-
The BladeForums.com 2024 Traditional Knife is available! Price is $250 ea (shipped within CONUS).
Order here: https://www.bladeforums.com/help/2024-traditional/
I hope Dan Koster wasn't...
- Thread starter SASSAS
- Start date
- Joined
- Oct 25, 2004
- Messages
- 3,178
If he was, he got me too. There are better products but in terms of bang for your buck, mineral oil probably can't be beaten.
I've found that buffing the handle with steel wool (and possibly some mineral spirits) gets rid of the factory-applied wax coating, when present, and leaves a fresh wood surface that absorbs the oil better.
I've found that buffing the handle with steel wool (and possibly some mineral spirits) gets rid of the factory-applied wax coating, when present, and leaves a fresh wood surface that absorbs the oil better.
- Joined
- Oct 25, 2004
- Messages
- 3,178
I wouldn't recommend CLP for handles but it's good for the blades and excellent as a lubricant when you're busting rust off with steel wool or fine sandpaper. (Some folks say it works on firearms too, but what do they know?)
AA, I believe it's the alcohol in Ballistol that makes you cough. I get the same sensation when I breathe it in. (Any Ballistolicians out there are free to contradict me on this point...that's just my theory.)
AA, I believe it's the alcohol in Ballistol that makes you cough. I get the same sensation when I breathe it in. (Any Ballistolicians out there are free to contradict me on this point...that's just my theory.)
- Joined
- Aug 16, 2005
- Messages
- 616
I was wondering...CLP did some funny things to the color of unvarnished wood on my WASR-10. I'm thinking it's a mite toxic for my taste on a blade...though I've never actually read the package. May be just that I'm used to it coming with a ton of black gunk off a bolt.
I have a Ballistol order in, but I wanted to get these two in ASAP as they already had splits and I didn't want them to stay dry.
So far, I've done minimalist preservation. Just making sure to thoroughly wipe them down with a t-shirt to degunk them, then rubbing the metal with a silicone rod and reel cloth - after which they are wicked shiny if nothing else.
Next up is some hooflex...
I have a Ballistol order in, but I wanted to get these two in ASAP as they already had splits and I didn't want them to stay dry.
So far, I've done minimalist preservation. Just making sure to thoroughly wipe them down with a t-shirt to degunk them, then rubbing the metal with a silicone rod and reel cloth - after which they are wicked shiny if nothing else.
Next up is some hooflex...
- Joined
- Jul 30, 2004
- Messages
- 3,833
BL also does wood well... I've used it as a finish on raw wood.
does something nice to leather too, darkens it and probably helps water repellency.
I'm off alcohol but wasn't going to drink the stuff anyways. Though you can.
Have one of those car air fresheners that uses an oily liquid... well, it ran dry and a refill cost $2. So I said, I like the smell of Ballistol and have a whole gallon tin of it- why not.... then I had a moment of clarity and said, "sick, sick, sick."
The house was smelling all licorice-y from gun cleaning earlier. Don't need the car smelling like khukuris n' firearms.
Ad Astra :foot:
does something nice to leather too, darkens it and probably helps water repellency.
I'm off alcohol but wasn't going to drink the stuff anyways. Though you can.
Have one of those car air fresheners that uses an oily liquid... well, it ran dry and a refill cost $2. So I said, I like the smell of Ballistol and have a whole gallon tin of it- why not.... then I had a moment of clarity and said, "sick, sick, sick."
The house was smelling all licorice-y from gun cleaning earlier. Don't need the car smelling like khukuris n' firearms.
Ad Astra :foot:
- Joined
- Oct 25, 2004
- Messages
- 3,178
SASSAS, don't even bother with Hooflex. Ballistol (and mineral oil, for that matter) works fine on horn and bone as well. Increase the soak times by 50-100% to compensate for the decreased porosity. Arty is a big proponent of sealing them with Watco Danish Oil and I can say that I've never had anything (wood, bone, or horn) crack after four coats of the Watco, regardless of what it was exposed to. Again, on horn and bone, you need more coats and longer soak times.
If your local feed store doesn't have Hooflex (like mine didn't, the bastids) I cobbled together a reasonable substitute with lanolyn, turpentine, and neets foot oil. It worked...but Ballistol works too, and works on a lot of other things besides.
If your local feed store doesn't have Hooflex (like mine didn't, the bastids) I cobbled together a reasonable substitute with lanolyn, turpentine, and neets foot oil. It worked...but Ballistol works too, and works on a lot of other things besides.
- Joined
- Jun 4, 2002
- Messages
- 3,930
SASSAS said:pulling some kind of a NEWB practical joke about the mineral oil (I have a foxy folly and UB special soaking right now)...
If Dan'l Koster said it, you can take it to the bank.
Sarge
- Joined
- Jun 16, 2003
- Messages
- 20,207
Joke? Never! We are all soooooooooooooooo serious around here.
(But watch Bruise.)
(But watch Bruise.)
- Joined
- Jun 16, 2002
- Messages
- 1,104
breakfree is great on the blade itself. highly recommended for swords too. in my first hand experience, beats out plain mineral oil.
as for the wood handles, good ol' linseed oil has been my choice. i don't recommend it for chandan. doesn't seem to absorb it!
on horn, i exclusively use the hooflex. winter is coming, so i will have to coat each horn handle with a thick layer of hooflex, wrap it in saran wrap and store it away from any cold areas of my place, like near my balcony doors.
wierd satori that you can't get it, where a city boy like myself can order it from north of my city.
never tried ballistol. i have already invested in vats of hooflex, linseed, and breakfree...
as for the wood handles, good ol' linseed oil has been my choice. i don't recommend it for chandan. doesn't seem to absorb it!
on horn, i exclusively use the hooflex. winter is coming, so i will have to coat each horn handle with a thick layer of hooflex, wrap it in saran wrap and store it away from any cold areas of my place, like near my balcony doors.
wierd satori that you can't get it, where a city boy like myself can order it from north of my city.
never tried ballistol. i have already invested in vats of hooflex, linseed, and breakfree...
- Joined
- Jun 4, 2002
- Messages
- 3,930
Dave Hahn said:
And not a horse in sight, paranoia spreads through the neighborhood, rumors have begun, BATF and SPCA are at odds as to who has jurisdiction, stay tuned to this station........
Sarge
- Joined
- Aug 16, 2005
- Messages
- 616
Sylvrfalcn said:And not a horse in sight, paranoia spreads through the neighborhood, rumors have begun, BATF and SPCA are at odds as to who has jurisdiction, stay tuned to this station........
Sarge
Ah-ha! So that's the reason for the new FBI obscenity task force!
Interesting results so far with the mineral oil... The light neem handle (which was completely unfinished) took on a beautiful look just having some poured over it and rubbed off. The dark neem handle (which seemed perhaps waxed or varnished) seems a little lighter. Kind of a reddish color rubbed off on the t-shirt I used to wipe the oil off the dark one....but seeing something rub off may just have me thinking it's lighter.
The cracked chandan's are still soaking, and I swear I think the level of oil is visibly lower...
- Joined
- Oct 18, 2001
- Messages
- 20,978
Just kidding!
Err, uhh....just kiddin' on that "Just kidding" above.....:foot:
Any oil will be ok. Mineral oil is the cheapest and most readily available.
I don't recommend soaking overnight in Tung Oil. Boiled Linseed Oil is fine, but might give you fits.
The nice thing about mineral oil is that it will bleed out if you have oversaturated it. The others get very tacky/messy. At least, this has been my experience.
The "red" that is bleeding from the handle is a combination of stain and rouge. The more you rub it, the more red comes off. It can take a very long time to get all the stain out (if that's what you want). Mineral spirits (completely unrelated to mineral oil) takes the red out a lot quicker. Soak it in a jar of that for a few minutes and watch the liquid change colors before your eyes.....
Otherwise, just wipe it down afterwards and let it air dry for a day or two.
Mineral Oil is not a "finishing oil". If you want to put a finish on it, you'll need to use Tung Oil, Boiled Linseed Oil, Tru Oil, Danish Oil, etc.....or a polyurethane wipe-on finish (my personal preference).
Keep us posted on the progress and post some pics if you can...
- Joined
- Oct 25, 2004
- Messages
- 3,178
Ya know, that's a funny thing...chandan seems to absorb this. Linseed oil just sits on the surface and doesn't penetrate.
Of course, that could just be the moisture content of the wood. The last few pieces of chandan I've seen were much drier than my first few.
Of course, that could just be the moisture content of the wood. The last few pieces of chandan I've seen were much drier than my first few.
- Joined
- Sep 7, 2001
- Messages
- 5,946
Satori said:
That's like doing away with Christmas. Folks like me have convinced ourselves that Hooflex smells like the Christmas tree we had as children. No Hooflex = no Christmas.
You = Scrooge.
(We had an artificial tree but I've since convinced myself otherwise).
Watco - 4 coats - will protect horn for years. I have a horn handled Villager Sirupati that has not cracked after 4 coats.
Mineral oil on a handle may keep you from using anything else. But, you may like it as it is.
I have tried using wipe-on poly after Watco on a wooden handle, and it looks OK, but I don't like how it feels. It has a plastic feel to it.
I am sure that it protects fine, and looks OK, but I prefer other finishes.
Just a personal preference for the feel of other finishes.
Mineral oil on a handle may keep you from using anything else. But, you may like it as it is.
I have tried using wipe-on poly after Watco on a wooden handle, and it looks OK, but I don't like how it feels. It has a plastic feel to it.
I am sure that it protects fine, and looks OK, but I prefer other finishes.
Just a personal preference for the feel of other finishes.
- Joined
- May 18, 2005
- Messages
- 23,139
Sooo. . . I take it from what I read here, that I need to literally soak my horn handled Khuks in a bucket of mineral oil for a long time? If I dont will they crack and be ruined? How long must they soak? 
- Joined
- Oct 18, 2001
- Messages
- 20,978
It's not a necessity, Rat. Just a "bonus option"...
I use the satin poly finish, btw, arty...I don't like the plastic feeling either...
Now that I think about it....the poly is probably floating over the Watco...I've had that happen to me too. In fact, if somebody requests a glossy finish, I usually start with my Walosi mix (Tung Oil, Boiled Linseed Oil, Acetone 1:2:1) and build up a dozen or so layers, then hit it with the Poly (glossy). First coat takes a half-day to dry and the next coat takes a full day. The satin wipe-on is more varish-like and less lacquer-ish.
One thing I forgot to add...if your handle has a waxy finish to it...you will need to wipe it down with some mineral spirits first to break that barrier down, in order to get a good penetration with the oil.
I use the satin poly finish, btw, arty...I don't like the plastic feeling either...
Now that I think about it....the poly is probably floating over the Watco...I've had that happen to me too. In fact, if somebody requests a glossy finish, I usually start with my Walosi mix (Tung Oil, Boiled Linseed Oil, Acetone 1:2:1) and build up a dozen or so layers, then hit it with the Poly (glossy). First coat takes a half-day to dry and the next coat takes a full day. The satin wipe-on is more varish-like and less lacquer-ish.
One thing I forgot to add...if your handle has a waxy finish to it...you will need to wipe it down with some mineral spirits first to break that barrier down, in order to get a good penetration with the oil.