My Carbon Steel Rant

[leghog]

And there's the rub. What constitutes proper care, and when is it just not worth the bother? The thought of pulling out my knife rotation every single night, and coating all of the the blades with oil sounds ludicrous to me. Most of my users have 3 to 4 blades. That's not me owning the knives. That's the knives owning me. I just got lucky yesterday, that I had a 2-blade and a single blade knife left out. The two GEC knives had carbon steel liners, which also rusted.

And my pile of users changes from week to week, sometimes day to day. It's just too much upkeep for a reasonable person, IMHO. If I only owned one or two knives, it might be okay. But I'm not that guy.

I suggest you never get into guns and start collecting them.

 

[Grateful]

Working outside or in a hot shop or barn during the hot and humid Kansas summers has caused some red rust to appear on my carbon steel pocket knives. I dont believe its resulted in any pitting however. I just clean them up at the end of the day, just takes a minute or two. I really like carbon steel so its worth it to me. Never been much of an issue honestly.
I am fortunate to own one GEC in stainless and can say that it is really good stuff. If they offered more of it i would buy it.

 

[supratentorial]

For me, wiping the blades and springs with an oil damp rag works well. That's how most of my knives are stored. I wipe the oil off with a clean rag before I put the knife in my pocket. And I wipe them again with an oil damp rag before I put them away. It just takes a few seconds.

If I know I'm going to be sweaty, I may use a nylon sheath to protect the knife. There are other alternatives...

G=watering can full of mineral oil
H=pocket knife in coat pocket

 

[Woodrow F Call]

I live in South Louisiana.... If anywhere is humid, it's here. We generally have the AC on at night, but I do camp, work and sweat with carbon steel. I just wipe dry and oil on occasion.

Might try a wax.... Is renwax food safe? Maybe beeswax?

Another thing, Case's Trusharp seems to perform as well as their carbon to me. It needs a little extra stropping to break that wire edge, but that's it. I think they did a good job making a knife that is similar in performance to their CV line.

 

[jec88]

Another thing to think about, back in the day most guys using a carbon steel knife probably weren't like us. Probably had a few designated knives, not a rotation. If you were just carrying one knife in carbon steel, it would probably be easier to maintain and would be used so much that rust wouldn't be as bad to develop. In the kitchen, my wife uses 2 knives for food for the most part, a cv sodbuster and an opinel and even throws them in the dishwasher, but they are probably used most days and I rarely oil them.

 

[Buzzbait]

Another thing to think about, back in the day most guys using a carbon steel knife probably weren't like us. Probably had a few designated knives, not a rotation. If you were just carrying one knife in carbon steel, it would probably be easier to maintain and would be used so much that rust wouldn't be as bad to develop.

Very true. Taking care of one or two pocketknives is one thing. Taking care of a large rotation or a collection is another matter entirely. That's probably why Case uses mostly stainless steel these days. Their marketing strategy is aimed toward collectors.

One thing that got me going recently was the Maher and Grosh run of #54's. They were gorgeous, and one of the nicest aspects of these knives was the incredible blade etch. But the knife was done in carbon steel. I knew that if I bought one, and used it, that incredible etch would disappear in a manner of days. That knife deserved stainless steel, in order to preserve its beauty.

 

[Wurrwulf]

We're having a particularly muggy day today (it's 9am and it's 80*F with 80% humidity), so I left the GEC at home. I posted pictures last year of what a 3 day stretch (I work outdoors) did to my Ebony 14, and I thought some people on here were about to hit the fainting couches.

It is tough to be a 1095 fan living on the Gulf Coast if you want your knives to be pristine. I actually noticed some rust/tarnish on the liners of my edcs yesterday that I need to take care of. I gave up the thought of having pristine carry knives, though. I don't have a problem with Case's Tru-Sharp, Buck's 420HC, or Victorinox's stainless so it's not difficult for me to find stainless traditionals to carry and use, though.

 

[deltaboy]

Men carried Carbon Steel knifes for decades before HVAC, You just have to do some basic maintenance.

 

[Wurrwulf]

Men carried Carbon Steel knifes for decades before HVAC, You just have to do some basic maintenance.

They also typically carried/owned one or a few knife/knives and used it every day. I own 50 knives, carry 3 daily, and might not use them for a week. It's not exactly apples to apples. Basic maintenance is easy when the knife is in and out of your pocket a dozen times a day.

 

[major_works]

I'm in northern NJ, where it can be wicked humid (like yesterday and today, for example). Most of my traditional knives are 1095 or CV but I've not had much trouble with rust. I do keep them clean and wipe (or wash and dry) the blades after using them. At home, they live in a drawer.

I like carbon steel more than stainless but I don't have a problem with stainless. Carrying a Pioneer Pruner today, in fact.

 

[Stelth]

Many posts keep mentioning how knives of the past had this same problem (and its solution is a simple matter of daily maintenance) but they fail to mention that to many users from the old days these knives were disposable. Knives were simply replaced when they were too far gone.
For me, daily oiling and maintenance is a bother I'm not willing to undertake.

 

[3-1-1]

Might want to add this to your list then.

It's the Queen/Dan Burke Rancher. Or if you prefer multi-blades you can keep an eye out for the Queen/Burke Cattle King. Uses the same frame as the Rancher, but it's a cattle knife. In addition to the clip main there are also spey and sheepsfoot secondaries.

Oh yeah, thats a nice one if BG-42 is what you're after:

And I'll second the suggestion of the recent Queen / S&M offerings in CPM154, 154CM, and ATS-34.
I've bought up a few of those recently and have been very satisfied with them.

 

[knifeswapper]

Yes, most of us have more knives than the average guy did 80 years ago....
No, they didn't have the advanced protectants we do today....

 

[joeradza]

For me, daily oiling and maintenance is a bother I'm not willing to undertake.

Hate to buy your used car.

 

[Pomsbz]

My solution.

GEC Cyclop's Works 68 White Owl, Light Tan Bone. Something many of us wish GEC would invest more time in...

For a 'Rant' This thread has remained instructive and amusing The elephant in the room being that many enthusiasts of Traditional knives yearn for something other than rust-on-a-stick....

Drool!

 

[Dean51]

I remember Dad telling me stainless would not hold an edge, he also said that about Case CV.

Old Timer's 1095 was his steel of choice. He was right in the mid 60's and 70's stainless was 420HC or 440A. It wasn't long and I had both 1095 and stainless. 1095 was the working knives, for hunting and fishing it was 440A or Buck's 420HC.

With the stones I had back then, I think 440C would have frustrated me a bit.

Today I have 3 GEC's and my old Carbon Camillus and Old Timer knives, I carry them from time to time but always with a stainless backup.
My traditional pocket knives are now 440C, ATS34/154CM, CPM 154, D2 and soon M390.
Here in middle TN it's humid enough that we have to clean the mold off the house every couple years.

I'm not a patina fan and just no longer have a desire to maintain a knife with a carbon blade and carbon springs. Plus I like not having to sharpen as much. I don't think I'm getting lazy, I just like the practical go any where do anything aspect of modern stainless steel in a pocket knife

 

[Buzzbait]

Hate to buy your used car.

But I only have one car.

I have like 70 carbon steel knives.

 

[texmex03]

This discussion has me reconsidering some things also.

I live in Southeast Texas 5 minutes from brackish water and 30 from the Gulf of Mexico so humidity is constant and salt environment is never far away. I learned quick that a finger print is guaranteed rust the next day but a wipe with the finger will save it. So every time I or anyone else touches the knife I just wipe it with my finger and its been good. The liners and springs on the inside is where I notice little rust spots every now and then and I can't see a way to fix that.

Charlie has me considering a Case Bose for the design and the CPM 154. Not sure which is my favorite.

 

[Buzzbait]

Patina is the one thing I'll miss. I love the look of a heavy patina on a working knife. Stainless blades just look ugly and scratched up eventually. A nice heavy patina covers up a world a hurt.

With the stones I had back then, I think 440C would have frustrated me a bit.

I sharpened up a GEC 440C Mustang last night, on my combination soft/hard Arkansas bench stone. It was an interesting experience. The blade felt like it was skating across the soft stone, with little effect. I actually had to apply some pressure to get anywhere with it. Moving to the hard side of the stone turned out to be much easier work. I still had to apply some pressure, but not nearly as much. It definitely took a lot longer than the 440A blade that I had previously sharpened. 440C is challenging on an Arkansas stone, but possible. I wouldn't want to completely reprofile a blade though, or grind out a chip. I'll leave that work to my India stones. On the positive side, there's was almost no burr to contend with.

 

[brownshoe]

...Also, properly done 440A with a hardness of 57-58 is not to be sneezed at. The US Uncle Henry knives in Schrade+ are very decent. Even the Taylor-Schrade line are not bad.

I agree. There are many years of Cammillus 440A knives and Cammillus 440A Remingtons in traditional patterns, bone, stage, etc. You can find them new in box on ebay, gun shows and flea markets. I have one of the Remingtons and it takes and holds a good edge.