So Long Jungle Camo!

P

Peter La

Joined
Mar 26, 2005
Messages
2,736
I removed the coating and gave it a satin finish. I am still sanding it and it is not done yet, but I am going to use it so cosmetics don't really matter.

Once all the coating was removed (thanks to nail polish remover and a razor blade), the blade looked pretty good. It was a dull silver and was pretty smooth. I then started sanding across the blade with 280 grit for a while, then started with a coarse pad, then a medium. Again, this is going to be a user so I didn't bother going further. Besides, I think it looks pretty good. :thumbup:

Remember, I am not done but here is what it looks like soo far:

SatinSFNO8.jpg


SatinSFNO7.jpg


SatinSFNO6.jpg


SatinSFNO5.jpg


SatinSFNO4.jpg


SatinSFNO3.jpg


SatinSFNO2.jpg


SatinSFNO1.jpg
 
Peter,
Heavy duty decision that produced some righteous results. :thumbup: That looks better.
 
Thanks everyone. :D

I agree, it looks way better minus the jungle camo coating. I really like the satin finish. :thumbup:

Mtnclimber69 said:
Does your mom know you took her nail polish remover? :eek:

The results are very nice though!
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Not yet! :D

I was thinking of doing this to the HOG FSH. I think it would look awsome! Plus, it would bring out the thickness! :thumbup:
 
You did a great job Peter, I agree, much nicer than the jungle camo !!

I love satin finish blades

:D
 
Peter,

That looks fantastic. I would even go as far as to say it looks "factory" :D

I wasn't as luck with my project.. I have a Public Defender variant with a two tone blade. Since I have access to a bead blaster, I decided to give it a go.

After I got most of the coating stripped, I noticed horrendous, large, deep, dimples. There was no way any polishing or bead blasting will cover it. So, I think I will have the entire blade re-coated.

Again, your knife turned out great. You may be able to give it a nice final treatment using an automobile polisher or by hand using a polishing compound such as Flitz.
 
Nice work, I'm impressed! :thumbup:

Were there any dimples at all, or did you sand them out?
 
Nice job Petr!! Make sure to post more pics when you fully finished :thumbup:
 
Thanks everybody! :D

I am now a total fan of the satin finish. :thumbup:

Matteo Escobar said:
Nice work, I'm impressed! :thumbup:

Were there any dimples at all, or did you sand them out?
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Interestingly, their were no dimples at all. However, the EU-17 magnum has many of the above the choil. They are pretty large too, about half a mm accross and about 1/4 of a mm deep.

Brian, thanks for the idea about the buffer/ Flitz.

Any idea why some Busses have dimples while some do not? :confused:
 
Peter,

I know I recommended against it, but you have done an outstanding job. I am beyond impressed. It looks like a factory finish. I take it you didn't come across any major gouges.
 
Nice work Peter! I might try it on my FSH variant with a camo finish.

:D
 
X-Head said:
Peter,

I know I recommended against it, but you have done an outstanding job. I am beyond impressed. It looks like a factory finish. I take it you didn't come across any major gouges.
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Wow thanks! :D

You are right, under the finish the blade was relatively smooth.
 
Peter La said:
... Any idea why some Busses have dimples while some do not? :confused:
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I would guess it is due to the original vs. finished thickness of the steel. Since the SFNO is .220" thick, and the same thickness blank is probably used for the SFNO and the 1/4" thick FSH for example, the thinner SFNO would require more grinding and hence the smoother finish.

Maybe the amount of CBL used to process the different blades has something to do with it too. ;) :D
 
Great job Peter, satin finish is the way go...me think.

gk4ever: Since the Heavy Duty is .211 thick, I should probably remove the coating and polish the whole blade...thanks for the info...
 
Peter, can you give any more details concerning the entire process such as total time beginning to end, how long did it soak in the finger nail polish remover? Did you have to peel all of the coating off with the razor? Is there anything you wish you would have done differently or anything you wish you hadn't done? What are your plans to prevent oxidation in the field? Any discoloration to the micarta?

Lotta questions, but I have a FSH with snakeskin micarta that I am thinking hard about polishing. I think the satin finish would look wicked with the snakeskin micarta.
 
Sure!:D

1. I applied (with a paper towel)some nail polish remover (from here on in NPR) to the blade and let it sit for a few seconds until it soaked into the coating.

2. I used a SAK (razor blade is to hard to hold) and began scraping away from me, as if I was sharpening the SAK and the blade was the stone.

3. The NPR helps a lot but the coating is really tough to get off. It will NOT come off cleanly, but rather in small pieces as the coating does not "flake" but "roll" off the steel. (Keep the SAK sharp to make the process go faster)All the while adding more nail polish remover to the steel. The same goes for the tang, spine, and skull crusher.

4. Once I had done this, I worked around the micarta slabs (with the SAK) (they were not effected by the NPR). I worked carefully around until I had removed all of the coating on the blade. I think it is a good idea to use a "cheap" knife because a good one would have a higher hardenss and thus scratch the blade, I did not scratch the SFNO at all with the SAK.

I then used a bottle opener (perfect size) and cleaned out the talon holes. This works pretty well to remove most of the coating. I then used a hex key wrapped in sand paper to clean them up.

5. I started with the 280 grit and worked across the blade until it looked pretty good. Then I did the same with a medium and coarse emery pad. The pad it really useful because it conforms to whatever is being sanded.

As for what I would have done differently, I am pretty happy with what it looks like now. I am not sure how long it took me, maybe four hours on and off. I have not noticed any discolouration before so I am not really worrying about that. Anything else, I will try and explain.:thumbup:
 
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