Removing rust from steel liners

[Fanglekai]

I have a GEC #15 Radio knife with steel liners. It's showing active rust in the pivot area and in the liners. I regularly apply mineral oil to the pivot but it gets humid here in the summers so mineral oil isn't always enough. I've tried 600 and 1500 grit sandpaper with no luck. I don't want the active rust to cause damage so I'd like to find a way to remove it. Any suggestions?

 

[knarfeng]

This...sounds like a job for the Maintenance Forumites...

 

[Bill DeShivs]

Flush it out with WD 40. Work the blade.

 

[Fanglekai]

Tried that today. The rust is still on the liners and in the pivot. I'll try sandpaper with wd40. Steel liners and humidity are a bad match.

 

[JustinR]

Wrap some sand paper around a popsicle stick and work it that way. Sme of it may be rust stain and could come off with some polishing.

I have an all steel 15 barlow that I rinsed with lemon juice to patina the liners springs and bolsters as I was getting pepper spots. No problems since then.

 

[benchwarmer380]

In my estimation WD40 is more of a lubricant/protectant. Try something like Breakfree CLP. It does a great job of cleaning up nasty stuff like rust and gun powder. Spray a little inside and let it sit for a minute then spray a little on a Q-tip and scrub the inside of the liner.

 

[pnsxyr]

For something like that, you need an abrasive metal polishing compound or a wading cloth. On the less abrasive side there are Cape Cod Cloths and Bar Keeper's Friend. On the more aggressive side there is MetalGlo and 3M Professional. IMO you need something more aggressive as it will otherwise take forever.

If the rust itself is past minor-moderate surface oxidation and has pitted, that's much more involved and generally you are going to need something like a Dremel, a drill attachment, or a small standalone product that can buff in the fashion of a small rotary buffer, in combination with a heavy cut polish.

Another consideration is that the rust itself is possibly on other parts of the metal you cannot see or reach with the knife assembled. If that is the case, controlling the rust is tricky if the knife cannot be completely taken apart for a thorough cleaning, polishing, and proper lubing.

After getting the rust off, a good protectant will ensure the knife stays rust free. Choosing a good protectant is a frustrating process at times because quite a few protectants that are popular for whatever reason outright suck.

Mineral oil is a terrible protectant and, like Militec-1, it can sometimes expedite rusting faster than doing nothing at all.

 

[Bill DeShivs]

Just keep opening/closing the blade using Wd 40. It takes a while.
Keep abrasives away from the pivot area of knives-this includes sandpaper. The grit WILL get into the joint where it will embed itself and cause problems.
Wipe the area with a cloth or paper towels, work the blade, and apply a little more WD 40.
I restore knives for a living, guys.

 

[Fanglekai]

The rust is on the surface still as the corrosion happened very recently. Thanks for the suggestions. I don't want to damage the pivot or the ebony. I'll keep at it with the gentler stuff since there is no pitting. My other slipjoints have brass or nickel silver liners. I think I'll stick with those in the future for ease of maintenance.

 

[Fanglekai]

Just keep opening/closing the blade using Wd 40. It takes a while.
Keep abrasives away from the pivot area of knives-this includes sandpaper. The grit WILL get into the joint where it will embed itself and cause problems.
Wipe the area with a cloth or paper towels, work the blade, and apply a little more WD 40.
I restore knives for a living, guys.

Tried this again today for about 20 minutes. The corrosion is still there where the blades aren't rubbing the liner.

 

[Obsessed with Edges]

Tried this again today for about 20 minutes. The corrosion is still there where the blades aren't rubbing the liner.

I'd bet the rust is laying in shallow pits in the liners, which may be why it's not being scrubbed away by opening/closing the blade. Might use something like a popsicle stick with some baking soda (make a paste with some water, or even oil) to scrub the rusty area in there. Baking soda will work as a very mild abrasive, enough to dislodge red rust, but not abrasive enough to harm the steel at all. That's how I clean a blade of residual rust after applying a vinegar patina. Just wash the knife afterwards, and the baking soda will dissolve. No issues with it getting into the mechanism and causing problems.


David

 

[Bill DeShivs]

Baking soda is a good idea. Since there seems to be a rust problem in that area, after you dry the knife, again flush the pivot area with WD 40 to displace any moisture left there, then dry and oil.

 

[Fanglekai]

Thanks for the suggestions. I'll give that a try next.

 

[Fanglekai]

Baking soda seemed to remove some of the rust stains but not all of it. I wish I could disassemble the knife as this would be so much easier. No more steel liners in my future.

Any other suggestions?

 

[Bradb4178]

wd40 now makes a rust remover. It has worked well on some knives that have developed a little rust.

 

[Obsessed with Edges]

Baking soda seemed to remove some of the rust stains but not all of it. I wish I could disassemble the knife as this would be so much easier. No more steel liners in my future.

Any other suggestions?

What are you using to scrub the baking soda (stick, brush, etc)? Red rust is usually pretty easy to dislodge, unless the tools used just aren't able to reach it.

One other option that can work, but you have to be careful with, is to use some Bar Keepers Friend powder. It mainly relies on oxalic acid to dissolve rust, though it also contains a mild abrasive. I've used it as a paste, mixing the powder with some water. With localized spots of rust, it can work when dabbed specifically on the rust spots with a Q-tip, allowed to sit for maybe ~30 seconds (no longer than 60 seconds), then wiped & rinse off (thoroughly). I've used it this way, in removing spots of rust from kitchen flatware and even dishes (stoneware) that've been left too long at the bottom of a wet sink, with flatware laying on them.


David

 

[pnsxyr]

I agree with Bar Keepers Friend. Make a paste, soak a string that is rough (like crab line or low quality paracord) in the solution, and then use it like dental floss to gently dislodge the rust. Obviously this will still not do anything if there is rust inside the area you cannot see, and rust in that area tends to be more severe than on the exposed portions of metal (because it often does undetected for much longer periods).

If you have access to it, if all else fails a very effective method is fine grain blasting. Given this can change the cosmetic finish if it makes contact with areas you do not want to treat, it's not a DIY job but a lot of people have these and use them a lot, so a neighbor with the tools and experience can be useful here. It's a very effective method even when rust gets pretty bad, and the finish it leaves can be really cool cosmetically.

 

[Fanglekai]

I was using a bamboo chopstick that I cut to reach inside the liners. Q tips won't fit.

 

[Obsessed with Edges]

I was using a bamboo chopstick that I cut to reach inside the liners. Q tips won't fit.

Might use something like an old credit card with some fabric or a paper towel wrapped around the edge, or the tip of a small screwdriver used in the same manner, with fabric. Sometimes it just comes down to finding the right 'fingers' on the implement, to get down into the shallow pits and massage the rust out of them.

If you can, you might also post a pic of the knife, with a view into the liner where the rust is. Might lend some useful perspective in generating some better tips for cleaning it out.


David

 

[Fanglekai]

I used some Barkeeper's Friend powder and turned it into a paste. Used the bamboo chopstick again. Looks to be rust free now. I washed it thoroughly, applied WD-40, wiped that off and then applied mineral oil to the joints. All better! Thanks for the suggestions. It might have caused a little damage to the pivot but if it did I don't notice it. The action on both blades is smooth still and they don't feel or sound gritty.

This Radio Jack is a user. I've carried it most of the summer and opened quite a few beers, so really the staining wasn't too bad. Glad it's gone though.

My camera is just a little Panasonic point and shoot but it does take pretty detailed pictures. A lot of little marks are showing up that I cannot see by eye.