Surprised with my steel

[Crimsonhooch]

Alright, I know that steel rusts. I just had no idea how quickly. I purchased a cold steel trailmaster sk5 about 6 weeks ago. It looked perfect when I got it but I think I made a big mistake. I wiped all of the cream/gel "stuff" (whatever it was) off the blade when I opened the package. I then put it back into the box, not sheath. I packed it up and moved states. 1 week later I pull out my knives excited to see them again and there are what look like speckled rust spots on many place on the blade. I quickly wiped it down with wd-40. The spots did not come off but I have seen no new ones appear. So, do the knives have to stay completely covered in oil forever or they just rust away? This will be a pain if I'm in the field a few day and have not packed oil in my pack. BTW I'm in eastern Texas so we have practically no humidity right now.

 

[zyhano]

I was very surprised to see my carbon knives (1095 esee, 5160 buck, opinel) literally rust in front of me in humid climates in the field. It can happen in less than an hour. If you keep them dry (and the sheath) and preferably oiled then it won't be that much of an issue when storing them. In the field, just try to keep them dry as much as you can and especially the sheath. The less runny the oil is when storing, the better, since it won't run off.

 

[Obsessed with Edges]

Keep it clean. If there are any residual acids or salts from food, or from the oils on your hands, left on the steel, they'll accelerate rust dramatically. And dust particles can absorb moisture and trap it against the steel. And, once it's clean, keep it dry. Don't re-oil the blade until you're sure it's completely clean & dry, as the oil itself will trap whatever's left underneath it.

BTW, if you're in East Texas, and the humidity is low now, that's likely temporary. That's out of the ordinary for East Texas (usually very muggy). The humidity will be back. I just moved away from central Texas (near Austin), after having been there for 20 years. It's pretty common for moisture to condense on cool surfaces (cars, windows, etc.), even during the warmer months, especially overnight. Any space that isn't environmentally controlled (garages & storage buildings, the trunk/back of a car/pickup) will be vulnerable.