Patinas (Questions, Comments & Methods)

My first Carbon-Steel knife was the humble Opinel No-8, once I got that blade Scary Sharp, I tried forcing a patina on it, vinegar bath, mustard, it never looked right, it looked "fake", too uniformly gray, so I set the knife aside and forgot about patina-ing for a while

A few weeks ago, I picked up a Case CV Yellow Trapper, and a Boker Whittler Stockman in carbon-steel, I decided to let the patina form naturally on these two, cutting up apples to eat, slicing tomatoes and other food prep, just generally *using* them

the Case CV Trapper has patina-ed up quite nicely, it has a nice dark gray patina, but if the light hits the blade just right, I can see iridescent blues, reds, purples and oranges, similar to the way an oil slick floating in a puddle looks, it makes the knife look far more attractive, it's a little splotchy in places, but it doesn't look bad at all

the Boker seems to take a patina much slower, and it's only really starting near the spine of the blade, near the nail nick, but it *is* starting, the Case started a solid patina as soon as I halved my first apple with it, the Boker took an entire apple and still has barely a 5% patina, the Case is closer to 50%

I'll grab an apple, and the Trapper, or the Stockman, and sliver it into small pieces, or cut a tomato into slices, letting the juices sit on the blade while I take my time, a good 15 to 30 minutes of leisurely snacking, and I'll rinse off the blade(s), wipe them dry, and put on a thin layer of vegetable or mineral oil on the blade(s), whatever is closest at hand, and pocket them

Every splotch, every iridescent spot on the blade tells a story, a pattern of use that's uniquely mine, adding to the "personality" and "soul" of the knife

Compared against my Opinel, the patina on my Trapper is much less consistent, it's stronger in the middle of the blade, the tip and heel have less patina, but even with that inconsistency and faint splotchiness, the Trapper looks far better, it's patina is iridescent, and shows "life", the Opinel's patina is just "there", mundane, boring, and generic

Natural patina for me, please :)
 
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Patina is something that comes and goes. Depending of what you done with the knife as of late its changing. Its a living and natural process of the steel. Why bother to much about something that is not harmful.

Bosse
 
Jockohomo said:
I'm a little bit puzzled as to why some folk artificially force a patina on a new knife. Surely part of the appeal of a carbon steel blade is both the ease of keeping it razor sharp and watching the colour change over time as it gets used?
A lot is said about carbon blades having 'soul' in a way that stainless don't. If you force a patina aren't you 'forging' its life story?
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MacTech said:
My first Carbon-Steel knife was the humble Opinel No-8, once I got that blade Scary Sharp, I tried forcing a patina on it, vinegar bath, mustard, it never looked right, it looked "fake", too uniformly gray...
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Just to be clear, the concept of a forced or "pre" patina is not some new thing made up by modern-day knife geeks nostalgic for the good old days.

For some guys, the decision to force a patina on a knife has nothing to do with aesthetics.

Sure, some people who force a patina do it for the looks. But lots of others force a patina simply as a way to help ward off rust. Many an old timer has advised a newbie knife owner to "stick 'er in a potato or apple over night."

What's more, you could take two identical carbon steel knives and pre-patina only one. Then give one to KnifeGuyA and the other to KnifeGuyB. They carry them and each use 'em hard for a few years. After some time, think you'll be able to tell which knife had the pre-patina? (Hint: No.)
 
No forced patina for me. Some things are just better when you earn them.

Either way, enjoy it!

:D
 
mnblade said:
Just to be clear, the concept of a forced or "pre" patina is not some new thing made up by modern-day knife geeks nostalgic for the good old days.

For some guys, the decision to force a patina on a knife has nothing to do with aesthetics.

But lots of others force a patina simply as a way to help ward off rust. Many an old timer has advised a newbie knife owner to "stick 'er in a potato or apple over night."
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I work outside in the high heat and humidity. The water droplets from my sweat during the summer will cause surface rust before lunch. I agree with you, I have had to force some before, not for any other reason than protection. Although its not perfect protection, but it does offer some.
 
65hoss. In that case I also would force the first patina. Brown rust is not nice. The forced patina will change to real earned patina in some time and forced patina is not harmful in any way. In some weeks the patina is natural for you and your knife. Dont get to attached though, it will change again and again with small differences. The important thing with a carbon steel is never to forget about it. In the old days they often had just one knife and used it all the time, thats an advantage for a carbon steel knife. Some butteror fat on the blade after dinner protected them just as good as anything rustpreventing in our days.

Bosse
 
NirreBosse said:
65hoss. In that case I also would force the first patina. Brown rust is not nice. The forced patina will change to real earned patina in some time and forced patina is not harmful in any way. In some weeks the patina is natural for you and your knife. Dont get to attached though, it will change again and again with small differences. The important thing with a carbon steel is never to forget about it. In the old days they often had just one knife and used it all the time, thats an advantage for a carbon steel knife. Some butteror fat on the blade after dinner protected them just as good as anything rustpreventing in our days.

Bosse
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I wasn't referring to any new knives. I'm just saying I've had to in the past. The knives I carry have several years of blackness/dark grey to them.
Yes they do change all the time based on what I may be doing with it at different times of the year.
 
Looking at my older knives.

Before I knew patina was relevant to knife blades and not a finish on cast bronze scupltors!
Before I knew you could force a patina!

Some of them are 40 years old.
They all have an even light grey patina.
No colors.
 
neeman said:
... Some of them are 40 years old.
They all have an even light grey patina.
No colors.
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Half the fun of breaking in a new knife made with a good carbon steel blade are the beautiful color changes that occur during that time period. First you get swirls of sea blue. Then a few days later it darkens a bit more into a navy and purplish hue with the ever present changes in colors. Until finally after a while she becomes a more or less an even shade of grey or charcoal. :)
 
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