patination: what works for me

K

kgeter

Joined
Dec 5, 2005
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Yes, "patination" is a word:

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/patination

If you think this has been done to death, please skip this thread, I'm just sharing what works for me in developing a patina on carbon blades. Any other tips and tricks are welcome.

  1. Clean blade with rubbing alcohol
  2. Stick blade in Granny Smith apple, check every 5 minutes
  3. Repeat until blade is a couple shades darker than you'd like (20-25 minutes for me on a new knife)
  4. Dip a wet finger in baking soda and rub on blade to remove excess spotting and blackness (careful not to cut finger)
  5. Repeat 1-4 until patina is as you like
  6. Oil blade immediately as it is prone to red rust quickly
  7. Don't eat the apple ;)
YMMV of course. I also tried white vinegar but had problems with bubbles and spotting on the blade, plus it took longer and was stinky. I chose a Granny Smith because I thought it was the most acidic apple. If you want to remove patina and start over, a "Sunshine" jewelry polishing cloth works great.

Any tips/tricks/variations to this recipe are welcome. IMHO, this process is one of the joys of a carbon blade: creating your own work of art.
 
That's funny, Granny Smith apples are what I normally use, although I'm gonna eat the apple when I am done!
 
you can also use lemons, potatoes, mustard, egg yolks....or anything with sulfur in it.

Try heating the white vinegar - around 120 degrees and it will work like a charm. Like you said....stinks....
 
Heated apple cider vinegar for me. You get a heavy patina in only a few seconds. I do it to stave off rust, so I like a heavy patina.
 
Forget what I said about the Granny Smith method... Like Daniel and longbeachguy said, Microwave some vinegar in a little jar for about 30 sec, stick the blade in and swirl. You should get bubbles, if not, heat the vinegar a bit more. Check the blade every 15 sec or so. Go a few shades darker than you like, as some of the black will rub off even with a dry cloth. Be aware that the gas coming off the vinegar may darken the backs of the folded blades in the knife.
 
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