How do you store your knives?

D

drjones

Joined
Sep 6, 2000
Messages
913
Hi. I'm still new to knife collecting, but you guys with more extensive collections; where and how do you store your knives? (When not in use, of course) Do you keep them in a safe, in a drawer, what?
I'm trying to come up with ideas to keep mine dust-free.

Thanks
Strati
 
In several Plano fishing tackle boxes, they're cheap(?), adaptable, and mostly cuz no one pays to much attention to them, also most of them are see-thru, and lockable.

If you do a search on the forum you'll find about 3 pages of assorted,(a sordid) opinions.
 
I hide my knives from my wife. I have various secret hiding places around the house. I put each knife in an old sock to help protect them from scratches, etc.
 
Aren't storing and hiding two different things? I hide my emotions, I don't think I could store them.;)
 
I've stored my knives for years using this method.......

Folders.....
after use clean , lighty oil , wrap in plastic kitchen wrap then
store in sheath if knife has one.

Straight blades.......
clean, lightly oil, then store in home made cardboard sheath next to
the knifes sheath.

I store all my knives in a sturdy PLAINLY MARKED (for saftey)
sturdy wood or carboard box on the top shelf of my closet all warm
and dry. If you have a safe that's OK just get them prepped right first.
 
There are two goals to your question:

First, to keep you valuable knives secure. Second, to keep the in good condition.

For security, nothing beats a bank deposit box.

Failing that, you need a real security safe in your house. Keep in mind that there is a huge difference between a security safe and a fire-resistant container. Fire resistant containers are intended primarily to protect paper business records from fire. Some fire-resistant containers resemble safes and are secure enough to keep out children and spouses taking inventory. But, they are certainly not security safes. Most are, if nothing else, light enough to be picked up and simply taken away intact to be opened at a "more convenient" location. Use the search feature here at bladeforums.com to uncover several past threads on safes.

Also, search on "insurance" to read some good discussions about insurance coverage for collections.

Keeping your knives in good condition is another matter altogether. I prefer to store mine in Bill's Custom cases (you can get 'em from bladeart.com among other places). Bill's cases are the best I've seen. Be very wary of cases with foam interiors. Foams can slowly release chemicals that can coat your knives (you've seen this same sort of film buildup thing on the inside of the windows of your car). Also, foams can break down chemically over time. Finally, foams can trap moisture near your knives. Beware of storage pouches made of plastic materials. Plastics always contain chemicals that can migrate out over time and plastics also trap moisture. Beware of leather. Leathers are also made with dyes and chemicals that can migrate out over time. And beware of cloth, especially velvet and felt. These can also contain dyes that can, over time, stain your knives. (I was once shown a wonderful knife with genuine ivory inserts. It was in perfect condition until you turned it over and saw that the ivory on the other side was stained pink. The owner had left it for years sitting in a display case lined with red felt. The dye from the felt had stained the ivory. Ruined. What a pitty.) Bill has carefully selected the materials that line his cases to avoid all of these problems.

The best way to protect collectible knives from rust and the environment is to use the same product used by virtually every major museum in the world including the British Museum, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Museum of Modern Art, and the White House, Renaissance Wax. Do a search here on bf.c and also a general web search and get yourself some.
 
Wow, I'm bummed about the foam.
I made up some nice boxes, acutally dressed up some keyboard boxes.
They were the right size and had that nifty foam liner.

I guess I have to rethink my storage system...
And I just got a bunce of zip drive boxes too :(
 
I usually keep the original package for my valuable ones. I know someone who has a plastic forming shop, so I get free custom formed holders to put in the boxes. (I usually try to get the knives I buy with clamshell boxes, too) I have a 5.1 speaker system on my comp...5 small and one large, and another large. the second large one is actually fake, with fiberboard around a small safe which can hold about 6 (six) knives in their boxes.:D

Regards,

Steve
 
I keep knives in storage containers. I am fortunate enough to have a climate stable room in my house that is just for my collection.
 
I got a Sentry safe for just over $400.00. It's 18"W x 16"D x 59" tall and fits in a closet under the clothes hanging bar. It has a 1/4 thick door with interior hinges and a 3/16" chassis with six 1" bolts that secure the door when locked. If the lock is smashed off, the locking bolts are frozen in place. It is bolted down from the inside into my concrete floor with a couple 1500LB pull anchor bolts.

There are certainly better safes and ones with better penetration resistance and fire ratings, but for most purposes this thing is fine. This is not a cheesy sheet metal gun locker, but a real safe. For the cost of a single custom folder, you can secure you're whole collection from theft. You can also put a few long guns if you have them, several pistols, all your important papers (insurance policies, deeds etc), back ups of your computer data and in my case a Confederate officer's sword. I have a seperate shelf in mine for my knife collection. Think of this as the harbor Freight version of a safe. Functional, but not too expensive and made offshore.

All that protection for only a few hundred bucks. I don't know why everyone doesn't have one. Imagine how bad you'd feel if all your knives disappeared or how you'd feel if one of your guns was stolen and used to harm someone? The piece of mind alone is worth the money.

For about a grand (or the price of a couple customs) you can get an American made safe that holds over twice as much, has a much tougher shell (about an inch of various multi layer armor & fire insulation) and a group two lock. Group two locks are designed so that even most locksmiths couldn't open it. With a few of the 2500LB pull rated anchors from the inside and a 1200 degree for 30 minute fire rating, a safe in this class will hold eight or more rifles and a bunch of other stuff.

I bought mine from Dean Safe and Security as they are close by and have good pricing. Their website; deansafe.com has a great explanation about all the different levels of security available.

I've got my eye on a Canon for around a grand, but the Fort Knox for $3500 (same size as the 1K Canon) is really something to drool over. Both of these will also fit in an average closet without cutting.

Get a safe and keep your stuff under your control! (and sleep better)

Just my opinion,

jmx

PS for about $50.00 you can add an electric "Dry Rod" that mounts in the safe to combat humidity problems.
 
A gun safe is about the best bet. I have a 5'x3'x2' gun safe that I keep my guns in the left half and the top portion. The right half has lexan shelves I made, with a 40 watt light on the bottom of the safe. The light keeps the safe dry and 80f constant. The light shines up through the shelves, highlighting the knives. This is for my folders and small fixed blades. Over the safe I made a special slotted shelf about 2'x4' with slots about 1/2 wide. My large knives and swords hang by their handles in these slots, edge down and in from the front. Then a panel covers the whole item when I am gone from home. It was a fun project and holds a whole lot of edged items in a fairly small space.
 
Gunsafe..., Bill's Cases... :)


"Hunters seek what they [WANT].., Seekers hunt what they [NEED]"
 
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