Rust!!!!!!! Arghhhh!!!!!!!!

Do you have an opinion on wax instead of oil? I've always been an "oil" guy, but after tons of reading opinions from guys in the business, seems like most are using wax now. I've ordered some Ren wax and got some Mothers. I think I'm going to do my own side by side corrosion test. Those two waxes vs mineral oil vs gun oil vs 3n1 etc.
 
I recently made a concoction of 1 part beeswax and 3 parts coconut oil upon recommendation for a leather finish on another forum. The wax seals and water resists the leather and the oil makes the mixture melt for application at a much lower temperature. This thread has me thinking why wouldn't a compound that oils and seals not provide the best of both worlds for knives too, not just their sheaths? What say you distinguished and much more experienced gentleman?

Thank you,
Chris
 
The Japanese sword society Used several old Japanese blades that were broken . They cut it into 10 pieces . They then put each piece in the oil to be soaked and then wrapped in linen for 30 days .They used 10 of the most popular rust preventatives . The only blade piece that did not have rust was, the pure mineral oil ( no perfumes) or smell goods. I was really surprised . Sometimes the simplest things work the best .

I think any concoction of oils or wax that works for long time is OK in my books. Japanese sword steel rusts like crazy , even a small fingerprint can cause permanent stain. So if it works on them, one would extrapolate that down to steel that has more alloys ,less rust, it should work great. Bubba
 
I agree with Bubba-San to avoid the smelly organic type compounds.

I make mostly culinary weapons & Olive Oil is the one that many think would work best for knife steel. WRONG! It can turn rancid after a while and make you poop like a goose! I Prefer waxes, but if you are going to use an oil refrain from organic ones.

To sum it up, whats good for leather isn't necessarily good for steels
 
I recently used some Renaissance wax at Tom Krein's shop. I hadn't used wax on steel before. He uses it on his blades and hasn't had any problems. I've been using Break Free or Rem Oil personally before I ship my knives. I'll be making the switch to wax
 
Does anyone know for sure if a steel's corrosion rate is different if it's hardened vs. annealed? I'm going to set up my own corrosion test of 1095 with a few different treatments. The blanks I'm going to use in the test are all annealed. Just wondering if the results would be the same with hardened steel?

Here's some possible candidates I'm thinking about comparing. The oils are what I think the average customer would have on hand.

Renaissance Wax
Mother's Carnauba
Rem Oil
3n1 Oil
WD40
Mineral oil
 
Anthony there is a product that I was supposed to try out but have not yet. Dyna-tek slick shield and it is designed for the cutlery industry, I talked to the guys they are out of Kansas City and they are producing it in limited quantity now. Search them on Facebook there is a video demoing it that looks good.
 
As for your test, I'm pretty sure if you coat a blade real well with wax, unless you do something to scratch it off, it not going to rust. Moisture shouldn't get through it, but I can't wait to see your results none the less.
 
Does anyone know for sure if a steel's corrosion rate is different if it's hardened vs. annealed? ....

I know for sure that there is a big difference with martensitic stainless. No idea if it would apply to something as simple as 1095 - but the results would surely be questioned unless hardness and finish approximated that of a finished blade.
 
Yeah, Randy, I know. I like your stuff and you pull off the aged look very well. I haven't tried an aged or period look on anything yet, but I do like it when you guys do it. Maybe if I ever move into forging too, I'll leave a few with a raw look. But, for now, rust is an enemy. I have a corrosion test underway, I'm on day 8 or 9 of being exposed to the elements with several different treatments. Here's a sneak peek, I'll post a full result in a month or two when I've drawn some conclusions.
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i'm on this like a rat on a Cheeto. I can't wait to see your results. They don't look too bad so far, even the bare 1095 looks pretty decent for 9 days outside. My new little belt knife took a trip from Texas to Mississippi this past Sunday, on my belt sheath, in a car with no AC. The exposed portion of the tang that was next to my belly on the trip had red rust on it when I got home. It was waxed, but I'm sure the heat and the liquid together with some friction was enough to rub it off. It's 1084,, 400grit finished with wax only. My heart just about sank. I took some 400 grit though and after a little rubbing it looked good as new...then I caked on some more wax and kept going.

Anybody else have similar experience like that where it rusted a quicker than you thought it would?
 
Yes! Try this on for size.

CPM154 hand sanded to 2000 grit. I put painters tape on the blade to keep it from being scratched during handle glue up and shaping. Life got in the way and it sat like that for about a week. I pulled the tape off and saw brown spots all over the blade. I was hoping it was just glue from the tape. Acetone and a paper towel didn't take it off. WD40 didn't, either.

So I clamp it up and start going over it with 2000 grit. No luck. 1000 grit. No luck. 800 the spots began to fade but wouldn't go away. 600 grit- still shadowy spots.

So I guess now I get to start over completely with the handle slabs in place. Oh yay. Can't wait.


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If your scales are already on there and the rust is up on the ricasso, I don't think you'll get it looking right again. At least that's been my experience. You might just have a new one for the "gift" pile. I'm not too crazy about putting tape directly on the blade anymore, I've had issues with that before too.

My rust test is really driving me crazy, I can set a blade on the bench inside my shop for a couple days and it'll rust. I've had blanks outside for almost 2 weeks and they still look pretty good. Doesn't make any sense. Hope it works out for you!
 
Luckily it's not on the ricasso. Unfortunately, I've gotten pretty good as sanding them with the handle on. Did I ever tell you about the time I etched a customer's name on the blade per request, then sent it Canada, and then got a phone call because I had misspelled the name? No, I didn't tell you? OOOH, well I can assure you that was a jolly old time. I etched that sucker good and deep, too. The kind of etch that a guy is really proud of. I took that one to 120 grit and back to mirror without completely destroying the knife. Got it back to customer and he thought I somehow just re-etched it. I was proud of that.

Turns out being a serial dumbass does in fact make for learning experiences.
 
and I'm all over this thread for this very reason. as soon as I pulled that tape off this thread immediately came to mind and I searched frantically for it to remember which kind of wax Ed recommended. I'll have a bucket of that wax before you can say "pass the blue tape, dumbass."
 
I empathise the rust frustration I had a drill bit sitting in the rain and wet and dry due to a hey honey I need help moment, and the other "safe and dry" yeah not the case. Weather abused bit slight patina the other is orange.
 
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