Protective coating for carbon steel blades.

M

Marlin01

Joined
Sep 20, 2011
Messages
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I am open to any Ideas.
I put my knife that I had just made from 1084 in a leather sheath just 3 hours before presenting it to my customer. The blade already had some rust spots from the leather sheath. The blade was highly polished I thought this would help prevent such rust. He still loved the knife, but it killed me to see that rust on the blade that was perfect.
 
Just wipe it down with an oil cloth. What type of leather was the sheath made from? Chrome tanned leather is notorious for rusting blades. I always take and wash the blade down with isopropanol and then wipe with a light oil. Rem Oil is a nice one but almost any will do. Nothing I hate more than working on a blade and coming back to it a few days later and its spotted and rusty.


-Xander
 
What type of leather did you use? Was it absolutely dry when you put the knife in? The problem with sheaths can be if they are made from non veg tanned leather the chemicals will rust carbon steel blades. Also if there is any moisture at all it will also cause rust. Wax is a good thing to use on your blade but the trick is to not wipe it all off. When presenting a blade to a customer I provide a zipper case. They are not that expensive and will save a lot of trouble. I educate the customer to not store the knife in the sheath. Leather can absorb moisture and that will rust the blade. So it is best to use the knife, re-oil/wax and put it back in the case.
 
Knives like guns need to be oiled

Leather can have corrosive chemicals in it so be careful.

In a pinch you can tell your customer to wipe the oil off the sides of his nose and coat the blade with it to protect it after use.

I use the "Tuff Cloth" and it works great for storage.

BTW never store a knife in a sheath.
 
Thanks, Xander,
I think it was chrome tanned. I should have put oil on the blade I don"t know why I did'nt think of doing that.
 
If it is chrome tanned you need to get it back and do a veg tanned sheath. Even if you oil the blade it will still rust it very fast. I did it one time looong ago. The guy never used the sheath and I have no idea if he ever did. It only took about 10 minutes to start to rust with the first sheath I had made for it. The second sheath I lined with felt and it seemed to be OK. I had no idea the difference between veg and chrome. My old man bought me a half hide of leather. Not good. It was a waste of money in the end. Had to throw it out.
 
Thanks for that advice, Chuck
I am a real rookie at leather work. This particular sheath was one I made from an old gun holster.
 
I hate leather work. I would rather work out details with the customer if they want a sheath. Then send them out to have it done. That way I know it will be done right and I can make a knife in about the time it takes me to make a sheath.
 
I'm thinking it must be the leather in that particular sheath, or else you didn't oil the blade. I have carbon steel and damascus using knives that I leave in their sheaths pretty much all the time. They always go in clean and with a light coat of oil. Zero rust.

Roger
 
I agree, if the sheath was chrome tanned it needs to be redone. Either that or the sheath was wet, possibly the knife wasn't oiled.

I use Ballistol on my knives before they are stored. As an experiment I have a Ballistol treated O1 steel knife stored in a leather sheath made from the vegetable tanned leather we use.

The knife has been in the sheath about six months. So far there is absolutely no rust or even a patina from the sheath. I used Ballistol on the sheath too and the leather looks awesome.
 
On sheaths that I will supply with hunting knives and fillet knives, I completely submerse the veg-tanned sheath in neatsfoot oil, and then drain well. I wipe it free of the excess, and let it cure for a couple weeks. That will oil and seal the leather inside and out from absorbing moisture in the wet and rugged environments they will be used in.

Any attempt at pouring melted bees wax or other waxes into a chrome tanned sheath will make a mess....and probably not stop the problem completely.

Make or purchase a proper sheath for that knife.
 
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