leaving the "bark" on

S

smartanimal

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May 7, 2015
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I'm making some knives out of 440c for the first time and I noticed they come with some scale still on them. On the first knife i shaped, I put it on a magnet and laid it on the flat platen to remove it. I started a second one and I managed to preserve the scale/bark pretty well on the flats after grinding the bevels without scratching them.

When i get these back from the heat treater, what will happen if i leave the bark on the flats of that second blade? would it make the metal more susceptible to corrosion? Would it do anything to the metal other than aesthetically?

In all the stuff I've read I can't figure out what the best practice is for leaving heat scale on for the look. I really like how it looks and would like to preserve it.

Advice?
 
Others will disagree, but I think a knife with heat scale on the flats is 1/2 finished.
 
I did a couple knives out Lc200n stainless and left the pretty blue redish colors on the ricasso and it rusted there first.This was in a salt water application though.I can't speak on 440c but in the future I'll take the finnish as high as I can stomach if corrosion is a concern. Good Luck.Lu
 
It all depends on the quality and the presentation. I've seen scale and forge finish left on masterpieces, and I've seen mirror finishes (usually poorly done) placed on turds.

Make the best knife you can with good quality and precise grinds or forging, and your choices will be interpreted as details. Make a turd and your choices will be interpreted as mistakes.

--nathan
 
It all depends. I've done some blades where I've left the scale on and they've turned out real nice. I like leaving some of it on forged blades because it adds a unique look to it(one that only comes from forging).
 
To just answer the question about corrosion: the answer is yes, it will be more prone to rust.

Stainless just means that it will "stain less". Leave a 440C blade submerged in some salt water or another corrosive substance, and it will look as bad as a high carbon blade eventually. One draw back of leaving the scale in place, is that you now have a rough surface that will act kind of like a Velcro for moisture and various contaminants. Now, you can wipe your blade down of course, but it's not going to clean up nearly as easily.

Granted, I suppose that coin is two sided: If it holds moisture well, it will hold oil or other moisture displacers as well, which may prolong the absence of rust and corrosion.

A trade off either way, I guess.
 
Ah ok. Makes sense. This current blade I'm making, I want it to be pretty low maintenance so I might remove it. Thanks for the tips!
 
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