Today I tried out a "rust removal" product that I picked up at a local WoodCraft store on one of my khuks. The directions read that you should apply and let it sit for 30 to 60 seconds, then wipe dry. So I tried it out on the Malla I picked up a few weeks ago, which had a small rust spot near the point of the bend, on the left side.
Well, it did remove the rust. It also put an ugly patina on the blade in a spray/splash pattern. Turns out this stuff contains phosphoric acid! Needless to say I was a little ticked off.
So there I am, feeling low, looking at this ugly dark grey splat mark on the blade, when I remember that I had intended to try putting a patina on this blade anyway! So I said what heck and sprayed this stuff all over the blade and let it sit for about two minutes. The blade is now a dark, cloudy grey with subdued, swirling grey tones and blue tints. In the sunlight you can catch hints of golden brown, more blue and a little red here and there. It actually doesn't look too bad, not quite as colorful as the case hardend finish you see on some guns but very similar. The hamon isn't as visible as I would have expected but it is there if you look for it, especially in the sweet spot. I'd post pics if I could but I don't even own a camera.
All in all, this unintentional experiment of putting a patina on a blade went well enough. I genuinely like the results and can see some mistakes I made in the application which I won't repeat in the future. However, the most important thing I learned was to completely read the label of anything I let near my khukuris again!
Well, it did remove the rust. It also put an ugly patina on the blade in a spray/splash pattern. Turns out this stuff contains phosphoric acid! Needless to say I was a little ticked off.
So there I am, feeling low, looking at this ugly dark grey splat mark on the blade, when I remember that I had intended to try putting a patina on this blade anyway! So I said what heck and sprayed this stuff all over the blade and let it sit for about two minutes. The blade is now a dark, cloudy grey with subdued, swirling grey tones and blue tints. In the sunlight you can catch hints of golden brown, more blue and a little red here and there. It actually doesn't look too bad, not quite as colorful as the case hardend finish you see on some guns but very similar. The hamon isn't as visible as I would have expected but it is there if you look for it, especially in the sweet spot. I'd post pics if I could but I don't even own a camera.
All in all, this unintentional experiment of putting a patina on a blade went well enough. I genuinely like the results and can see some mistakes I made in the application which I won't repeat in the future. However, the most important thing I learned was to completely read the label of anything I let near my khukuris again!
