Need some tips on stripping/patina...

M

mgregg85

Joined
Jul 10, 2009
Messages
77
So I caved in and decided to strip my bk-9, I was gonna wait until I had worn away a lot of the coating but I'm bored and I need a new project.

Right now my 9 and my new trail hawk head are covered in citrustrip in my bathtub(in a metal tray). How long should I leave them soaking? I have to leave for work at 10pm so I was planning on letting them sit until about 9:45 and then rinsing them so I can start scraping... Will that be long enough?

Assuming I can get all the coating off tonight I will try to force a patina, what I also need to know is what is the best solution to force a nice patina? I've got easy access to mustard, salsa and vinegar but I could always go buy whatever else if there is something that will work better.

Oh and how would I go about making those black rings on my hawk handle?
Shrew_Hawk3SM.jpg

Is that just a light wood burn or is there something more to it?

Thanks for the help.
 
I left my blades under Citristrip for about 3 hours (iirc), but it took a bit of elbow grease to fully remove the black coating. I think next time around I'll do at least overnight and let the chemicals do the work for me.
 
When I did my BK-2 I let it sit for about 20 hours and it cleaned up pretty easy but when I did my 7 I let it sit for only 10 hours and it was PITA to clean up. Citrustrip is slow acting even though the product says wait 30 min. and check. I don't have a bunch of power tools though all I used was a putty knife with an edge. Good luck and let us know how they came out.
 
Chemicals...ugh! I sandblasted my BK11 this morning and then shined it up with the scotchbrite wheel. All done.

My question is about aftercare with stripped blades. With no coating, how much do you have to baby them to keep the rust at bay? Oil, WD-40, Tuff Cloth? How often? How does it hold up in the field?
 
Looks like four hours in the citristrip did most of the hard work for me. I started scraping them and the coating came off the hatchet a lot easier but it wasn't too bad on my nine either.

I took the hatchet to work and sandblasted it to smooth it out some and get all the paint out of the little cracks and crevices. I also forced a patina on it with mustard and hot sauce. Looks alright now, just gotta make the haft look good. I think tonight I will try sandblasting my bk-9 and shining it up with the really fine emery cloth.
 
I let mine soak in citrustrip for about 16 hours and then I scraped it with a putty knife. It came off really easily, there were actually large strips which had completely pulled off the blade by it self. I just scraped it out of the way. No need to rush, let the strip do the work for you.
 
Jasco Epoxy paint stripper is what I use. Take 10mins and is Armaggedon in a can.

After 10 mins, the paint bubbles and can be sprayed off with a water hose.

For a patina, I like mustard, a basting brush, and a tiger stripe pattern. Really though, anything that is mildly acidic will do, mustard, vinegar, ketchup, hot sauce, apples, oranges. My buddy uses red meat. Last time he made a pot of chili (he uses steak instead of ground beef) His Randall Model 26 came out looking like a case hardened Colt SA.

Here is my patina on a BK2.

Moose

100_1864.jpg
 
just stick the knife IN the pot of chili for a while. stir. add seasonings :)

Titanium Nitride... that's what i want :) or hard-chrome :>
 
I used citrustrip here too. It took longer than I was expecting but worked just fine in the end. The patina, I'm still getting used to. That's mustard and I think cutting apples afterward has darkened it up a bit.

One thing to watch out for with mustard - seems to me that I can wash my BK11 every couple of hours and the silly thing still smells of mustard. YMMV.

IMG_0004_20110302.jpg


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Beckerhead #42
 
There a BK11 soaking in the yard at casa de Guillotine.

That Jasco epoxy/paint stripper aerosol stuff seems like it's taking forever to do it's job, though. I keep checking every hour and at best just a little surface coat comes loose.

There's a few bare spots on the blade now, but the handle is mostly solid black. Am I missing something here?
 
Ah, I've sorted it out. Grabbed the Jasco paint stripper, not the more powerful paint and epoxy stripper.

A bit of work with some plastic scrapers have gleaned some progress on the necker strip job. I'm going to let the rest soak in the stripper all day and see what can be done with my little dremel wire wheel this evening.

Hopefully the soak does the job, that stuff on the handle is more tenacious than Ten Ass City!
 
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