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- Jan 20, 2004
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I figured I'd post this in a new topic so that people could get the info more readily. The idea of this post is that mustard creates a nice patina on carbon steel blades, inhibiting rust and looking... interesting, sometimes even neat 
The patina can wear off, but it's decently durable, safe to prep food with, and readily replaceable. Are you ready for the instructions? Here we go.
Necessary materials:
-sandpaper. Grit size needed is explained in the instructions below. I greatly prefer the sanding action of aluminum oxide paper.
- mustard of any type. I explain the difference in mustard selection below.
- steel wool. 0-0000 gauge, whichever you can get most readily. You'll only need a pad or two.
-the knife that you're going to patina
1) The blade must be clean and free from other coatings. If it already has a coat, the purpose of the mustard is negated. I've never tried to patina a buffed, shiny blade, but I have a feeling that it wouldn't work too well; the buffed surface would repel the mustard, greatly reducing its effectiveness.
2) Using your hands or a small stick, such as a ruler, rub the knife blade with sandpaper to prep the steel's surface. Wayne Goddard recommends leaving the surface with a 400-grit finish before patina. Thus far, that has worked fine for me. If your knife has a higher-grit finish, such as 800 or 1,000, give it a light rub with some 600 grit wet/dry sandpaper.
a. sand the blade in one direction, going from ricasso/handle to the tip. Sand somewhat lightly until the blade is free of surface uncleanliness. If you went in one direction, your scratch marks should be fairly uniform. That actually doesn't matter too much, though. They'll be covered by the patina.
b. as Goddard recommends, I like to give a swirling effect to the blade before patina, by running the sandpaper in circular motions all over the blade, once I've given it the initial, uni-directional sanding. The blade looks neat and the patina has a greater visual depth to it.
3) We're ready for the mustard! Rinse your blade with water and dry it on a clean towel. Pour yourself a quarter-sized blob of mustard on a small plate. From my experience, mustard type affects patina color. Plain, ol' yellow mustard seems to give the deepest blue-gray coloring. Brown mustard or horseradish mustard gives a lighter coloration. I prefer the deeper hues.
4) Lay your knife on one side and, using your finger tip, lightly blot a small amount of mustard on the blade. Keep on blotting small bumps of mustard on the steel until you've covered most all the blade. Now, lightly connect the bumps with a thin smearing of mustard so the whole blade is coated. I've had best success with this technique. Wayne Goddard states that he doesn't like to let the blobs touch. Just remember - if you're not satisfied with the end product, you simply repeat the sanding and mustard applications for a new outcome.
5) Turn the knife to its other side and cover it with small mustard blots. Coat the spine of the blade, up to the handle, with mustard blots. This isn't an exact science, so don't worry too much if it looks messy - it IS messy
6) Place the knife in a safe location and let it sit for the next 6-8 hours. Arrange the knife so that neither side of the blade is flat against any surface. Allowing the mustard to smear at this early stage will undue the interesting, mottles effect that the blots will give it. Over the course of time, the mustard will turn black - this is normal. It will also be fairly odiferous - this is also normal
7) After the waiting time has elapsed, wash the mustard off with sink water and wipe it dry with a towel. Then, using fine steel wool (0-0000 gauge), scrub down the blade. This will knock off any weak patina. Don't worry if nothing comes off, that means the patina set well. After steel-wooling the blade, give it a quick rinse and dry to remove any steel wool filaments.
8) Blot the blade sides and spine with mustard again. This time, make sure to blot directly over the less-patinad areas. This will help give the blade a thorough rust resistance.
9) Let the knife sit for another 6-8 hour period. Letting it sit longer won't harm the knife, although a bit of surface rust may form at the handle/blade juncture. If this happens, lightly wipe it off with some finer grit sandpaper after you've finished the patina.
10) Repeat the wash/steel wool cycle (step #7).
11) Repeat the mustard blotting and drying cycle for a 3rd and probably final time.
12) Repeat the wash/steel wool cycle for a third and probably final time.
At this point, you are finished. I've yet to see a patina improve with a 4th patina cycle. However, if you want to give it a shot, go for it! If you're simply not happy with the outcome, you can always repeat the procedure.
Keep in mind that this patina will come off over time. I've found that tight-fitting Kydex sheaths will eventually take the patina down. I don't find this to be a major cause for concern. The blade coating can always be touched up, or even completely redone, with more mustard.
Have fun with the process and with learning a new way to care for your knife. And, of course, keep us informed, preferably with pics, of your efforts :thumbup:
Trout aka Zack
The patina can wear off, but it's decently durable, safe to prep food with, and readily replaceable. Are you ready for the instructions? Here we go.Necessary materials:
-sandpaper. Grit size needed is explained in the instructions below. I greatly prefer the sanding action of aluminum oxide paper.
- mustard of any type. I explain the difference in mustard selection below.
- steel wool. 0-0000 gauge, whichever you can get most readily. You'll only need a pad or two.
-the knife that you're going to patina
1) The blade must be clean and free from other coatings. If it already has a coat, the purpose of the mustard is negated. I've never tried to patina a buffed, shiny blade, but I have a feeling that it wouldn't work too well; the buffed surface would repel the mustard, greatly reducing its effectiveness.
2) Using your hands or a small stick, such as a ruler, rub the knife blade with sandpaper to prep the steel's surface. Wayne Goddard recommends leaving the surface with a 400-grit finish before patina. Thus far, that has worked fine for me. If your knife has a higher-grit finish, such as 800 or 1,000, give it a light rub with some 600 grit wet/dry sandpaper.
a. sand the blade in one direction, going from ricasso/handle to the tip. Sand somewhat lightly until the blade is free of surface uncleanliness. If you went in one direction, your scratch marks should be fairly uniform. That actually doesn't matter too much, though. They'll be covered by the patina.
b. as Goddard recommends, I like to give a swirling effect to the blade before patina, by running the sandpaper in circular motions all over the blade, once I've given it the initial, uni-directional sanding. The blade looks neat and the patina has a greater visual depth to it.
3) We're ready for the mustard! Rinse your blade with water and dry it on a clean towel. Pour yourself a quarter-sized blob of mustard on a small plate. From my experience, mustard type affects patina color. Plain, ol' yellow mustard seems to give the deepest blue-gray coloring. Brown mustard or horseradish mustard gives a lighter coloration. I prefer the deeper hues.
4) Lay your knife on one side and, using your finger tip, lightly blot a small amount of mustard on the blade. Keep on blotting small bumps of mustard on the steel until you've covered most all the blade. Now, lightly connect the bumps with a thin smearing of mustard so the whole blade is coated. I've had best success with this technique. Wayne Goddard states that he doesn't like to let the blobs touch. Just remember - if you're not satisfied with the end product, you simply repeat the sanding and mustard applications for a new outcome.
5) Turn the knife to its other side and cover it with small mustard blots. Coat the spine of the blade, up to the handle, with mustard blots. This isn't an exact science, so don't worry too much if it looks messy - it IS messy
6) Place the knife in a safe location and let it sit for the next 6-8 hours. Arrange the knife so that neither side of the blade is flat against any surface. Allowing the mustard to smear at this early stage will undue the interesting, mottles effect that the blots will give it. Over the course of time, the mustard will turn black - this is normal. It will also be fairly odiferous - this is also normal
7) After the waiting time has elapsed, wash the mustard off with sink water and wipe it dry with a towel. Then, using fine steel wool (0-0000 gauge), scrub down the blade. This will knock off any weak patina. Don't worry if nothing comes off, that means the patina set well. After steel-wooling the blade, give it a quick rinse and dry to remove any steel wool filaments.
8) Blot the blade sides and spine with mustard again. This time, make sure to blot directly over the less-patinad areas. This will help give the blade a thorough rust resistance.
9) Let the knife sit for another 6-8 hour period. Letting it sit longer won't harm the knife, although a bit of surface rust may form at the handle/blade juncture. If this happens, lightly wipe it off with some finer grit sandpaper after you've finished the patina.
10) Repeat the wash/steel wool cycle (step #7).
11) Repeat the mustard blotting and drying cycle for a 3rd and probably final time.
12) Repeat the wash/steel wool cycle for a third and probably final time.
At this point, you are finished. I've yet to see a patina improve with a 4th patina cycle. However, if you want to give it a shot, go for it! If you're simply not happy with the outcome, you can always repeat the procedure.
Keep in mind that this patina will come off over time. I've found that tight-fitting Kydex sheaths will eventually take the patina down. I don't find this to be a major cause for concern. The blade coating can always be touched up, or even completely redone, with more mustard.
Have fun with the process and with learning a new way to care for your knife. And, of course, keep us informed, preferably with pics, of your efforts :thumbup:
Trout aka Zack
