SR101.......so much for rusting

Snakebreaker

Snakebreaker

Joined
Feb 7, 2013
Messages
1,859
So if you read a bit about Swamps SR101.....one of the downs sides would appear to be rusting at a glance. Now I don't know how or when this became an apparent exaggeration, but I've been rocking my KDSH for about 3 years now and not a spot of rust.

I don't know if some batches are more prone than others (which doesn't really make sense to me) but I do very minimal maintenance on mine. I think my KDSH thinks its made of infi. I'll hit it with a dab of oil from time to time........but its generally bare steel.



As you can see........no issues.

I'm almost wanting to strip my Chopweiler.......but I'm just afraid of rust even though the KDSH isn't phased by it.

Anyone want to share their experiences with minimal maintenance on SR101......I'd love to hear!
 
I couldn't agree more with you. I've always only owned INFI because of this rumor. The only SR101 blades have had coating but I like strippers my self. I have since stripped a rodent solution, Mini Uncle Mojo and an RMD all of which have not given me any problems with rust. I put a mustard patina on the RMD and it looks awesome. I also forgot it out at the camp fire the other night and it was raining all night and into the afternoon. When I finally remembered and got around to retreiving it, it was the same way I left it. I'll post some pics eventually when I find them.

Great post man this myth needs to be dispelled.
 
kniferMan said:
I couldn't agree more with you. I've always only owned INFI because of this rumor. The only SR101 blades have had coating but I like strippers my self. I have since stripped a rodent solution, Mini Uncle Mojo and an RMD all of which have not given me any problems with rust. I put a mustard patina on the RMD and it looks awesome. I also forgot it out at the camp fire the other night and it was raining all night and into the afternoon. When I finally remembered and got around to retreiving it, it was the same way I left it. I'll post some pics eventually when I find them.

Great post man this myth needs to be dispelled.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the feedback. Good info.
 
I have a RMD that I stripped and use it in the yard and such. Never had a problem with rust, of course I live in a very arid area.

It does take an awesome patina after cutting banana leaves.



 
Bare SR-101 that lives outside on a tractor. Surface corrosion on SR-101 is legit, cancerous rust, not so much.
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For anybody who deserves an SR-101 knife, the minimal surface rust is no worry.
Lol, I've only had trouble when I've asked for it with SR.
Things that get beat regularly and get put away with wood and grit embedded in the finish never causes trouble on my Rucki or Kill Devil.
As usual the higher the polish, the less you need worry.
 
I don't think its just SR101 that has this issue. I am huge fan of the older tool steels (O1 and A2 for example), all of them seem to have this problem of "rusting while you look at it". I have seriously neglected the following steels with little to no rust O1, SR101, A2, and 1095. I rarely oil my knives and while they all have patinas from use at this point, I have never once seen anything beyond slight surface rust (left my Izula outside for 5 days in the rain). I think when people complain about knives rusting, if you look at them more often then not the knives are either like new or brand new. Used knives don't often have a chance to rust if given even the slightest of care.
 
I think PK hit the nail on the head!
The people who complain the most abou SR-101 rusting easily are the ones who never use the knives.
We're being spoiled by the choices we have, stainless steel didn't exist a 100 years ago, and didn't really come into cutlery world till after WW2. Which basically means that rusting wasn't really that much of an issue for over 2 thousand years...
 
A taliwhacker LE that I owned got a bit sandy looking after keeping it in a leather sheath in a musty closet for a month, but it was only surface rust.

I've got a stripped mud Mutt that refuses to rust since it developed a patina. I wish I had a few more of these skinny little beasts.
 
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