- Joined
- May 9, 2002
- Messages
- 12,682
Ever do something ridiculously bone-headed? Of course you have
Don't lie.
OK, so have you ever done something bone-headed with a knife? Again, don't be trying to tell me pork pies We all have.
Alright, have you ever done something so catastrophically bone-headed TO a knife that you thought to yourself, "Ughhh...How am I gonna fix this screw up?"
Let me introduce you to mine
OK, go ahead and get it out of your system. I'll wait
Good? Alrighty.
What you are seeing here my favorite kindling knife...actually, it works in a pair with an ASTK. It's a KLVUK that I use as a beater khuk around the backyard. For fun, I scrubbed off the quasi protective black scale to see what it looked like underneath. This was no big deal as I usually use the knife enough to keep anything from forming, and I always keep my work blades wiped down with a bit of oil after I lazily knock the dirt and/or bark off of them.
For the better part of 2 years this affordable little user was my go-to. That included gathering kindling outside during the 8" snowfall we got last week. See where I'm going with this?
As the snow was coming down, I was out in the cold (under dressed and hasty) trying to hurry up and replenish my kindling before it got too deep to wade out in. I was using an axe to split some logs, then I would take the ASTK and blast them into smaller pieces and then use the KLVUK to split those pieces into something that would catch readily. Well, my cheap ol' axe just stays out in the elements. I usually bring my khuks with me back by the fireplace inside. In my haste, I must have knocked the KLVUK off the splitting log and into the snow. With an armful of 60lbs of loose logs, kindling, and twigs, I didn't realize that I had forgotten my knife. The ASTK was stuffed in my belt.
By the time I realized what I had done, the snow was well over 8" deep, and I knew I wasn't going to be able to find the KLVUK. I didn't see it sticking out of the stump.
Yesterday, the snow finally melted after 3 or so days, and what I found is what you see here.
So, I decided to see what could be done with it
The KLVUK was never a "pretty" knife. It's a user, so it's not like I needed to get it back to mirror shine. I just didn't want the rust to ruin it.
I started with some oil and some rough sandpaper. The actual grit, I have no idea. I was using some I had on hand. But it was rough enough, it was what I had used to sand off the glue on my kitchen floor before installing some vinyl tile.
Surprisingly, the orange rust came off quite easily. I followed it up with a "medium/fine" sanding sponge with a little oil on it. I took the opportunity to sand on the handle a bit. It was still a little "rustic" for my liking. Once I started doing that, I decided to take buttcap to the grinder as it wasn't super flush (remember, the KLVUK is a USER grade khuk. The buttcap is cosmetic) and it would only talk literally 20 seconds to fix. I even used a bit of super glue to fill a tiny gap at the handle/bolster junction.
So after less than 20 minutes (I'm a very impatient and lazy guy when it comes to detail work. You aren't going to catch me fiddling with something much longer than "good enough"), I was left with this:
Not too shabby, right?
Perfectly serviceable.
However, now I felt that I owed the neglected little khuk a bit of an upgrade. Using the fine side of the sanding sponge, a pocket sharpening stone, a butcher steel, and a scrap piece of leather as a loaded strop, I got the edge to pop hair. I had some wood sealant laying around that I had used on my fence, so i coated the handle in that. The wood drank it in deeply, so every couple of hours I would lazily brush a coat on. After 2 or 3, I took it out of the garage and set it by the fire place to warm and dry. The heat seemed to really activate the sealant and the handle glossed to a nice sheen (yet not slippery at all).
After that, I figured the knife deserved a little bit of a pantina to help protect it from any future abuse. I noticed that fireside rest had heated the blade up enough for vinegar to set in, and I remembered the big jug of "expired" vinegar than my wife had wanted to throw out, but I had hidden in the back of the pantry
After a quick splash and rub, I set the KLVUK back by the fire to let the heat activate the vinegar a little more. An hour or so later, I rinsed it off, polished the edge on my little strop, and called it good:thumbup:
So, this thread isn't really touting any skillset of mine. I don't really HAVE any skills. However, with just a minimal amount of time, effort, and the most basic of tools, I was able to fix a major dunderheaded boo-boo.
I'm happy to report that the KLVUK seems content with its refurbishment and is looking forward to getting back to work this weekend. Next time I'll be sure to do a bit better when it comes to a headcount
The only downside is now my well used and loved 15" ASTK is whining for a spit and polish as well. It was used to being the prettier of the two Splitting Buddies. I guess I'll see what I can do this weekend
Don't lie.OK, so have you ever done something bone-headed with a knife? Again, don't be trying to tell me pork pies
We all have.Alright, have you ever done something so catastrophically bone-headed TO a knife that you thought to yourself, "Ughhh...How am I gonna fix this screw up?"
Let me introduce you to mine
OK, go ahead and get it out of your system. I'll wait
Good? Alrighty.
What you are seeing here my favorite kindling knife...actually, it works in a pair with an ASTK. It's a KLVUK that I use as a beater khuk around the backyard. For fun, I scrubbed off the quasi protective black scale to see what it looked like underneath. This was no big deal as I usually use the knife enough to keep anything from forming, and I always keep my work blades wiped down with a bit of oil after I lazily knock the dirt and/or bark off of them.
For the better part of 2 years this affordable little user was my go-to. That included gathering kindling outside during the 8" snowfall we got last week. See where I'm going with this?
As the snow was coming down, I was out in the cold (under dressed and hasty) trying to hurry up and replenish my kindling before it got too deep to wade out in. I was using an axe to split some logs, then I would take the ASTK and blast them into smaller pieces and then use the KLVUK to split those pieces into something that would catch readily. Well, my cheap ol' axe just stays out in the elements. I usually bring my khuks with me back by the fireplace inside. In my haste, I must have knocked the KLVUK off the splitting log and into the snow. With an armful of 60lbs of loose logs, kindling, and twigs, I didn't realize that I had forgotten my knife. The ASTK was stuffed in my belt.
By the time I realized what I had done, the snow was well over 8" deep, and I knew I wasn't going to be able to find the KLVUK. I didn't see it sticking out of the stump.
Yesterday, the snow finally melted after 3 or so days, and what I found is what you see here.
So, I decided to see what could be done with it
The KLVUK was never a "pretty" knife. It's a user, so it's not like I needed to get it back to mirror shine. I just didn't want the rust to ruin it.
I started with some oil and some rough sandpaper. The actual grit, I have no idea. I was using some I had on hand. But it was rough enough, it was what I had used to sand off the glue on my kitchen floor before installing some vinyl tile.
Surprisingly, the orange rust came off quite easily. I followed it up with a "medium/fine" sanding sponge with a little oil on it. I took the opportunity to sand on the handle a bit. It was still a little "rustic" for my liking. Once I started doing that, I decided to take buttcap to the grinder as it wasn't super flush (remember, the KLVUK is a USER grade khuk. The buttcap is cosmetic) and it would only talk literally 20 seconds to fix. I even used a bit of super glue to fill a tiny gap at the handle/bolster junction.
So after less than 20 minutes (I'm a very impatient and lazy guy when it comes to detail work. You aren't going to catch me fiddling with something much longer than "good enough"), I was left with this:
Not too shabby, right?
Perfectly serviceable.However, now I felt that I owed the neglected little khuk a bit of an upgrade. Using the fine side of the sanding sponge, a pocket sharpening stone, a butcher steel, and a scrap piece of leather as a loaded strop, I got the edge to pop hair. I had some wood sealant laying around that I had used on my fence, so i coated the handle in that. The wood drank it in deeply, so every couple of hours I would lazily brush a coat on. After 2 or 3, I took it out of the garage and set it by the fire place to warm and dry. The heat seemed to really activate the sealant and the handle glossed to a nice sheen (yet not slippery at all).
After that, I figured the knife deserved a little bit of a pantina to help protect it from any future abuse. I noticed that fireside rest had heated the blade up enough for vinegar to set in, and I remembered the big jug of "expired" vinegar than my wife had wanted to throw out, but I had hidden in the back of the pantry
After a quick splash and rub, I set the KLVUK back by the fire to let the heat activate the vinegar a little more. An hour or so later, I rinsed it off, polished the edge on my little strop, and called it good:thumbup:
So, this thread isn't really touting any skillset of mine. I don't really HAVE any skills. However, with just a minimal amount of time, effort, and the most basic of tools, I was able to fix a major dunderheaded boo-boo.
I'm happy to report that the KLVUK seems content with its refurbishment and is looking forward to getting back to work this weekend. Next time I'll be sure to do a bit better when it comes to a headcount
The only downside is now my well used and loved 15" ASTK is whining for a spit and polish as well. It was used to being the prettier of the two Splitting Buddies. I guess I'll see what I can do this weekend
