Pitting/Rust on Domino (CTS-XHP) Updated with Pics

M

metallikat87

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Apr 1, 2015
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I am getting a very, very light corrosion on my Domino blade and I can't figure out why. It is so fine that I am not sure it would even photograph but it is definitely there and on both sides of the blade. I have not used this knife for food prep outside of cutting a lime in half once (I did wipe it off immediately) and it has never been a fishing knife. Can anyone tell me how this happens and/or how to remedy it? Do I need to send it in to Golden for inspection?
I know it isn't H1 but I have not seen or heard anyone else mention rust issues with this knife anywhere else.
 
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XHP is tough steel to get to corrode, it's extremely stainless. It would take some sort of strong acid or body chemistry to make that happen. Pocs would be helpful
 
mattmanyam said:
Are you picking up steel dust from other knives from your sharpening setup?
Click to expand...
I don't have a sharpening setup yet. I am new to knives and haven't attempted to sharpen any of my good ones yet. I have a pocket stone but I haven't touched the Domino with it.

RevDevil said:
XHP is tough steel to get to corrode, it's extremely stainless. It would take some sort of strong acid or body chemistry to make that happen. Pocs would be helpful
Click to expand...
Hopefully you can see what I see. It is so light it almost looks like a rash but I think it is rust. It hasn't been exposed to any acid (aside from that one lime) and I carry it in my pocket. It rarely touches skin at all, aside from being flipped open and that is in the stud, not the blade.

Below the Spyder hole and towards the scale. I had to blow these up to see it.
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In front of the Spyder hole, along the spine.
Pl1dxwR.jpg


Another shot of the presentation side. It looks pitted in this angle, to me anyway.
rmhgEVb.jpg


If I didn't know better I would say it is dirty but it definitely is not. I tried cleaning and oiling but nothing changed. Any advice?
 
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Try a scotch brite pad or 600 grit wet and dry sandpaper rolled up. It is very hard to see the rust on the knife from the photos. Just a guess but could it be just a rough cut spidie hole?
 
I can't see it, but again without the knife in front of us it's hard.

I would have concerns with heat treat, especially since this steel should do that. Without proper heat treat and at lower hardness rust happens easier. It does happen from time to time.
 
It really just looks like dust in the pictures but it is not. Will scotch brite mess with the finish? I'd rather ship it back and let them fix it right then screw with some home remedy when I dont know what I am doing.
 
I would try Flitz or maas polish, at least one should be able to find locally at a hardware store. Do not use a Scotch-Brite pad or sandpaper.
 
You are not crazy, I can see what looks like very small rusty pits spread over large areas of the blade. Hmmm... my post will bump this back up so maybe a steel snob can opine on the subject of rusty cts-xhp. I would say send it in, but it's hard to part with a beloved knife. The best bet is to probably do nothing for a little while. Observe this for a week or two and see if it changes. After observation, then you can start rubbing things against the blade.
 
I get this all the time on my knives. Flitz metal polish and elbow grease is your solution.
 
These finishes with more grain can be prone to little corrosive spotting. Fitz works great, and does not alter the looks. A buffer resolves the issue more permanently, if you care to apply a finer polish.
 
It's steel. Steel can corrode. Clean it off with hot soap and water, dry it completely, silicone or oil it and use it. Why would you guys be talking about heat treats or sending it in? I don't understand this. Citric acid is corrosive. Just wiping it off doesn't guarantee it's completely gone. It has 1.50 percent carbon so it can corrode even with the other alloys in it. Stainless isn't stain/corrosion free, nor does it mean maintenance free. If you want that get H1 or Titanium. Other than that just use simple tried and true maintenance techniques. Sometimes, just wiping the blade off isn't enough, sometimes it is.

I keep non stainless carbon steels and alloy steels corrosion free with just a little maintenance. Little, but the right kind of maintenance.

As for the rust already there I'd recommend paste wax. I use Rennisance wax. ( note* Always insure the blade is clean, and the rag holds no grit before wiping or waxing) It polishes tiny spots out and brightens the steel without changing the finish or abrading it noticeably. If you get those spots soon they should come right out. Remember to remove the corrosive stuff/salty stuff first though. If you wax it do it dry with no oil. It won't need oil if you seal it off from oxygen.

Flush the pivot out using a light oil with a solvent in it in case that citric acid got in there. I would not recommend taking it apart. Flushing it out and using it should be enough.
 
For light rust I always use baking soda. Its dirt cheap and almost everyone has it at home already. It causes micro abrasions, but I rather have that then rust eating away at my blade.
 
i get the same thing on my dominos, I'm guessing its the acid from my hands, anyways i use a very fine polishing cloth(10 micron) and it comes right off
 
I have a kitchen knife in XHP that doesn't seem to rust. It is a 5" petty design and gets lots of use. It always gets washed and dried right after use, but it sure acts like a stainless steel. The vendor said that it isn't stainless, despite the high chromium content. I thought that this was strange.
 
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