Ok so I'm freaking out... I received my CPM 20cv blade back from HT and went on to hand sand it and etch it in Ferric Chloride to have a darker look and it was all good and fine until I took it out at one point and when I rinsed it, it fuc**** SCALED?? Like a whole layer just peeled off! WTF? I instantly panicked and had a smart heart attack. My solution is 1 part FC 2 parts Distilled water.
What caused this and did I just ruin my baby? I took it to the bench and resanded the whole thing from 150 to 1500 by hand, wetting it with my tears of despair... Anyone ever experienced this? I see stone washed 20CV blades all the time, why did mine decide to borrow the snake spirit and shed its skin?
Here's a picture after sanding down all that gunk back to shiny state.

What caused this and did I just ruin my baby? I took it to the bench and resanded the whole thing from 150 to 1500 by hand, wetting it with my tears of despair... Anyone ever experienced this? I see stone washed 20CV blades all the time, why did mine decide to borrow the snake spirit and shed its skin?
Here's a picture after sanding down all that gunk back to shiny state.
