Renaissance Wax

samhell

samhell

Joined
Feb 1, 2001
Messages
916
I just picked up some Renaissance Wax to use on my knives that are just to nice to use and have some questions. Is it ok to use on stag and water buffalo scales? Should I wipe my blades down with oil and then apply the wax? Any cautions and suggestions would be appreciated.

ps. Got some very cool stuff at the SOS show yesterday. Might have some pics up tonight.:D
 
Hi James,
Yes use it on stag, bone, pearl, horn, wood and ivory - pretty much anything except bead blasted surfaces.

If it is a folder I drop a little oil in the joints and pivot area but otherwise for steel just apply it. A little goes a long way.

You are going to love the way your stag looks with a coat of Renn. Wax. A q-tip works great on deeply figured stag.
 
My trick on bead-blasted surfaces is to apply it and put the knife in a semi warm place for a few min. (Car trunk works for me on a semi warm day). The wax melts and then can be wiped off so the surface is left uniform without heavy buffing.

Always be sure you are using a clean, soft cloth. Keep any foreign matter off the cloth and out of the wax.

Great on Damascus too and all steels mirrored or satin.
 
Thanks for the info Gus. That trick for bead blast finishes will be especially helpful since most of my knives are tacs.
 
I would add that for carbon steel blades it is important to clean up any potentially corrosive finger prints before sealing with ren wax. I know this from an unhappy experience a few years ago.

Use rubbing alchohol or the like to clean the blade before applying ren wax. Do not use too much. Use a clean cloth or q-tip to apply. Some advise applying it with fingers but my touch seems to be corrosive. Ren wax also works well on leather sheaths.

One time I was surprised to find that ren wax removed stain from a stag handled knife. This only happened once, with only one knife. I guess the maker just liked to use a little shoe polish to color the stag ;)

Para
 
These are good suggestions. I've tried just about everything, including trying to combine Ren wax with Tuff Cloth. I don't get great results for hard use, although it's fine for display purposes.
I think to be effective, Ren wax has to be right on the steel without anything in its way so it can bond or seal or whatever. The gentle heating idea is particularly good.
I hate corrosion. It hates me. An eternal struggle...
 
Just a tip and something I've done for years. Buff your knives out first with Flitz metal polish and then add a coat of Ren Wax. The Flitz will remove any fingerprints, oil or grease. Your knife will shine!
 
Ren. wax is great for metal and nonporous materials, but for things that need to breath, like ivory, I think it seals it off and causes cracks. For those kinds of things, I think mineral oil is better.
 
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