Rust...Who cares, right?

Are we talking "rust" or "staining"? If there's big flakes of orange brittle junk coming off your knife, it's probably your own dang fault... or else it was junk to begin with.

I own a small handful of carbon steel knives that have been used, abused, and left to "rot" in leather sheaths longer than some of us have been alive. None are corroded to the point that they can't be sharpened-up, or even polished up.

I've purposely left high-carbon-steel knives in wet leather sheaths over the course of a 4-day camping trip or ten, just to see what would happen. I've never had one "rust". They all stained to varying degrees, naturally. 0000 steel wool cleaned 'em right up, although there was some minor pitting that didn't affect performance.
 
Only time rust really bother me is when I can't get to it. I.E. Under a handle that has a sloppy fitting job.
 
It can cause quite a serious problem if it's formed on the very cutting edge.
In that case, rust works as a micro chipping of the edge.

Because of this, I take care of my blade not to leave corrosive substance on the cutting edge.
Other than that, I don't care at all.
 
I clean ALL my knives nightly with Hoppes #9 and then oil them with Otis UltraBore. Nothing beats the smell of gun oil and DEET in the woods!
 
Corrosion control is my business, …and I know oxidation.


Rust, left un-checked, can consume your blade.

Other types of oxidation can form a patina that can actually help protected you blade from deeper corrosion.


I little rust in the field is no big deal, …but don’t let it fester.




Big Mike

”Scaring the tree huggers.”

Forest & Stream
 
Keep it dry, keep it oiled and it will serve you well.
You take care of it and it will take care of you.
Scott
 
My suggestion is the following.... (This is what I did.)

Take a knife, one that is not too expensive.... I chose a Mora Craftsman.

And use the heck out of it. If you hear that this vegetable or that condiment will rust it, go out of your way to use that knife with the stain causing agent.

Keep doing that, over and over again, and see what happens.

If you like what a particular agent does, clean the blade up, and do the whole blade that way.

If you are still playing around with it, and you have rust, and pits, and stains of different shades....

Try cold blue. Go where they sell gun cleaning chemicals, buy some cold blue and some steel wool, follow the directions on the bottle.

You will learn much.

Marion

PS - In other words.... Staining is OK, and can keep your knife from rusting. If it does rust, clean the rust off, and re-stain it. Unless you enjoy being a slave to your knife collection, you will probably experience rust from time to time, clean it off, oil/blue/stain it and your are back in business.
 
You can always apply a wax finish over the affected area. You might be surprised by just how long it lasts before scratching off. :)
 
Some of my buddies would stab a few onions and let them sit on the blade overnight, I tend to use a browning solution on my raw steel blades. I don’t like to see my knives rusty to the point of pitting, I feel its bad maintenance. I have been treating my leather sheaths and holsters with a solution of water and Ballistol to neutralize the acids left from the tanning process.

I don’t like any rust on my guns particularly on the internal working parts.
 
I had really bad staining and rust problems on my Gossman PSK. It's O1, and one of my hard use blades. Scott suggested I put a metal polish, like Ren Wax, on the blade. No problems. I forget the brand I got, gotta go home and check. Patina is welcome on all of my tool and carbon steel blades, but not rust. Patina is the sign of good use, but rust is a sign of careless use (and I let my PSK get rusty).

I used to store all of my carbon and tool fixed blades in the sheaths. Unless its my EDC, I leave it in a zippered case these days with some silicate packets.
 
Scotch brite will quickly take care of most rust.

Forget taking mineral oil into the bush with you... instead run your finger down the side of your nose. Yep... this organic oil works pretty good in a pinch.

Cold blue is innefective at preventing rust in my experience. It LOOKS like it should work, but everytime I have tried it seems to promote more rust.

A really deep etch will stave it off for a while though.

EDIT: is cold blue really just a deep etch? How does this stuff work anyway?
 
I must be OCD.

I oil, strop, and clean up my blades with a fine scotchbrite after use. I also clean and oil my guns after shooting em, every time. I pay alot for these things, and I wanna take care of em. Not neccisary, but its just something Ive become accustomed to doing when cleaning up and storing my gear.

Heh...I also wax my riding mower, and my mountain bike though too....
 
j williams said:
I must be OCD.

I oil, strop, and clean up my blades with a fine scotchbrite after use. I also clean and oil my guns after shooting em, every time. I pay alot for these things, and I wanna take care of em. Not neccisary, but its just something Ive become accustomed to doing when cleaning up and storing my gear.

Heh...I also wax my riding mower, and my mountain bike though too....
Click to expand...

Man, I'd love to work with you. I bet you keep your ambulance spotless and organized! :D Ever start a shift and your ambulance is turned over to you looking like the scene out of a horror film? I bet the guys who shift change with you love to see you coming. :p
 
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