here on the forums, you will see how time and time again the Sharpmaker is highly recommended. It really is a GREAT system.

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Louis Buccellato
http://www.themartialway.com
Knives, Weapons and equipment. Best prices anywhere.
-------------

"only the paranoid will survive"
 
With the Sharpmaker, Remember that the angle listed is the inclusive angle between the two rods. So the 40 degree setting is actuall 20 degrees off the center of the blade as you sharpen and the 30 is 15. I have the Spyderco and a similar device from, I think, Cutiecut that has off center angles of 17, 20, 22, and 25 as well as a 12 degree scissor sharpener. Any thiner than these 15 to 20 angles on a utility knife would dull too quickly to be of much use.

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HG, get the 204, watch the video that comes with it, you can also lay the rods flat and make a bench stone out of them. It's a very versatile system, more than most of us will ever need.

Welcome aboard.

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"Will work 4 Knives!"
My PhotoPoint Site
 
For steeling, I'd reccomend a Raz-r-steel from www.razoredgesystems.com . I just got one and it's great, especially at 28.95 with shipping. They're great to deal with too; I requested USPS shipping rather than the standard UPS, and they did it. Then it came 2 days after I ordered it. 2 days!! I wasn't even waiting for it yet, and I'm not a very paitient person. That and a sharpmaker 204 should work wonders. That was a good choice for your first high-end knife too; I just recently got an aluminum handled version for my birthday. Mine doesn't have the flipper though
mad.gif
. No biggie though. Enjoy your knife, they're lots of fun to take care of when you're slightly deranged like all 7000+ of us
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I purchased the Sharpmaker 204 yesterday.

Thanks for the suggestions guys, I wouldn't have spent the $47 for it if not for your glowing recommendations.

HG
 
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