Ultra sonic cleaners

[WolfSpring]

So I was reading a search result about cleaning old knives and the term ultra sonic cleaner came up and I searched that and did not find what I was looking for. I have an ultra sonic cleaner I use for clearing spent brass casings I use distilled water with a hint of dish soap recipe and it works wonders on brass. I was reading you could use it for everything that isn't wood on this forum so I am wondering who has tried this and any tips, recipies for the solution, lessons learned and what not. i will experiment with an all metal knife I have first but I have some older bone, or fake bone knives from Imperial and Camilus from the 50s/60s that are hard to clean properly and this might help out a lot. It's amazing I never thought of this as I'd think it would ruin plastic, bone and whatnot. I will experiment with some stuff and post my results as well, but I could turn this into a great thing. Also I read mitec or mineral oil on the wood/bone handles after they are clean to prevent shrinking, if they are 60 year old knives is this needed, advised? I look forward to seeing what others have done with this.

 

[Bill DeShivs]

I use a couple of larger ultrasonic cleaners in my shop. While they are good for cleaning, they won't remove the heavy stuff. They can also drive the coloring from bone.
Don't put oil on bone- it softens it.