What to use to clean the junk off my knife blade

S

SETXBobcat

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Jul 17, 2018
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Long time lurker, I just don't think I have ever posted

A year or two ago I was remodeling a house, and used my bugout to open a few tubes of some cement caulk type stuff. I don't remember exactly what it was, and I don't remember exactly why I didn't clean my knife immediately and try to take care of it better? There is a thin film of the stuff still on both sides of the knife blade and a small amount on the handle. I recently wanted to start carrying the bugout again, and have tried to clean the blade with no success. I used dawn and elbow grease with a little steel wool. Then I tried CLP and let it soak for a few hours then used the steel wool. Neither on these did the trick, this stuff is pretty stubborn. Does anyone else have any ideas of what I can try? I tried to post pics, but no luck with that either. Maybe I am dumber than I thought.... Thanks!
 
Goo Gone? WD-40? Xylene? Mineral spirits? Trichlorethylene (TCE)? Naphtha? Toluene? Nasty old acetone? DEET? There's all sorts of hungry stuff you can try--assuming you don't live in California, where even distilled water causes cancer.

I'd try to keep the solvents off the scales, though . . . and not inhale (or smoke).
 
Thanks Gents, I'll pick up some Goo Gone and give it a shot. Hopefully it'll be strong enough. The stuff I am talking about is like a cement repair caulk, we used it to glue some loose bricks back in place.
 
a lot of the synthetic cement caulk, patch material is pretty impervious to solvents once it cures. IF it was my knife, I would try scraping it with a sharp razor blade, maybe use a razor blade paint scraper that uses a single edge blade and try to get under it and peel it off the blade. Otherwise a scotch-brite pad might wear through it, but will probably also scratch your blade.
 
SETXBobcat said:
Thanks Gents, I'll pick up some Goo Gone and give it a shot. Hopefully it'll be strong enough. The stuff I am talking about is like a cement repair caulk, we used it to glue some loose bricks back in place.
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Such caulk does sound impervious to most solvents. Hope I've not led you astray.
 
I was all excited to share that Zippo fluid (Ronsonol) is like magic on tape gunk... I don't know what will work on this stuff.
 
I appreciate all the suggestions. I spent an hour or so with a razor blade and got most of it removed. The blade is still stained in a few spots, but I can live with that. Thanks again!
 
Realizing this is all moot here, in my mention of this. But I'm reminded of watching a guy do some sealing & patching work on our roof years ago, as part of an annual roof inspection. He was using some stuff that, if I recall correctly, was called 'elastomeric sealant', which was some sort of very sticky, rubbery/caulk-like, color-matched stuff to plug up holes and gaps in seams on the roof. Tbe stuff came in a 'cookie dough' sort of tube, to be used in a caulking gun. I thought it was strange at the time, that he was just using a cheap, plastic-handled, serrated kitchen paring/utility knife to cut open the nozzle on fresh tubes of the stuff, after which it immediately came oozing out all over the blade. After seeing how sticky/messy the stuff was and the mess it was making of the knife's blade, I understand where his priorities were, and why. He actually also carried a replaceable blade utility knife, but he wasn't willing to use it for that messy job.
 
Get a small can of Zippo lighter fluid (that will cut most adhesives). If that won't cut it try a Q tip soaked in lacquer thinner. If THAT won't cut it you're probably gonna have to use a fine abrasive and get ignorant with it.
 
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