HOW TO: Knife Collection Maintenance

A couple of you mentioned keeping a glass of water in the cabinet to keep ivory from cracking. But what about the blades, doesn't that induce rust? Isn't that why people put dissecants and dehumidifiers in safes? :confused:
 
yitz said:
A couple of you mentioned keeping a glass of water in the cabinet to keep ivory from cracking. But what about the blades, doesn't that induce rust? Isn't that why people put dissecants and dehumidifiers in safes? :confused:
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Never had a speck of rust yet. As I have said, I do keep the blades oiled.
 
Bob, not sure if any maintenance is required for sheephorn.
Don't think a little oil would hurt, if for no other reason than to give it a subtle sheen. It's a very durable material.

I have had two Fisk pieces with ramhorn for several years now and I have done no maintenance to speak of and they look as good as the day the handle was made.

Perhaps David or Ed will weigh in with more information.
 
Sheephorn will shrink in dry climates so it requires some humidification. Starkman1, looks like your live in Arkansas so outdoor humidity is probably perfect. However, indoors with forced air heat in the winter and AC in the summer, humidity could be much lower. If the sheephorn handle has not shrunk then periodic oil or wax should keep it looking good. If it has already shrunk a bit as has happened to some of my knife handles out here in Colorado, then I try to 're-hydrate' them as I described above in a previous post, then apply oil or wax to prevent or at least slow the drying out process. Out here, oil/wax treatment after re-hydration is not enough to combat the dryness so I try to bump up the humidity a bit in the areas where I keep my knives, especially during winter.
 
**Advice needed**

Now, I have camelia oil but am uncertain if I should leave it on or not. I keep some folders in a wooden Tomway case on my desk. If I oil them it will all rub off onto the felt in the case. I have others I keep in Bill's Custom Cases. Do I leave oil on the knives and have it rub off or just keep them dry? My main concern is the folders in the Tomway case which I am displaying. I also have the regular tough cloth. Can that hurt carbon damascus or ivory? Hows it compare to camelia? I wouldn't personally keep knives around a glass of water because I have had a few knives in the past form a little of that brown color in a few spots, so i'd rather keep them dry and only oil if necessary.

I have chamois to wipe them down after handling but that often leaves some lint of the knives. Where can I find the best cloth to use for wipe downs after handling? Also I tend to have better luck with my knives when I have NOT oiled them for a while and just kept them dry, strange huh?

If you go to my collection link you will see the knives I am talking about.
 
jonathan brand said:
**Advice needed**

Now, I have camelia oil but am uncertain if I should leave it on or not. I keep some folders in a wooden Tomway case on my desk. If I oil them it will all rub off onto the felt in the case. I have others I keep in Bill's Custom Cases. Do I leave oil on the knives and have it rub off or just keep them dry? My main concern is the folders in the Tomway case which I am displaying. I also have the regular tough cloth. Can that hurt carbon damascus or ivory? Hows it compare to camelia? I wouldn't personally keep knives around a glass of water because I have had a few knives in the past form a little of that brown color in a few spots, so i'd rather keep them dry and only oil if necessary.

I have chamois to wipe them down after handling but that often leaves some lint of the knives. Where can I find the best cloth to use for wipe downs after handling? Also I tend to have better luck with my knives when I have NOT oiled them for a while and just kept them dry, strange huh?

If you go to my collection link you will see the knives I am talking about.
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Most of your knives are folders, so I assume you store/display them in the open position?
I apply a drop (a very little goes a long way) then spread it using my finger until wiping most of it off, only leaving a thin film for protection. If you are leaving residue on felt or case liner you are probably applying too much. I apply just enough to give protection and leave a little sheen on the blade.

I find washed white tee shirt cotton to be very good for cleaning/polishing the entire knife.
 
how about that rough feeling you get when applying cloth to some damascus that is not polished? Do you get lint stuck to your blades and can that wear down the finish?
 
I have had a couple knives where you can still feel the pattern burs and in that case I have just used my finger with a little windex to clean them.
IMO, damascus should be polished smooth by the maker to remove these rough spots prior to delivery.
That's on my list of things that bother me along with adhesive/compound residue and fine scratches on a new knife.

I have found that certain oils left on a damascus blade seem to promote "good" oxidation and actually darken the blade giving more definition of pattern and creating a more desirable look.
Has anyone else noticed this, and what causes it?
 
I used to keep my some of my knives coated in mineral oil and sandwiched between wax paper. Some of the knives got dark spots and a couple got orange rust. Then I switched to applying the mineral oil with my finger because I think more of it gets on the blade (than when using a cloth). I also bought high grade wool felt to replace the wax paper. It's supposed to have wicking properties. I use SnoSeal on my leather sheaths.
 
AF, I also apply the oil with my finger. That way you can get a very thin even coat.
Seems by applying with a cloth much of the oil would soak into the cloth rather than the blade leaving un-even coverage.
I display all my knives so any problem can be seen and addressed early on.
Must be a horrible surprise to get one of your knives out to enjoy only to fine rust or spots.
 
Thanks for the advice fellas. Here's another question. For those of you that soak stag/ivory in mineral oil, just exactly how do you do this? Do you pour oil in a container and set the handle in it, resting the knife on the guard, or wrap the handle in an oil soaked rag?
Thanks,
Bob
 
Any thoughts on sinking (immersing) stag,horn,bone,ivory,fossil ivory handled knives in tub of camellia or mineral oil, long term.

Doug
 
Starkman1 said:
Thanks for the advice fellas. Here's another question. For those of you that soak stag/ivory in mineral oil, just exactly how do you do this? Do you pour oil in a container and set the handle in it, resting the knife on the guard, or wrap the handle in an oil soaked rag?
Thanks,
Bob
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I don't soak mine Bob. Just wipe it on and after a couple days just wipe off any access. Ivory will draw it in.
 
Starkman1 said:
Thanks for the advice fellas. Here's another question. For those of you that soak stag/ivory in mineral oil, just exactly how do you do this? Do you pour oil in a container and set the handle in it, resting the knife on the guard, or wrap the handle in an oil soaked rag?
Thanks,
Bob
Click to expand...

I use an old plastic ice-cream container about 3/4 full with mineral oil. I fully immerse the handle and let it sit for 24 hrs, then remove and wipe away the excess oil. I do this twice per year.

Roger
 
I have a knife that the stag on a hidden tang knife pulled away from the pommel by about 1/16" give or take.

Has anyone had any luck in reversing a situation like that?

Ironically, I had the knife for about 5 years and checked on it every few months and never a problem. Then last time I checked...I have the aforementioned problem:(

Peter
 
peterinct, I had a similar problem and was amazed how well the 24 hour mineral oil soak worked.
FWIW I had stag slabs pull away from the tang on the butt of a knife.

ETA: Thanx for all the good tips and making this a stickey :D
 
Mineral oil and Renaissance wax for stag and ivory and wood and stainless, Eezox for rustable metal.
A Google for Eezox will get you lots of hits on it's properties as a rust preventer--hint: it's always in the top one or two and steel will stay rust-free even after spraying with salt water! ps-it smells a bit on application.
Greg
 
I've seen a couple of posts re fingerprints on carbon, but I'm having that problem on 2 knives with D-2. One is a fine old custom that I shouldn't use as an EDC, but do anyways. So I expect it to get beat up a bit (nicks and scratches), but didn't really expect any issues with the steel. It's mainly the spine. I've usually been able to buff stuff like this out, but can't seem to do it on these. Any thoughts? It almost happened overnight.
 
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