Removing a stain from a blade?

mxlj

mxlj

Joined
Sep 15, 2005
Messages
121
I have a question, the knife i made for my brother-in-law got stained from cutting tomatoes. it is a mirror polished 1095 skinner. I havent seen the knife as he is now many states away. But he asked me if there is a way to remove the stains? anybody got any ideas? thanks.
 
That, my friend is called a patina and means the knife is getting used. Carbon steel blades WILL do that. It is natural and to a certain extent, protects the blade from further oxidation. It will be nearly imposible to avoid and is usually highly saught after by knife enthusiasts who understand what it is. Every patina is different, embrace it, love it... be proud. Have your bro-n-law blotch mustard on the entire blade and wait 3-4 hrs. It will make a very cool patina.

If you wanna pretend you can keep it a bay with chemicals that will taint your food, try some of that wadded jewelery cleaner.


I say let it be and enjoy it.


Rick
 
Yep! somthing called the postal system. Clean it up for him.
If it were mine, I would go cut some more tomatos and get a nice ever patina! But that's just me.
Mike
Maker
The Loveless Connection Knives
 
What they said.

The problems in this dilemma come from words in the sentence that don't belong together:

Mirror Polished
Skinner
1095
Slicing tomatoes

Mirror polish is not suitable for carbon steel, or just knives like skinners, or kitchen tools used to slice things.

Skinners are working tools and will get scratched and stained. Carbon steel makes great skinners, but stainless is the steel of choice for most skinners because of the severe environment and conditions they are used in.

1095 is a carbon steel and will take on a patina if exposed to acid ...and rust if left damp or exposed to acid. The natural dark patina that slowly forms is usually speed up by soaking in ferric chloride or vinegar during construction. This patina is an oxide layer that helps the blade avoid rust.

Slicing tomatoes is an acid task done in a wet environment. There are several schools of thought as to whether stainless or carbon is better, but when carbon steel is used, it will slowly form a patina. In a kitchen tool made from 1095 ( which is a great choice in my book), the patina shows that the knife is being used.

Trying to maintain a mirror polish is a waste of time on any user knife, so let the patina form. Just wash and dry the knife after use and time will take care of the rest.
 
I'll have to differ with that one.

Knife Makers, including the top manufactures have been mirror polishing carbon steel for years. Ever wonder why a Case in 1095 steel is almost always polished, while their stainless blades are many times a fine ground Finnish?
Why virtually all better military sword's are of high polish?

Same with Boker. When we fully polish a carbon blade, it is for the purpose of sealing of the steel. ( It burnishes the surface and closes any porosity.) This prevents corrosion from getting an easy foot hold. In stainless, this isn't nearly as important. There fore I maintain it is MORE important on high carbon tool steels than stainless steels. Not less so.

This has been done on good cutlery, and swords for a couple of centuries at least. It isn't done simply to look flashy. It has a very definite purposed.

Sadly, three of the hardest things a knife maker can master, and shows the upper echelon of skill, are being lost. The soldering of the guard, ultra tight fit and a high degree of finish. So many modern makers are sorely inadequate, or entirely lacking in one, or all of these areas.

What is described proudly as a solderless guard for instance, is nothing more than a very important step being skipped. Once again, it is more important on carbon blade than on a stainless blade.
On a safe queen, it probably makes no difference. But on a knife that can be used, it is Very Important!
Sadly, it is on these very blades that it has become fashionable to be skipped entirely. (What the Smith is really saying, is that either it is too much trouble, or he lacks the skill to do it properly).

Don't confuse patina with corrosion. It is two different things entirely.

Mike
Maker
The Loveless Connection Knives
 
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Patina (pronounced /ˈpætənə/ or /pəˈtiːnə/) is a tarnish that forms on the surface of bronze and similar metals (produced by oxidation or other chemical processes).

Corrosion (kəˈrəʊʒən) a process in which a solid, esp a metal, is eaten away and changed by a chemical action, as in the oxidation of iron in the presence of water by an electrolytic process


I don't think they are two totally different things, Mike.... perhaps they hold different meanings for people. How I understand it, patina is just corrosion "controlled" in it's infancy.

I agree, that a highly polished surface will resist corrosion better than a porous one. I also agree that any mechanical joints are made that much better with soldering. Where I begin to stray from your way of thinking is when you talk of "upper echelon" and "lacking/inadequate smiths"... that seems a little to presumptuous for my tastes. In my own experience, I have seen far more users that were NOT mirror finished than those that were. In the hand of a true user, that mirror finish would become just as porous as a satin within a few months. We differ in the fact that I see shiny blades as "safequeens"(I admit, that this point of view is abrbitrary) What has to be taken into consideration is basic tool upkeep and maintenance on the part of the owner. Why have some Old Hickory's outlasted Marbles? A pressed out blade with a riveted handle.... go figure?

Your arguements make a lot of sense, Mike... and your skill as maker far exceeds my own. Everybody has their own criteria for what makes a good tool. My own experiences and those of others whom I hold in high regard, has guided me to make what "I believe" are the best knives for their given purpose. I think that any honest maker would be after the same goal.
 
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Yes, chemically they are the same. But in the knife world, the meaning is quite different. With totally different meanings to both customers, makers, and especially collectors. This is after all, a knife forum. Now if we were discussing scrap yard metals in a reclaimed metals forum, it might be different.

I have mirror polished blade that I have been using for years, and were passed down from family members fro the farm. Hard used knives. They are now very dark, but without any pitting. Your experience may differ.

This has Bent one of the rifts between the different methods of making knives, among others, for a very long time. We aren't going to settle it here. Or any where else for that matter.

If you were into collection vintage military edged weapons, it would be readily apparent the long term effect original finish has on a steel blade. It's all there for the seeing.

Mike
Maker
The Loveless Connection Knives
 
Yes... user requirements, likes, dislikes and personal experience are all relative, I suppose. I do not collect military blades but have done a fair share of research on traditional user blades from around the World.... jungles, deserts, savanahs, Northern country. For the most part, these tools were passed down through generations. When you use tools in your everyday life, they tend not to rust. Long term storage, lack of use or blatent neglect seem to be what puts a blade at the most risk of corrosion.

I did not get into knifemaking practices other than conveying that a non-mirror finish is no more a sign of a lazy/inexperienced bladesmith, than the popular "worn look" in todays fashion is a sign of a poor clothing manufacturer. I may think the latter looks silly and have to wonder what the life of clothing that starts out worn would be.... but in the end, folks wear what they want....... and it all seems to work out... regardless of what the expert opinion may be.
 
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