Stripping First Becker

[JWheel]

It's on its way, Buck! Just be aware that the laser etching will wear with usage around that area, batoning for example.

If that happens, there's an easy fix. Buy a new one and send this one to me.

 

[OutdoorBuck]

It's on its way, Buck! Just be aware that the laser etching will wear with usage around that area, batoning for example.

If that happens, there's an easy fix. Buy a new one and send this one to me.

Haha that does sound like an easy fix! I am not too worried about the laser etching. I do like it and hope it remains but if it wears with time that only means one thing...I have used this knife whish is exactly what I bought it for.

 

[Bobby3326]

Use it and abuse it, clean it and repeat...

 

[OutdoorBuck]

So the blade is looking much better, I cleaned it up with a razor blade and have done some sanding. So with the sanding I have 600 wet/dry and 1000 wet dry. The blade looks a little better after going through two pieces of 600 grit but nothing spectacular. the machine marks are still visible and some of the "patina" are also there. Do I just use a piece of sandpaper in my hand and sand back and forth on the dry blade? how much pressure, how fast and how long should I expect until it gets a satin finish.

Also blade began the process hair popping sharp and now cannot cut paper. I assume this is normal but was just fairly surprised at the drastic difference

thanks again for all of the comments and suggestions, everyone has been so helpful!

 

[JWheel]

Do I just use a piece of sandpaper in my hand and sand back and forth on the dry blade? how much pressure, how fast and how long should I expect until it gets a satin finish.

It's a big job. Many hours. Much elbow grease. I haven't done it myself, but if you search the subforum, you'll find threads from those who have.

Also blade began the process hair popping sharp and now cannot cut paper. I assume this is normal but was just fairly surprised at the drastic difference

Stripping doesn't dull the blade, but if you've rubbed something along the edge (maybe the putty knife or especially sandpaper), you might have dulled it along the way.

 

[Bobby3326]

So the blade is looking much better, I cleaned it up with a razor blade and have done some sanding. So with the sanding I have 600 wet/dry and 1000 wet dry. The blade looks a little better after going through two pieces of 600 grit but nothing spectacular. the machine marks are still visible and some of the "patina" are also there. Do I just use a piece of sandpaper in my hand and sand back and forth on the dry blade? how much pressure, how fast and how long should I expect until it gets a satin finish.

Also blade began the process hair popping sharp and now cannot cut paper. I assume this is normal but was just fairly surprised at the drastic difference

thanks again for all of the comments and suggestions, everyone has been so helpful!

Honestly if your goal is to remove the pits and grind marks you need to start at a much lower grit. It also takes along time as previously stated, took me about 8 hours to polish by hand.

That being said when I did mine I started with 120, I wrapped it around a 2x4 and went to town back and forth tip to pommel applying pressure. I stayed on this grit until most the tooling was gone then went to 180, 220, 320, 400, 600, 800, 1000, 1500, 2000, and finished with a mirror polish at 2500.

Once the tooling marks are gone on the low grits it's important to take your time going thru the higher grits as that'll help get rid of the scratches. If a satin finish is your goal you shouldnt need to go higher than 600, probably will be good at 400. Removing the tooling marks is the most time consuming part, and your going to lose your logos.

Once you've removed the tooling and scratches from sanding , You can also get a satin like finish by going to 800 grit, force a hot vinegar patina on it then sand it with 2000 wet dry and achieve a satin like finish like this.

 

[Ferahgo]

Good stuff there!

 

[Bobby3326]

Looking back on all the work I put into my bk2 it really wasn't worth it. Yea it was pretty when I finished but that was soon gone the first time I used it...Beckers aren't safe queens, there hard use and abuse and keep on going knives.

IMO If I were you I'd call it good and go out and enjoy your beast.

 

[spazcsmc]

Honestly if your goal is to remove the pits and grind marks you need to start at a much lower grit. It also takes along time as previously stated, took me about 8 hours to polish by hand.

That being said when I did mine I started with 120, I wrapped it around a 2x4 and went to town back and forth tip to pommel applying pressure. I stayed on this grit until most the tooling was gone then went to 180, 220, 320, 400, 600, 800, 1000, 1500, 2000, and finished with a mirror polish at 2500.

Once the tooling marks are gone on the low grits it's important to take your time going thru the higher grits as that'll help get rid of the scratches. If a satin finish is your goal you shouldnt need to go higher than 600, probably will be good at 400. Removing the tooling marks is the most time consuming part, and your going to lose your logos.

Once you've removed the tooling and scratches from sanding , You can also get a satin like finish by going to 800 grit, force a hot vinegar patina on it then sand it with 2000 wet dry and achieve a satin like finish like this.

I like the way it looks. Looks Awsome!

 

[spazcsmc]

It's a big job. Many hours. Much elbow grease. I haven't done it myself, but if you search the subforum, you'll find threads from those who have.



Stripping doesn't dull the blade, but if you've rubbed something along the edge (maybe the putty knife or especially sandpaper), you might have dulled it along the way.

Sanding will dull the heck outta the blade. Gotta re sharpen it

 

[orezona]

Looking back on all the work I put into my bk2 it really wasn't worth it. Yea it was pretty when I finished but that was soon gone the first time I used it...Beckers aren't safe queens, there hard use and abuse and keep on going knives.

IMO If I were you I'd call it good and go out and enjoy your beast.

QUOTED FOR ABSOLUTE TRUTH!

Trying to get out the factory grind marks is not a process that is worth the effort, IMO.

Honestly, I really like the "roughness" of a blade after the coating is gone. Makes it appear rugged and ready.

Here's what my KA-BAR Famine looked like after simply stripping it with CitriStrip and putting the scales back on:

You are well within your rights as the owner of your knife to do whatever you want with it, however!

Here's what my Dad's old pilot survival knife looked like after I took the parkerizing off:

But then I decided to add a mustard/vinegar patina and am just as satisfied with the outcome:

Will that particular "look" wear off when I use the blade? Absolutely! I'm not worried about it though because that's just part of the joy of owning a knife and using it.

Getting a BK7 to look like a Buck 119 or something that has a very high polish finish will probably be something you'll regret when you could be chopping, cutting or whatever with your knife instead of spending HOURS sanding, polishing and constantly looking for scratches.

Again, just an opinion but you're doing great thus far and as long as you are having fun, it's your blade; enjoy it!

 

[Bobby3326]

The first time I used it after spending hours polishing it was ruined...actually looked worse than before...That's why I sanded down the polish and put a patina on it then gave it that satin like finish. I'll never polish a user blade like that again...

I did however just strip my schrade kukri and was shocked to see a relatively smooth finish hiding beneath. (Except for the primary bevel grind marks) wish my Beckers came out like that lol

 

[bghorn]

Trying to get out the factory grind marks is not a process that is worth the effort, IMO.

Depends what knife is used for. All of us who use Beckers as general purpose outdoor knife with which we also prep food would curse the very deep grind marks.

If grind marks are very deep like was the case with my Beckers (more of a rasp than knife), all kind of dirt will get embedded. This is not very sanitary. Also, if you cut anything that is moist (food items), moisture will find its way into embedded dirt. Never had a problem with carbon blades rusting until I got Beckers. No matter how much I was wiping the blade, day later I'd find rust spots. Also, whether cutting, slicing, dicing, chopping, smooth blade will perform better.

So I smoothed the blade. 4 hours total, no need to go overboard. Not for the looks, but for the functionality. Was it worth it? Hell yeah! Easy to clean, no rust problems, better performance overall. Looks? I don't care. I don't buy knives for the looks, although I don't mind knives looking good.

Honestly, I really like the "roughness" of a blade after the coating is gone. Makes it appear rugged and ready.

No need to sacrifice performance over looks. Beckers look plenty rugged and ready no matter the finish.

Getting a BK7 to look like a Buck 119 or something that has a very high polish finish will probably be something you'll regret when you could be chopping, cutting or whatever with your knife instead of spending HOURS sanding, polishing and constantly looking for scratches.

Doesn't need to be polished. Just smooth enough to perform as any decent knife should. There is a reason why smooth blades were preferred over rough throughout the history.

Again, just an opinion but you're doing great thus far and as long as you are having fun, it's your blade; enjoy it!

Yep, and sometimes opinions will differ. Nothing wrong with that.

 

[Bobby3326]

Depends what knife is used for. All of us who use Beckers as general purpose outdoor knife with which we also prep food would curse the very deep grind marks.

If grind marks are very deep like was the case with my Beckers (more of a rasp than knife), all kind of dirt will get embedded. This is not very sanitary. Also, if you cut anything that is moist (food items), moisture will find its way into embedded dirt. Never had a problem with carbon blades rusting until I got Beckers. No matter how much I was wiping the blade, day later I'd find rust spots. Also, whether cutting, slicing, dicing, chopping, smooth blade will perform better.

So I smoothed the blade. 4 hours total, no need to go overboard. Not for the looks, but for the functionality. Was it worth it? Hell yeah! Easy to clean, no rust problems, better performance overall. Looks? I don't care. I don't buy knives for the looks, although I don't mind knives looking good.






No need to sacrifice performance over looks. Beckers look plenty rugged and ready no matter the finish.





Doesn't need to be polished. Just smooth enough to perform as any decent knife should. There is a reason why smooth blades were preferred over rough throughout the history.





Yep, and sometimes opinions will differ. Nothing wrong with that.

Yea the grind marks on were deep as well, if you ran your nail down it it's similar in feel to running your nail along the edge of a dime...It took a good bit of patience and elbow grease to not only smooth em but completely get rid of em, along with the pits.

My well sanded one definitely slices better than my just stripped one.

 

[bghorn]

Yea the grind marks on were deep as well, if you ran your nail down it it's similar in feel to running your nail along the edge of a dime...It took a good bit of patience and elbow grease to not only smooth em but completely get rid of em, along with the pits.

My well sanded one definitely slices better than my just stripped one.

You, sir, inspired me. I would never do that if not for pictures of yours. I didn't think it was possible to do it in reasonable amount of time. You managed to do high polish in mere 10 hours, so I though if I do only half of that I'd be good to go. And it took 4 hours. Still some grind marks in some places, but good enough for me.

I didn't use sand paper at all. I have an old Lansky sharpening system which I don't use. Used those stones. Seems to be quicker that way.

 

[Bobby3326]

You, sir, inspired me. I would never do that if not for pictures of yours. I didn't think it was possible to do it in reasonable amount of time. You managed to do high polish in mere 10 hours, so I though if I do only half of that I'd be good to go. And it took 4 hours. Still some grind marks in some places, but good enough for me.

I didn't use sand paper at all. I have an old Lansky sharpening system which I don't use. Used those stones. Seems to be quicker that way.

Well I'm glad my random and sudden act of boredom inspired you lol. It was a fun protect thou just for the experience, however I think if I were to decide to tackle another Becker high polish I'm opting for reinforcements of the powered kind.

The key when using sandpaper is either having it mounted to a platform to work the knife on or the knife mounted and a sandpaper holder. I learned early on in the project trying to sand the knife down while holding onto a sheet of sand paper wasn't gonna go too quick..

 

[TravisH]

Here is Nick Wheeler's excellent tutorial on hand-sanding a blade for professional results.
[video=youtube;4I4x4QLpfnk]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4I4x4QLpfnk[/video]


My first BK10 came with a rough factory grind with several large 'ripples'. It took 8 hours of hand sanding per side to get it perfectly flat. Started with 100 grit and progressed up from there. Here it is with a 1000 grit finish ...

 

[OutdoorBuck]

Depends what knife is used for. All of us who use Beckers as general purpose outdoor knife with which we also prep food would curse the very deep grind marks.

If grind marks are very deep like was the case with my Beckers (more of a rasp than knife), all kind of dirt will get embedded. This is not very sanitary. Also, if you cut anything that is moist (food items), moisture will find its way into embedded dirt. Never had a problem with carbon blades rusting until I got Beckers. No matter how much I was wiping the blade, day later I'd find rust spots. Also, whether cutting, slicing, dicing, chopping, smooth blade will perform better.

So I smoothed the blade. 4 hours total, no need to go overboard. Not for the looks, but for the functionality. Was it worth it? Hell yeah! Easy to clean, no rust problems, better performance overall. Looks? I don't care. I don't buy knives for the looks, although I don't mind knives looking good.






No need to sacrifice performance over looks. Beckers look plenty rugged and ready no matter the finish.





Doesn't need to be polished. Just smooth enough to perform as any decent knife should. There is a reason why smooth blades were preferred over rough throughout the history.





Yep, and sometimes opinions will differ. Nothing wrong with that.

That looks awesome, could you go into detail regarding how exactly your sanding progressed? Grit, motion, time, equipment? also do i have to worry about messing up the grind at all while sanding?

 

[bghorn]

That looks awesome, could you go into detail regarding how exactly your sanding progressed? Grit, motion, time, equipment? also do i have to worry about messing up the grind at all while sanding?

I didn't use sand paper but Lansky sharpening stones, 70, 120, 280 and 600 grit and WD40.

No other tools. Held it in hand. Squirt of WD40 on the blade before sanding. Most was done with 70 lengthwise because I wanted to get rid of grind waviness. About 1 hour per side. Then about 5 minutes with 70 but perpendicular to the edge. About 5 minutes for 120, 280 and 600 each, also perpendicular.

In total about 2 1/2 hours for both sides of primary grind. About 45 minutes per side for swedge.

I don't think you can mess up the grind with sand paper. But you may the swedge. If you use sand paper for the swedge, use as hard of a sanding block as you can get. Otherwise the line between primary grind and swedge grind will be rounded. You want as fine line as possible.

So, about 4 hours in total, Lansky stones and WD40.

This is what I started with. If your knife has even deeper grind marks, it will take longer. If you want high quality results like those of Bobby3326 or TravisH, double the time (if not triple).

Good luck!

 

[Bobby3326]

I don't think you can mess up the grind with sand paper. But you may the swedge. If you use sand paper for the swedge, use as hard of a sanding block as you can get. Otherwise the line between primary grind and swedge grind will be rounded. You want as fine line as possible.

I didn't care about the transition between the 2 as I plan on going full height convex .. However I have found that by smoothing that transition out since it greatly improved it's slicing capabilities. Material doesn't get hung up on it anymore.

You can see the difference between stock and modified in this pic