Pitting Around Knife Pivot?

Agith

Agith

Joined
Nov 29, 2010
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345
So I was taking apart my slysz bowie today, and found on both sides of the blade to be what appeared to be pitting right around where the washers are. 2 pits on one side, one on the other.

Does anyone have any particular experience with CTS XHP pitting? Because finding pitting in a pivot which I keep oiled is concerning. Any tips on how to go about removing that pitting as well? Because I do find it a tad bit concerning.
 
Some companies use small marks to identify the blade steel while it's in production. The marks you see could well be that and not actually pitting.
 
I am absolutely certain that these marks were not present in my last disassembly, nor have I seen them on any other slysz bowie. They are also rather amorphous and randomly placed.
 
Without you posting clear pictures it's going to be difficult to determine what we are dealing with here.
 
I've noticed that my Domino(XHP) will stain. I didn't notice any pitting, but after I forgot to clean it I did see some staining on the blade. It won't wipe off with a simple wet cloth. I get the same sort of stains on on CruWear, but that wipes off. Strange.. Haha.
 
Dents or holes all the way through have been seen in Spydercos before for marking, as stated. I found these pics googling around (couldn't find the original threads on this):

11444835955_10e8af33ac_c.jpg

11445011093_19de8b701d_c.jpg


However, there's a disassembly video on Youtube for the Bowie that doesn't show any marks like that. It could've changed across the manufacturing time, though.
 
kreole said:
Dents or holes all the way through have been seen in Spydercos before for marking, as stated. I found these pics googling around (couldn't find the original threads on this):

11444835955_10e8af33ac_c.jpg

11445011093_19de8b701d_c.jpg


However, there's a disassembly video on Youtube for the Bowie that doesn't show any marks like that. It could've changed across the manufacturing time, though.
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Those are for HRC testing. to verify the heat treatment was in spec.

no steel is going to be 100% stainless. its stain less. if you are warried about rust or pitting you can always use oil. i take all my knives apart and apply oil or fluid film to all the metal bits. food safe is prefered unless you dont eat anything you cut. its less of a problem for most stainless steels unless your in an environment with lots of humidity or close by the ocean etc.

XHP is not really that stainless, but spyderco do a really nice mirror polish which helps avoid any kind of rust, but again, its stain less.

xhp is an evolution of D2. D2 is susceptible to rust. xhp combats that with its steel composition. spyderco's HT seems to be decent as well as the mirror like finish.
 
He said the pivot was oiled though. Let's see if he can post some pics.

If those divots are from HRC testing why does that Spyderco have so many? I'd think 1 or maybe 2 at most would be needed. If I took a knife apart and found that I'd certainly think something was wrong.
 
Icehawk said:
He said the pivot was oiled though. Let's see if he can post some pics.

If those divots are from HRC testing why does that Spyderco have so many? I'd think 1 or maybe 2 at most would be needed. If I took a knife apart and found that I'd certainly think something was wrong.
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because you normally take an average of multiple tests. say an average of 5 or 6.

i agree, pictures would be idea. and oiling a pivot doesnt mean jack. oil wears out over time. who knows how it was applied or what type of oil was used.
 
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Mo2 said:
Those are for HRC testing. to verify the heat treatment was in spec.

no steel is going to be 100% stainless. its stain less. if you are warried about rust or pitting you can always use oil. i take all my knives apart and apply oil or fluid film to all the metal bits. food safe is prefered unless you dont eat anything you cut. its less of a problem for most stainless steels unless your in an environment with lots of humidity or close by the ocean etc.

XHP is not really that stainless, but spyderco do a really nice mirror polish which helps avoid any kind of rust, but again, its stain less.

xhp is an evolution of D2. D2 is susceptible to rust. xhp combats that with its steel composition. spyderco's HT seems to be decent as well as the mirror like finish.
Click to expand...

Yeah, maybe his had that too

Also there is that other hole in the blade (besides the detent). There are some that have a couple of those, either through completely or partially. The partial ones in particular could be confused for pits.
 
Admittedly they are very small, however it is more a concern that this happened while the blade was oiled. I am also curious as to why the steel has gotten so damned scratched u, as most wear in videos and imagery I see on the Slysz bowie and other CTS XHP running on bronze phosphor washers is mirror polish wear in.

I use Daiwa reel oil, and typically will clean and reoil the knife every month to two months depending on how bad the humidity is (since I live in michigan)

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never seen scratches like that before. maybe you got sand or something in there. cant say for sure what happened but thats not factory.
 
If i were certain those pits and scratches were not from my own doing or neglect - that knife would have a one way ticket back to whoever or wherever i bought it from.
 
Mo2 said:
never seen scratches like that before. maybe you got sand or something in there. cant say for sure what happened but thats not factory.
Click to expand...

I would be shocked if that were the case, given that I wipe down everything in isopropyl alcohol prior to using my pen applicator for oil. I've had the knife for 6 months now, and sent a slysz back before for a different issue. So I'd much rather just take some polish to it and try to buff out those scratches by hand since they are so superficial. Any recommendations on good polish to go for?

It almost looks like some rust broke loose and took its toll, because I have no freaking idea why that happened given how cautious I try to be.
 
Agith said:
Any recommendations on good polish to go for?
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im no expert in that. but i would start with a grit thats as big as those scratches and go smaller and smaller. i did this on the tang of one of my knives. then i polished it with a few diamond paste strops i had just got. im sure it could be done other ways. for example flitz is a commonly used abrasive polishing compound alot of folks use. note if you just polish it, those scratches will likely still show, hence why i suggest starting at a grit thats similar in size and then work your way down.
 
Mo2 said:
im no expert in that. but i would start with a grit thats as big as those scratches and go smaller and smaller. i did this on the tang of one of my knives. then i polished it with a few diamond paste strops i had just got. im sure it could be done other ways. for example flitz is a commonly used abrasive polishing compound alot of folks use. note if you just polish it, those scratches will likely still show, hence why i suggest starting at a grit thats similar in size and then work your way down.
Click to expand...

Went from 320 up to 1000 in sandpaper grits, it was still there. So I ended up taking it to a course india stone. And much to my shock? THose damn scratches are still there, but maybe a bit less visible. Then I took it back up to 1,000 grit. Gonna pick up flitz tomorrow and polish the end, see where that takes me. Interestingly enough the staining is still on the blade so I am not sure if I'll back and hit it again. Will have to see how the flitz does on it. For now though, the slysz is running dry. And surprisingly? It still drops shut and is smooth as glass.

If nothing else? I am glad that very little of that portion of the blade is actually visible when the scales are on. ONly a small bit beneath the lettering is visibly sanded right now. And since I have no plans on selling this one, I am not so worried about resale value being tarnished here; so that's a plus
 
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