I just recently got into Classic knives, after years of lusting after one "modern" folder after another, most of them Spyderco and Buck, with the occasional Kershaw
I always kept these knives Scary Sharp (still do) but many times, when it came time to actually *use* them, I fell back on either my multitool blades (Vic SwissTool and Leatherman Surge) or whatever SAK was closest to hand (typically the Soldier or CyberTool 34)
I was always a little hesitant to actually *use* my modern locking folders, mainly because the supersteels I coveted so much (S30V/VG-10/H1) were actually annoying to sharpen, H1 was the easiest to get to an Atom-Splitting edge, closely followed by VG-10, S30V was a bear if I let it get "dull" (not popping hairs is dull to me), but once sharpened back up to Atom-Splitting, it held for a good long time
So here I was with an assortment of supersteels, vaunted for their edgeholding, yet I didn't want to use them and 'dull' them
When I picked up my yeller CV Case Trapper, I initially had the same mindset, didn't want to get it "dirty" or lose the highly polished gleam of the blades, but something changed, I actually started to *use* it, and enjoy using it, in a way my modern lockers couldn't, the blades started taking on a patina, gaining an ever-darkening rainbow of iridescent blues, magentas, oranges, and purples, it looked quite nice
I also noticed that the patina reacted differently to what was being cut, the colors and patterns were transient, impermanent, and constantly in flux, shifting and moving every time the blade was used.....
cut a harder surface, like a small twig or branch, and the patina takes on a pattern of stripes and striations, a fresh canvas for more and different patina...
McIntosh apples gave the blade very attractive multi-toned hues, the aforementioned iridescent blues, magentas, and oranges
Tomatoes darken the patina and shift it a little more to the reddish scale
Red Delicious apples dulled the patina to a flat, uniform gray, quite dissapointing
Lemons simply darkened whatever colors were there, adding a mottling to the shifting patterns
Oranges, coincidentally enough, changed the overall hue of the patina to a much stronger orange colour (who'da thunk it
)
I have yet to see how pears or grapefruits affect the patina, I'm betting that grapefruits will show results similar to the other citrus fruits, pears, I have no idea, I also wonder how potatoes will affect the patina....
Once I discovered this "living canvas", the carbon-steel patina, a funny thing happened....
I started using my carbon-steel blades a lot more, and actually *enjoy* using them, unlike my moderns, I actually *want* to use my carbon blades, as not only is it fun to watch the patina change and shift over time, they're incredibly easy to resharpen, less than five strokes per side on the Sharpmaker white rods, and it's back to Atom-Splitting levels of sharpness
Heck, I've even tried to get my Buck 110 to get a patina as well, but stainless, yes, even high-carbon stainless, just doesn't seem to hold on to a permanent patina, it'll get a faint gray wash when cutting acidic foodstuffs, but the "patina" vanishes when the blade is rinsed and wiped clean
I have come to really appreciate and, yes, even love the patina of a good carbon blade, the various stainless steels seem to be very "meh" to me now
I always kept these knives Scary Sharp (still do) but many times, when it came time to actually *use* them, I fell back on either my multitool blades (Vic SwissTool and Leatherman Surge) or whatever SAK was closest to hand (typically the Soldier or CyberTool 34)
I was always a little hesitant to actually *use* my modern locking folders, mainly because the supersteels I coveted so much (S30V/VG-10/H1) were actually annoying to sharpen, H1 was the easiest to get to an Atom-Splitting edge, closely followed by VG-10, S30V was a bear if I let it get "dull" (not popping hairs is dull to me), but once sharpened back up to Atom-Splitting, it held for a good long time
So here I was with an assortment of supersteels, vaunted for their edgeholding, yet I didn't want to use them and 'dull' them
When I picked up my yeller CV Case Trapper, I initially had the same mindset, didn't want to get it "dirty" or lose the highly polished gleam of the blades, but something changed, I actually started to *use* it, and enjoy using it, in a way my modern lockers couldn't, the blades started taking on a patina, gaining an ever-darkening rainbow of iridescent blues, magentas, oranges, and purples, it looked quite nice
I also noticed that the patina reacted differently to what was being cut, the colors and patterns were transient, impermanent, and constantly in flux, shifting and moving every time the blade was used.....
cut a harder surface, like a small twig or branch, and the patina takes on a pattern of stripes and striations, a fresh canvas for more and different patina...
McIntosh apples gave the blade very attractive multi-toned hues, the aforementioned iridescent blues, magentas, and oranges
Tomatoes darken the patina and shift it a little more to the reddish scale
Red Delicious apples dulled the patina to a flat, uniform gray, quite dissapointing
Lemons simply darkened whatever colors were there, adding a mottling to the shifting patterns
Oranges, coincidentally enough, changed the overall hue of the patina to a much stronger orange colour (who'da thunk it

I have yet to see how pears or grapefruits affect the patina, I'm betting that grapefruits will show results similar to the other citrus fruits, pears, I have no idea, I also wonder how potatoes will affect the patina....
Once I discovered this "living canvas", the carbon-steel patina, a funny thing happened....
I started using my carbon-steel blades a lot more, and actually *enjoy* using them, unlike my moderns, I actually *want* to use my carbon blades, as not only is it fun to watch the patina change and shift over time, they're incredibly easy to resharpen, less than five strokes per side on the Sharpmaker white rods, and it's back to Atom-Splitting levels of sharpness
Heck, I've even tried to get my Buck 110 to get a patina as well, but stainless, yes, even high-carbon stainless, just doesn't seem to hold on to a permanent patina, it'll get a faint gray wash when cutting acidic foodstuffs, but the "patina" vanishes when the blade is rinsed and wiped clean
I have come to really appreciate and, yes, even love the patina of a good carbon blade, the various stainless steels seem to be very "meh" to me now