Help me restore an old custom. Patina???

[whateatsrabbits]

So for my 25th birthday my dad gave me, this knife his friend made for him. The makers mark says AA. Its a really nice knife but my dad left it in the sheath for years and it has got some Rust spots. I would like to just force a patina and make it look super old but good. I think its stainless though, because I would expect the whole thing to be rusted, Or is this carbon steel? What method of patina do you recommend? Or do you guys recommend I just polish it back up with some sand paper?

The smaller knife is actually my first attempt at knife making. I made it with a bench grinder and some files out of a piece of a leaf spring I found on the side of the highway.Thinking I should patina that at the same time.

 

[Bill DeShivs]

The knife is carbon steel.
You should buff the blade gently with 0000 steel wool. This will remove most of the rust. Then, soak the blade with WD 40 for a couple of days. Then wipe it down with a coarse cloth. Dry it thoroughly. Buff again with the steel wool if necessary.Don't "patina" the blade, unless the rust and pitting are really bad. Is the maker still around? If so, I would ask him to refinish the knife.

 

[Obsessed with Edges]

Definitely carbon steel.

After cleaning it up (such as described in Bill's post), a patina can essentially take care of itself in time. Simply using the knife will help. Slicing fruits & other foods will help it along (apples, citrus, pickles, tomatos, potatos, etc.). Just make sure to clean the blade within ~30 minutes or so, after using it. Use dish soap & hot water, maybe follow that with isopropyl alcohol to thoroughly dry the blade. If you use & clean the knife on a regular basis, there's not much need to worry about rust getting out of hand. There's not much need to be more 'forceful' than that, with a patina. The best patinas are those that come naturally anyway.

Don't store the knife in the sheath, if you can avoid it. The leather will trap & hold moisture, dirt, acids and anything else that causes rust.

 

[whateatsrabbits]

My dad was always telling me that he was going to have it refinished by rico(the maker, soon because he is getting real old). So the conscientious is to bring back the polished look? Of coarse I know not to store my knives in leather sheaths. It looks pretty deeply pitted in places, O well I guess I'll just get some steel wool. You ever light steel wool on fire, Its pretty cool.