Goes dull in pocket

My Greco Persian in A2 seems to get dull to the touch in my pocket sheath but then, when I use it, it seens to resharpen itself.
I have wondered if it develops some sort of crystalline "fuzz", and if the abrasion of using it gets it back down to real metal.
I also notice that if I wipe it down with a good corrosion preventative once a week it stays sharper.

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Luke 22:36, John 18:6-11, Freedom

 
Just FYI, there are at least 2 very different quality levels of Gerber LST's.

The "older" ones are much better quality. The "newer" ones (I think they were produced after Fiskars bought Gerber) are poor quality, IMHO.

You can tell the difference because the older ones have a one piece Zytel handle and a mirror polished blade. The newer ones have a three piece Zytel handle and a rough bead blasted blade. I think all of the newer ones came with a really cheap pocket clip too.

From my experience, the steel on the older ones is decent but not great. The steel (as well as the fit & finish) on the newer ones is pretty damn poor. It's really too bad because the LST _was_ a great knife.

Bernie

 
Marine Tuff Cloth is a miracle worker in this area folks.
I make some of my project knives from files and as you all know, a file will rust while you look at it, but, the Tuff Cloth keeps them corrosion free even here in Fla.
I've found this edge loss problem to be most prevelant on cheaper knives with cheap steel hardened in the low 50's as some have already mentioned before. The Marine Tuff Cloth would work in these problem areas as well I would think.
Good luck folks!

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If a person with multiple personalities threatens suicide, is that considered a hostage situation?

 
Yup, just coat it with Tuf Cloth, and check on it periodically and you should be good, until it's used.

Tool steel is predictable, so you just need to give it the proper care and feeding if you want it to last.

Spark

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Kevin Jon Schlossberg
SysOp and Administrator for BladeForums.com

Insert witty quip here
 
More than a couple of people have said that they've had problems with the Tuff cloth so it may not work with everyone. A potential problem with any of the continual use cloth type of applicators is that if one is more 'corrosive' than usual, some people are as it may disqualify one from some types of metal work, the cloth just gets dirtier and dirtier with use and may not neutralize the buildup.
 
I've been bothered by the same phenomenon with some of the knives mentioned. Since most of them are stainless I figured I was imagining things. Maybe I just sharpened the blades till I convinced byself that they were sharper than they really were. I seem to see the problem on knives that are just sitting in a drawer as well.

Straight razors are subject to a phenomenon called edge-growth. This is some surface effect at the very edge. The solution for this effect is to strop the razors just before use. It would be interesting if people who are having a non-use dulling problem with their edges would see if a little stropping on leather corrected the problem. Of course straight razors are carbon steel and would seem likelier to have oxidization effects and also are more responsive to stropping.
 
Just as nature abores a vacuum, nature abores a sharp edge. If you break a piece of glass, the edge can be quite sharp. Come back in a few days and it is less sharp. Glass is a special case because glass, as solid as the piece of glass most of you are looking at right now may seem, glass is a liquid. It's just a very, very, very thick liquid. Glass never actually hardens. So, the liquid actually flows and th edge smooths out.

Steel is a true solid. But, even solids have motion going on in them at the atomic level. This motion causes an edge to go dull over time. This is why very old knives never seem to be exactly shaving sharp, even if they're in mint condition.

As was mentioned, corrosion and oxidation are another problem that causes dulling. The actual cutting edge of a sharp blade is only a few atoms thick. Of those few atoms oxidize and form a compound that isn't as strong as steel, the edge will crumble the first time it hits something. Of course, you won't see this nor see the bits of your edge on the floor because we're talking about stuff you'd need an electron microscope to see.



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Chuck
Balisongs -- because it don't mean a thing if it ain't got that swing!
http://www.4cs.net/~gollnick
 
Hi, I must be living in some crack in the knife-continium as I reguarly put dull knives on my dresser and the next morning they are razorsharp
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it must have something to do with the steel atoms chosing to realign themselves because they fear getting realigned by my Lansky Diamond stones and my grandfathers leather strop.
It's less fun this way but you can't have everything but sharp blades are a good start
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Cheers, Bagheera

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Somebody heard about a myth in computers? A particle "Bogon" puts damage on a computer, and Bogon is radiated by every substance, especially non-computer guys.

Why cannot the same thing happen to knives? A knife is vulnerable to a specific particles? YOU, a knife guy can absorb some of the particles if you are close to your knife, but if your knife is away from you, close to a non-knifer, it would soon get quite dull!

Keep it, carry it, love it! Love is an antidote for the radiation. Not to say sharpning also.


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\(^o^)/ Mizutani Satoshi \(^o^)/
 
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