Messed up my acid stonewash finish... need tips

I

IrishSteel

Joined
Nov 12, 2012
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88
So, I used ferric chloride to acid etch a O1 fixed blade, stonewashed it, then finished up the handle. I was sharpening the knife using stones, got to my 5000 grit stone, I goofed, and polished some of the primary grind with the stone... it totally put a ~1/2" x 1/8" of noticeably brighter polished area on what would otherwise be a rather dark finish. The stonewash pit marks are still there, but the high spots definitely got polished.

Since the scales are already on and the knife is finished I don't think I can re-etch and stonewash, can I?

Any ideas on how I can darken the polished section without completely destroying the acid etch/stonewash finish? I thought maybe I could use some vinegar to do a slow etch to darken the bright spot but either it is going insanely slow or just isn't doing anything.

One option would be to polish the rest of the grind up to match the bright spot, but I'd like to preserve the darker finish from the etch if I can.

Any tips?

If I can find a way to get a decent picture I'll post one.
 
You should still be able to etch and stonewash... What kind of scales do you have on it and what adhesive?

I use nail Polish all the time to block out an area on the blade I don't want etched... So the glue should be fine. Can't promise it won't change color of your scale though. You could just cost the whole handle in nail Polish!
 
The scales are zebrawood and they were glued on with System Three epoxy. I'm not worried the epoxy would give you during the stonewash, but I suspect the wood would get beat to s!@t; maybe not, but I'm not up for the risk. If the scales were g10 or micarta I'd probably try coating with nail polish and give stonewashing another go :]

For now I'll try touching up with a q-tip and the acid, if that doesn't work I'll bite the bullet. I didn't even think to try a q-tip for touching up the tang!

Thanks for the advice guys, I'll see what I can pull off.
 
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