YCS Karda with a couple of pics and a question

[Mindz_I]

Recieved this from the christmas bargains and I'm most impressed :thumbup:

I picked this up to see if the knife / blade style would suit my needs so I could pick up another and send to Dan Koster for a reprofile and rehandling (sadly postage from UK to US is about 4-5 times the value of the knife if insured).

The blade arrived this morning and I'm most impressed. From the sale thread it's 11" and weighs 10 ounces. I have to say I really didn't appreciate quite how much of a little knife this is!

It feels quite capable of lighter camp chores (tinder / kindling prep etc) and a useable kitchen knife. However the edge does seem quite thick and in need of reprofiling for the tasks it'll likely be used for by me.

The engraving on the handle gives me second thoughts about rehandling. It's much more detailed than my pics show and there are no hotspots with protruding metal as far as I can feel.


I however did not recieve a gurantee along with the knife. I assume it goes unwritten?

--

Anyway couple of pics ;

Sheath is nicely sewn and finished though knife easily shakes out. If I was to belt carry it, I'd probably fit some bungee to it (my intention is to purchase a kydex sheath when the other blade is sent to Mr Koster).

Finally, anyone know what the almost salt-water / glue looking tarnish on the blade is? It came like this and has me a little curious.

 

[Steely_Gunz]

Mindz,
You're knife should have the lifetime warranty. Most DOTD don't come with a written warranty. However, it is always best to check with Yangdu to make sure
I have seen that smeary glue-like stuff on a few of my blades. I don't know what it is, exactly, but it seems to come off with a little polish.
Thats a great lookin knife Those YCS kardas are pretty great "little" workers.

Jake

 

[Fiddleback]

The smeary glue like stuff is grease used to prevent rust on tools shipped overseas. It has come on all my HI blades, and my two KH blades. In addition some type of grease has been used to coat all unpainted surfaces of the tools in my woodshop. It should come off with Windex and some buffing because its a real light grease. My Grizzly table saw had such a thick heavy almost waxy grease I had to use a machinists degreaser and an hour of my own elbow grease. Man that handle is pretty. I gotta get one of those too

 

[Mindz_I]

Cheers guys,

Overall i'm quite suprised with how it handles. I expected a capable belt knife that could maybe chop a little, but the thickness was quite suprising.

It feels alot like the MOD survival knife in terms of robustness and ability to turn it's hand to odd jobs.

 

[jamesraykenney]

The smeary glue like stuff is grease used to prevent rust on tools shipped overseas. It has come on all my HI blades, and my two KH blades. In addition some type of grease has been used to coat all unpainted surfaces of the tools in my woodshop. It should come off with Windex and some buffing because its a real light grease. My Grizzly table saw had such a thick heavy almost waxy grease I had to use a machinists degreaser and an hour of my own elbow grease. Man that handle is pretty. I gotta get one of those too

I am not sure if that stuff is the stuff the put on the knives to prevent rust...
That looks like a dry crystal coating...


Was the 'waxy grease' a problem???
I know a lot of woodworkers that was the bed of their table saws to both prevent rust and to help the wood to slide easily...

 

[Fiddleback]

I am not sure if that stuff is the stuff the put on the knives to prevent rust...
That looks like a dry crystal coating...


Was the 'waxy grease' a problem???
I know a lot of woodworkers that was the bed of their table saws to both prevent rust and to help the wood to slide easily...

I have seen the same kind of smears on all my HI knives. It could be hard and crystalline, but it could be a trick of the light. Mindz_I, does it buff out and then return once resheathed? That means some of the grease is in the sheath. Clean it out and rebuff the blade. Also use a coat of wax on your blade if it continues to return. Regular car wax will do.

JRK--The waxy grease on my table saw was put there at the factory in China to prevent rust and had to be removed. It wasn't so much a problem as a job. Search my posts and take a look at my shop to see the saw. Once it was removed I applied three coats of paste wax to protect it from rust and reduce friction with the wood. The original substance was NOT slippery. Grizzly's protective grease is the toughest I've dealt with. Jet, Delta, and General use a slimier grease to protect the cast iron parts and its easier to remove by a long shot.

 

[Kazeryu]

This is probably stating the obvious, but instead of sending the next knife to Dan and then having him send it back to you, why not ask Yangdu to mail it directly to Dan, and then include the shipping cost to the UK along with the cost of the blade work?

(subject to Dan's approval, naturally)

 

[Mindz_I]

This is probably stating the obvious, but instead of sending the next knife to Dan and then having him send it back to you, why not ask Yangdu to mail it directly to Dan, and then include the shipping cost to the UK along with the cost of the blade work?

(subject to Dan's approval, naturally)

Yep chap that's the plan

I haven't had a chance to buff the marks just yet, but once I do I'll report back. They're most certainly dry rather than just the protective oil / wax, but quite possibly crystaline stuff.

Cheers all.

 

[Fiddleback]

Interesting. Dying to know what it is then.

 

[Svashtar]

I've seen both dry and greasy stuff on the blades. I got the same knife about the same time as you and they could be twins.

Here is all I do when I get a new knife: run the blade under very hot water for a minute or so. Then hit both sides with goof-off or goo-gone or some kind of citrus cleaner just to completely degrease it. Then I coat it with Rust-Free (liquid protectant I get from AG Russell) and put it away. The Rust-Free is great stuff and gives it a nice light oiling that doesn't appear too heavy.

If I didn't have that I would just spray it with Ballistol after the degreasing. That stuff on there will come right off in a few seconds cleaning it this way.

These are great knives. I don't know where else you could get a handmade knife of this quality with a carved handle for what, $65 or $75 bucks?

Thanks,

Norm

 

[cavetech]

Just a thought about your sheath. You may be able to tighten it by dampening it and then forming it to the shape of the upper blade and guard area with a smooth object like a spoon. Of course you should oil the blade first and wrap it in kitchen type plastic wrap first. It will dry overnight. It can also be dried under a heat lamp, but not too hot.

This is what I do after I make a sheath for a kife.

Thanks, Steve