I liked Ricksters knife so much I decided to give mine a new finish. I'll have to see how the finish will hold up since I use this knife. I think it will scratch easily, but time will tell. I have a sandblasting cabinet, I can always go back to a factory finish. It's not as cool as the Star Tac, but I'm liking it.
I started out disassembling the knife and cleaning everything. First I checked my work table for flatness. I taped the 600 grit paper down and put a guide coat (just like sanding primer on a car) covering the entire knife slab. Then with one stroke I checked to make sure the guide coat removal was even, Edge Pro owners know what I'm saying here.
I used 220, 400, 600, 1000 and then 0000 steel wool loaded with WD-40 from Ricksters thread. The front slab went smooth without any issues. The blasted finish is deeper than I expected and is tricky to get out. When you progress to a finer grit it will let you know right quick if you got it. I went back and forth a few times with this.
There was a little more to the rear slab. The integrated lock being curved obviously took more time. I thought by holding the lock even to the other part of the slab while sanding would work but I had low spots doing this. I had to sand a few strokes, check then sand putting pressure where it wasn't sanding and repeat. Then go to a finer grit to see if you got the blasted finish out. If not go back to the 220 grit. It's not as bad as it sounds! Note: after getting the blasted finish out the other grits go really fast.
I tried to get the trouble area to show up but couldn't, so I marked it with the marker. After reassembly I brought the knife in the kitchen and can still see the problem area. Tomorrow we'll see what it looks like in sunlight, then go from there.
After progressing though all the grits I rubbed the slabs down with the steel wool and WD-40. Then I scrubbed everything down a couple times with dishwashing liquid and a toothbrush. I still haven't bought any fluorinated grease yet so I used some lube I use on the locking lugs on my bolt rifles. Then reassembly per CRK instructions. Man!!!!! I didn't think the knife could get any smoother but it Definately is!
Here are a few pics of the knife:
The pocket clip was left factory to show the two finishes. It will be polished shortly.
Now, what to do with this hideous stonewash blade finish?
ROLL TIDE!!!!!
Eddie
I started out disassembling the knife and cleaning everything. First I checked my work table for flatness. I taped the 600 grit paper down and put a guide coat (just like sanding primer on a car) covering the entire knife slab. Then with one stroke I checked to make sure the guide coat removal was even, Edge Pro owners know what I'm saying here.
I used 220, 400, 600, 1000 and then 0000 steel wool loaded with WD-40 from Ricksters thread. The front slab went smooth without any issues. The blasted finish is deeper than I expected and is tricky to get out. When you progress to a finer grit it will let you know right quick if you got it. I went back and forth a few times with this.
There was a little more to the rear slab. The integrated lock being curved obviously took more time. I thought by holding the lock even to the other part of the slab while sanding would work but I had low spots doing this. I had to sand a few strokes, check then sand putting pressure where it wasn't sanding and repeat. Then go to a finer grit to see if you got the blasted finish out. If not go back to the 220 grit. It's not as bad as it sounds! Note: after getting the blasted finish out the other grits go really fast.
I tried to get the trouble area to show up but couldn't, so I marked it with the marker. After reassembly I brought the knife in the kitchen and can still see the problem area. Tomorrow we'll see what it looks like in sunlight, then go from there.
After progressing though all the grits I rubbed the slabs down with the steel wool and WD-40. Then I scrubbed everything down a couple times with dishwashing liquid and a toothbrush. I still haven't bought any fluorinated grease yet so I used some lube I use on the locking lugs on my bolt rifles. Then reassembly per CRK instructions. Man!!!!! I didn't think the knife could get any smoother but it Definately is!
Here are a few pics of the knife:
The pocket clip was left factory to show the two finishes. It will be polished shortly.
Now, what to do with this hideous stonewash blade finish?
ROLL TIDE!!!!!
Eddie
