Will this rust my knife?

Weasipoint

Weasipoint

Gold Member
Joined
Aug 8, 2019
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587
Hey all sorry if this is a dumb question,
Went mountain biking yesterday and didn't use my head so had my limited WE Fornix in the front pocket. Went down pretty hard and landed right on the knife, caused some scratches on the handle but also got alot of dirt inside it. I'm always nervous to disassemble my blades in case I lose something 0r my big fingers can't get the parts back together, but opening and closing the knife you can hear and feel the grinding of dirt inside. My question is, can I use my water Pic to squirt down it and clean the dirt out? Or will that cause more harm than help? If it comes down to it I'll just have to take it apart, just trying to avoid that if there's another way to clean it out. Thanks for reading and thanks in advance for any opinions on the matter!
Weasipoint
 
If you don't have compressed air, pressurized water could work. If you're concerned about water causing rust, spray WD40 throughout the knife after. The "WD" in WD40 stands for "water displacement".

Good to know for any folder that might get soaked in water, or permeated with sweat.

I don't know what steel your blade is made of, but even stainless steel can rust.
 
Awesome that's really good to know! I already have wd40 so will give that a try, I'm always just iffy about mixing any blade with water, really appreciate the info
 
Waterpik is fine, if you're talking about the one for cleaning teeth lol. As long as you get all the moisture out, shake it or better yet blow it with compressed air. Finish with some lube.

All my WE and Civivi have been easy to dissemble so dont be afraid.
 
You’ll never know unless you take it apart and clean it. After you flush the knife with whatever, there’s always that slightest possibility that something wasn’t flushed good, or you still have that gritty feel. with a knife what you don’t see can cause issues down the road.
 
Yeah that's what I'm afraid of too, not getting everything out and it just sitting and ruining the components, if it comes down to it I'll take it apart
 
I say take it apart and clean it yourself. It doesn't seem to have any complicated parts to it. Two handle slabs, bearings and the blade. Clean everything with hot soapy water and dry it. You can apply a drop or two of oil to your finger and roll the bearings around to coat them so they don't squeal, but don't oil them like you would a washer knife.

If it makes you ill thinking about disassembly, use brake cleaner as suggested and then dry it well. This is how i clean my knives to get them back into service quick, but a complete tear down is really best.
 
Had to look at your knife first

WE Knife Co. Fornix | 2016B Black Titanium | Blade HQ

Limited edition Fornix 2016B from WE Knife Co. has a black titanium handle with a black stonewash blade. The thumb hole allows easy access to the blade.
www.bladehq.com

brake cleaner should not dissolve a titanium handle, I would damage a plastic handle. I don't like brake cleaner . I received a chemical burn from brake cleaner. The nitrile glove I was using broke while holding a part in the gloved hand, and a can of brake cleaner in the other. My skin peeled for over a year. Brake cleaner is nasty stuff that nothing in your body will neutralize. So it stays till the skin sheds. And I would say, brake cleaner is not needed for removing dirt, probably won't dissolve the stuff anyway.

I clean lots of folders in hot, soapy water such as this

3VIOUi1.jpg


or this Queen Mountain man

vGqEZQF.jpg



Sometimes I grab an old toothbrush and scrub, always swish the thing in the water, then rinse it off in hot water. Then, I shake the knife. Note: only swing the knife in the direction of the locking spring. That way, if the blade is not 100% locked in, you don't receive a deep cut on the finger. Guess how I learned that frame locks can't be trusted! I blow down the blade channel and wipe all the water that comes out. Do this several times till no more water comes out on the blade.

If you have compressed air, so much the better, but not everyone has an air compressor. I do have one, but I let the air out, and the water that accumulates in the tank, so it is a big bother to start the thing up.
 
I really appreciate the info guys! I'll go ahead and take it apart when I get home from work and see how it goes. I really like the knife so it would be better to disassemble instead of leaving anything in there that could ruin it
 
Weasipoint said:
I really appreciate the info guys! I'll go ahead and take it apart when I get home from work and see how it goes. I really like the knife so it would be better to disassemble instead of leaving anything in there that could ruin it
Click to expand...
Get yourself a silicone mat or even a large zip loc bag and disassemble on/in it so so the parts don't go everywhere. Make sure you use the right sized tool and you'll be fine! Also, don't over tighten, knives won't rattle apart if they're fit well, like your knife. Just snug it up and a tiny bit more.
 
I don’t like disassembling folders unnecessarily and I don’t like water in mechanisms. I’d leave it assembled, blast it with WD-40 ONLY, and only disassemble if there’s any grittiness left. Good luck!
 
Using hot water works well but make the water boiling hot. Those of us Old guys remember cleaning our M-1 and M14 in the large mess hall trash can with the submersible water heater. They came out dry. Wipe down and lightly oil/dry lube. Do use something to keep up with the little parts so you are not down on your knees looking all night.
 
First, glad you are OK.

For your knife, there are a couple of important things that can rust: Pivot, steel washers under the bearings, the steel lock interface, maybe the screws if not Ti.

Just take it apart and clean it, should be straight forward; there are Youtube videos showing how it’s done.
 
Just got home from work, going to give it a try. Yep I'm ok, hit a tree and fell off the trail but luckily my backpack took the blunt of the fall. Thank you all for the advice, I'll post an update when I get it finished, love the knife so now I know to leave it home next ride lol
 
Glad you’re ok.

I landed on my collar bone a few weeks ago,



And this is as straight as my pinky gets after last summer’s folly:



I guess I need to ride with MORE KNIVES to brake my falls!

😁😁😁

I’m a big fan of WD-40 followed by copious compressed air. I usually follow it up with a gun or knife lube on the pivot, followed by more copious compressed air.

If still gritty: Wiha.
 
BD_01 said:
Glad you’re ok.

I landed on my collar bone a few weeks ago,



And this is as straight as my pinky gets after last summer’s folly:



I guess I need to ride with MORE KNIVES to brake my falls!

😁😁😁

I’m a big fan of WD-40 followed by copious compressed air. I usually follow it up with a gun or knife lube on the pivot, followed by more copious compressed air.

If still gritty: Wiha.
Click to expand...

Yep. My right collar bone has a knob, too. Different type of bike though, the 80 cubic inch kind.
 
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