Spyderco Forums

Hey all,

I just got my first Spyderco on Friday. A Scorpius. I really like it.

I have a few questions about taking care of it. I have only begun getting into knives in the last 6 months. I only really own 3 knives.

What I wonder is:

Do I need to clean it?....if so with what and how often?

Do I need to oil it?....if so with what and how often?

Also, this knife will be my EDC. It will cut rope, packing tape to open boxes, plastic zip ties, and I will use it to whittle from time to time.

Do any of you clean your blades off when you cut into a box and that packing tape adhesive gets all over your blade? About the only way I have been able to clean that stuff off is by stabbing the box about 10 times and the stuff just wears off :) I know that sounds silly.

I'm really a beginner at knives all together. Thanks for being here for folks like me to ask

Sincerely,
David (Fisher of Men)

Fisher of Men wrote:
What I wonder is:

Do I need to clean it?....if so with what and how often?

Do I need to oil it?....if so with what and how often?

Do any of you clean your blades off when you cut into a box and that packing tape adhesive gets all over your blade?

Sincerely,
David (Fisher of Men)

David,

1. Warm soapy water, and rinse well. Blow residual water out with compressed air or warm with hair dryer.

2. I like Militec-1. Rem-Oil is easier to get and works well. some folks like Tuf-Glide also.

3. A little rubbing alcohol takes tape residue off quickly. Some WD-40 on a cloth also helps dissolve adhesive residues.

Zrexxer wrote:David,

1. Warm soapy water, and rinse well. Blow residual water out with compressed air or warm with hair dryer.

2. I like Militec-1. Rem-Oil is easier to get and works well. some folks like Tuf-Glide also.

3. A little rubbing alcohol takes tape residue off quickly. Some WD-40 on a cloth also helps dissolve adhesive residues.

I was going to say almost verbatum what Zrexxer voiced...but yes, you do need to clean and oil them as needed to keep your knives in good shape. And if you get into some extra-nasty goo, lighter fluid (like that for zippos and such) also works well to break down stubborn adhesive

I read an article in Tactical Knives magazine about a custom knife maker (who is now retired) who oiled his knives with vegtable oil because not only did it protect the steel but also wasn't toxic when cutting food. I usually use olive oil (which is a good substitute) to remove adhesives from just about anything. If that doesn't work the lighter fluid is also a good suggestion.

olive oil is expensive, i'd go for kanola :D
other that, i got nothing to add, it's all been said.. just get a sharpmaker :p

Aloha Fisher of Men!

Ah...your :spyder: will let you know "when and how"!

i.v: Shalom! Why did the nurse slap me when I told her what you said to say to her?! :mad: NO, no...just kidding!!! Unless I know what it means, I ain't saying it...not to an Israeli combat trained nurse!!! :eek:

God bless :cool:

i always clean my knives with hot tap-water, and sometimes immerses in the sink if it's really dirty (HOT water). after watering it, i 'slash' a few times from different positions to get most of the remaining water out, then i wipe the blade on a clean rag, then i pocket the knife. the combination of pocketing the knife after cleaning and the hot water will make sure it dries soon.

when it comes to oiling, i thnk i'm one of the few who doesn't lube folders' pivot-areas, too messy and i don't think it's really necessary. :o :rolleyes:

btw. i clean my knives: after peeling fruit, after sharpening, after use outdoors, etc....

if i've used my knife to cut relatively 'clean' materials and no real cleaning is necessary, i just wipe the blade with the inside of my shirt/sweater.

hey daywalker! i'd never let you get slapped on purpose :p
all it means is "hello my brother, how's it going?" loosly translated :D

gotta get back to the topic now :rolleyes:
oiling is important one in a while denn, it doesn't have to be done every time you wash you knife as todays steels are quite stainless & all :)
but everynow & then it's important for cleaning little things that stick & for smoothing the action (thus reducing friction & wear)

Mahalo i.v!!!

That's cool!

Yes, let me stick to the topic here...uh...Fisher of Men, also don't forget to use a toothpick to clean out the debris that builds up in the lock well...

God bless :cool:

Usually just compressed air will clean out your knife, unless it's sticky or food. Then just hot soapy water in the sink will do it.

I prefer miltech-1 for lube, though I have CLP, hoppes #9 and mineral oil in my knife care stuff too. Do not use veggie or canola oil on your knife, it will go rancid in about a week. Just use a non-toxic lube(mineral oil is available cheap under the laxitives section of the pharmacy).

As to cleaning the blade, I usually just wipe it off on either my sleeve or a papertowel. Tape residue can be done quickly with lighter fluid.

Like VW said...don't use cooking oils. My Police can attest to how rancid the stuff can get. It makes a mess. Hot soapy water and a hot water rinse is the best to clean I have found. I use White Lightning which is a teflon based lubricant. Stays on for a long time. Take Care and keep em clean and sharp :)

i.v wrote:oiling is important one in a while denn, it doesn't have to be done every time you wash you knife as todays steels are quite stainless & all :)
but everynow & then it's important for cleaning little things that stick & for smoothing the action (thus reducing friction & wear)

nah, i'll stick with my opinion :p , with my cleaning-method (regularly with hot water, and i'm talking HOT water here, as in steam and painful on the hands... :) ).

the first thing that always bothers me when i get a new knife, is the yellow/greenish goo that keeps coming out of the pivot area, even after 2 dozen swipes to get rid of it, i hate it.

i think if you thoroughly rinse your pivots with hot water on a regular basis, you don't need lube. i only use oil on automatics, because those are the only knives that rely heavily upon it, but i still don't like oily goo on my blade, especially when using my knife to prepare fruits and such.

no oil for me, thank you very much.....

d

Thanks to you all for the good info.

God Bless,
Fisher of Men :D

For cleaning any sort of sticky stuff off knife blades inc., glue, chewing gum use Eucalyptus Oil. I don't oil my blades as such but I do have a chamois cloth impregnated with lanolin (non-toxic) which I use to wipe blades with.

Also, a standard car wax such as Turtle Wax works very good at cleaning gunk off and it protects the blade too

my knife care routine goes somthing along the lines of

carry a knife for a week, then wash it with soap and a scrubbing brush (normally while im in the shower)
if i have goo on the blade i find that Clean streak or just a deodorant/aftershave on a rag cleans it off well (note this works well on permanent marker too) then i reoil the pivot with white lightning, work it in (by opening and closing a few times)

then it gets a quick run over the sharpmaker

it then gets put back on the shelf and another one is picked for the next week

my advice to you is get a sharpmaker - they work really well and are so easy to use it aint funny

I don't do much cleaning or oiling, only when its needed. But I love to keep my knifes sharp. The ceramic benchstones are good enough to get my blades back to shaving sharpness again. When you are used to carry a sharp knife you just can't stand a dull one in your pocket.

ok, although i never did it with a Spyderco, i did wash a blue Benchmade mini-griptilian, because it went dirty doing some gardenwork. I could not get the brown out of the light blue handle, and because it was just a Benchmade :rolleyes: i washed in the dishwasher. it came out very clean, i just had to reoil it with oil. I don't know if :spyder: are dishwasher resistant , but that Benchmade was.
Be carefull though, you should rinse your blade of after cutting fruids with it. Some fruits have acidic juices that can stain a blade. Just rinse the blade of, and dry with a paper towel.

Echo63 wrote:carry a knife for a week, then wash it with soap and a scrubbing brush (normally while im in the shower)

my advice to you is get a sharpmaker - they work really well and are so easy to use it aint funny

Just make sure you don't drop the knife :eek:

I second the Sharpmaker motion though, well worth the investment.