un-polishing a knife?

N

newdovo2

Joined
Sep 7, 2004
Messages
48
Hey Folks,
I use Maas metal polish a lot on knives & straight razors. Keeps 'em shiney, and also has rust prohibitive properties. I've been told that it's just a polish, but it must leave something behind, particularly for it to help prevent rust.
I've found that, with my chiruwa AK, if I've been out chopping with it, it tends to gray a bit where the Maas gets scruffed off. I've been using this knife, so rather than trying to keep it looking like a shelf queen (can't remember who used that phrase, but I like it :) ) I'm thinking about graying the whole thing and just keeping it oiled.
I'll dig a little deeper for the posts on patina-ing a blade. But what solvent or technique may work to remove polish? Any thoughts?
Thanks for your help.
Parry
 
I think if you clean the blade rigorously with dish soap and a rag before applying the patina, it should also remove any residue from the metal polish.

They say you should wash the blade until the water sheets off the surface.
 
Rubbing alcohol, dish soap, lots of hot water. Im not sure but I have also used muzzleloader cleaning solvents and windex with the other methods and they seemed to help. Im not too sure about the muzzleloader solvent, but I dont think it can hurt.

My best results for pre-patina cleaning was to run the blade under hot water, scrubbing with dish soap. Then dry and go over it with a cotton ball soaked in rubbing alcohol. Get it squeaky clean, and you may want to remove the old patina to even it all out.
 
Use some fine sandpaper or Scotch-Brite on the blade first and then proceed to wash it and patinize it, makes a patinaed blade look better IMO.
 
Thanks for the replies.
Khukuri Monster said:
They say you should wash the blade until the water sheets off the surface.
Click to expand...
KM,
That's it. Water beads up un-naturally on the AK now, after the polish application. That will be my guide for making sure it's about right to start.
Jebadiah_Smith said:
Rubbing alcohol, dish soap, lots of hot water. ....and you may want to remove the old patina to even it all out.
Click to expand...
JS,
I'm going to try it all. Except for the muzzle loader cleaner. I don't have any of that. :rolleyes:
Yvsa said:
Use some fine sandpaper or Scotch-Brite on the blade first and then proceed to wash it and patinize it, makes a patinaed blade look better IMO.
Click to expand...
This is interesting, Yvsa.
Tell me how it would look compared to an un-sanded/scotchbright quickie patina'd blade and/or a naturally (over time) patina'd blade.
If I do this, does it make a difference in the direction that I rub the thing with my selected abrasive? Circular, parallel to the edge, perpendicular to the edge...?
Thanks,
Parry
 
A patina applies better to a scratched up surface better than a smooth one because there is more exposed surface area to patinate.

Remember to neutralize the patina with some sort of base and soak the blade in oil afterwards.
 
newdovo2 said:
Tell me how it would look compared to an un-sanded/scotchbright quickie patina'd blade and/or a naturally (over time) patina'd blade.
If I do this, does it make a difference in the direction that I rub the thing with my selected abrasive? Circular, parallel to the edge, perpendicular to the edge...?
Thanks,
Parry
Click to expand...
The sanded or Scotch-Brite blades don't show splotches as badly IMO. I think they look better rubbed parallel to the edge. Be careful when rubbing next to the edge as Scotch-Brite will dull a blade beyond belief!
I don't worry so much about the patina as I do the tree sap and other crap that gets on a blade. WHen mine are in use I often use the S-B on them to get rid of it, but then I'm lazy.:rolleyes: ;)
We'll see what happens with the standard Foxy Folly when I get a chance to use it. I blued its blade so I might change my mind on what to do with it.:D
 
When I use the leather belt on the grinder to sharpen the khuks after use, I also finds that it automagically restores the mirror polish! So I'm just keeping my khuks mirror polished from now on, since it seems to be better at keeping the rust off. Plus they're shiny...
 
My khuk has pretty much had every finish on it.

The mirror is nifty and helps cutting efficiency by reducing friction. The only downside is it gets scratched up easily. This is not a problem if you have a buffer, leather or felt belt because you can touch it up to a better than factory shine. Very good rust resistance because its just a smothe surface, hard for rust to penetrate/grab hold/whatever.

The satin sure looks bad ass. Its good because it doesnt show any but the deepest scratches. The downsides are that it isnt as rust resistant, and to me it seems that its harder to clean vegetable matter off. (Mr. Clean Magical Eraser works great! ;) ) It also doesnt reflect as much, good for tactical ninja-ey types.

A satin finish with a deep patina is my absolute favorite. It combines the best of both worlds, except for the mirrors cutting efficiency. It doesnt show scratches, it can rust a little but it seems to always form just on the surface and can be removed with steel wool, its durable, it doesnt glint at all and can even have camoesque patterns. A deep (hour or so) mustard patina will take all the abuse you can throw at it. Patterns can be put on with mustard and a finger, and relish gives a wootzy pattern. I think it looks badder asser than a satin finish, but im not a tactical ninja-ey type.My hands down favorite. :cool:

Although they all have their appeal. Besides, its a khuk, you're just improving perfection!
 
The only thing about the satin finish is, after you finish chopping and you have pine sap, etc. on the blade, you can't just leave it on or it seems like it gets rusty. Even if you can steel wool the rust off, it still forms, so you need to keep it oiled after you use it.

When I had the mirror finish, I could go chopping, come in, set the blade down and forget about it for a week, and come back, and there would never be any rust at all. I've even come in from out of the rain, and only wiped the blade down with a towel, and it didn't rust.

At least this has been my experience. Although I did love the way the patina finish looks the first time I saw it.
 
Although I never said that a patina never needs oiling...

I would never leave pine sap on my blade, but my care system is less than meticulous. I rarely oil my patinas, just after removing organic matter, or after wiping a blade that got wet. I have never had rust except on the tip and like I said, this was not deep and was removed with a light steel wooling. keep in mind this was after a few weeks sitting in the sheath unoiled, after cutting grass and dry brush. The satin/patina is still fairly smoothe and the patina is baisically just a form of controlled rust. Rust doesnt form if you have a deep enough patina because there is already a type of rust there and I believe carbon has been removed from the surface. This is also why I NEVER patina the cutting edge.

I have read that forged knives are less prone to rust because of decarborization on the surface due to the forging process. I think this is in the same vein as what happens in the patina.

I have never tried slapping some patina on a mirror polish. I assumed that it wouldnt penetrate. Now im wondering if it would be more rust resistant and have the cutting efficiency. The only drawback is that scratches would show.
 
My kitchen knives are almost all carbon steel blades, which patina naturally with use. I never oil them, and simply wipe them dry after use. If they have been in contact with corrosive stuff, I rinse them off under the tap, then wipe them off on the dish towel. Otherwise, I let nature take its course, and they do quite well. Some of them for well over 40 years, and they look fine to me :)
 
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