Wd-40?

A

ayz

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Jul 5, 2004
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Is this a good thing to use, in place of militec and/or tuff glide?

i ask because i happen to have a can of WD-40 lying around, whereas militec and tuff-glide i would have to special order online.

i have a tuff-cloth to wipe down my blades. the main use for this would be to make the joints smoother.
 
WD-40 literally stands for Water Displacement, 40th attempt. That's the name straight out of the lab book used by the chemist who developed WD-40 back in 1953. The chemist, Norm Larsen, was attempting to concoct a formula to prevent corrosion -- a task which is done by displacing water. Norm's persistence paid off when he perfected the formula on his 40th try. WD-40 cleans and protects metal blades.

Check out their website for more info: http://www.wd40.com

By the way, I don't use WD-40 for my knives.

Good luck!
 
i only use wd 40 on my mini AFCK and BM43... its great for cleaning the gunk out and then following up with militec but i wouldn't trust it on anything with wooden scales etc. it's great for cleaning tape glue and other crap off your blades too, just make sure you rinse with alcohol if you use it for food.
 
yeah, i'm trying to do this mainly for the BM710HS, so i can't disassemble it since it will void the warranty. I have the tuff cloth, but since it can't go into the joint i have the option of usnig WD-40 or waiting for an order of militec or tuff-glide to come in.

so WD-40 won't harm the blade, the BT2 coating, or the g-10, militec and tuff-glide are just superior, correct?
 
so my question is still, if WD-40 is all i got, can i safely use it to clean/lubricate my knives?

preferably those with experience using WD-40 can comment on it so i don't screw up my folders.
 
actually i use compressed air to try to blow out as much WD40 as possible. so far the WD40 and militec hasn't affected my G10, but after the abuse its been through... dropping, hitting, etc. i'm not surprised. if i wasn't so cheap i would use tuff glide to clean out the pivot and then militec after. btw, you can disassemble your BM's without voiding your warranty as long as you put it back together properly.

edit - what else do you have lying around? if i didnt have militec i would try to find some tri-flow or 3 in 1. just order the sample, you should be ok untill then.
 
but you should order the militec, or I use Tuff Glide. These are formulated for applications like good gun or knife maintenance. WD-40 is more generalized, like 3-in-1. If it is all you have, then it is better than nothing, but if you are serious about keeping your stuff in good shape, get some Militec or Tuff Glide. You can never have too many lubricants around! :D

Best Regards,

STeven Garsson
 
WD-40 isn't really a lubricant, it's (as noted before) a water-displacer. Use it to clean gunk out, but then use a proper lubricant for ... lubricating. You can get a little sample pack of Militec for free, ya know.
 
WD-40 is an excellent multi-purpose lubricant. I use it on almost all my knife and sword blades, without any problem. Just don't get it (or any petrolium product) on rubber parts like grips, since it will, over time, help them to deteriorate. I haven't tried it on any of my blades with special coatings though, so I don't know if it would remove a teflon finish or other blade coating or not.
 
I use WD-40 to clean my knives because it disolves the old oil and washes out all of the crud, then I hit it with compressed air to get rid of the WD-40 and put a thicker oil on for lube. Right now I'm using a suspention fluid left over from working on my motorcycle. I figure the stuff is made for extremely low friction and compatability with metal in contact with nylon and rubber washers and seals - sounds exactly what a knife needs to me. I would not recommend WD-40 as the lube though. Given a little time, WD-40 will evaporate leaving very little residual lubrication, any motor oil or something of the like will work a lot better. Next time you have an oil change done to your car, ask for the empty bottles (if they use bottles). The little bit of oil stuck to the sides of the bottles should be enough to oil a knife about 100 times at least. For now the WD-40 is better than nothing, but I would reapply two or three time a month until you can get a better oil that will last longer.
 
so given my current materials

WD-40
compressed air
tuff-cloth

it seems like the ideal method would be to clean everything with WD-40, then blast out the WD-40 with air. then wipe down the blade, including the joints, with tuff-cloth so that the tuff-glide on the cloth can serve as a lubricant.
 
I don't know how well the tough cloth will get down into the pivot. I would just leave the WD-40 as a lube for now. It's actually a very good lube when liquid. Only in my experience the stuff dries up after a couple of weeks.
 
Back in the 70's, the police department I worked for, along with a lot of other departments, used wd40 for the lubrication of handguns and shotguns.

It was found that over time, the wd40 turned into a semi-solid varnish like substance which would actually impede the firing mechanism, especially in freezing temperatures, rendering the firearm usless. The departments in my area ceased using it, switching over to g96 when it came on the market. It doesn't solidify like wd40.

wd40 will soak into wood like any penetrating oil, and made rubber type grips (Pachmeyer) grips slimy.

It is a good cleaner and water displacement agent, with a blow out followed by a good lube. Millitec is my choice, although there are other good lubes available.

Thomas
 
is Chuck on vacation or something? i figured he'd have FILLED this thread with WD-40 lore. oh well.

abe
 
WD-40 is great for cleaning gunk and old oil off of steel, but you have to completely remove it and re-oil your blades afterwards. A blade that has been wiped with WD-40 is completely bare (unprotected) and very susceptible to oxidation.
 
zinn1348 said:
It was found that over time, the wd40 turned into a semi-solid varnish like substance which would actually impede the firing mechanism, especially in freezing temperatures, rendering the firearm usless. The departments in my area ceased using it, switching over to g96 when it came on the market. It doesn't solidify like wd40.
Click to expand...
That's been my experience as well. I like Breakfree, but have been using Tuf-Glide my knives with complete satisfaction.
Jim
 
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