Which side of the washer should be lubed

[para-para-paramilitary]

So I was wondering which side of the washers should I apply lubricant, between the washer and the blade or between the washer and the frame?
Maybe the knife was designed to function one way over the other.
I was also thinking of using a spray graphite lubricant. Any thoughts on that?

[Ippon]

I lube my knives on both washers, facing the blade. I have used quite a bit of lubrications, and so far nano oil is my favorite. pricey, but it lasts forever and a day, and is great lubrication. I have never tried a graphite lubricant.

[Evil D]

I lube both sides of the washers for good measure. I've tried graphite lube and wasn't impressed. I use plain old Vaseline or Phil Wood bearing grease.

[bearfacedkiller]

Lubing is the most over thought aspect of this hobby. OP, just put some lube in there and move on to something more important like the edge. We all like different lubes. I use mineral oil. Many think it is inferior and it may be. I think it is cheap, easy and effective. I keep it near my cutting board anyway so it is always handy. I have knives that have never seen a single drop of oil that are smooth as glass. I use it on knives mainly to keep corrosion out of my pivot. Since corrosion prevention is my main concern I prefer the entire ricasso as well as the washers oily so I say oil it all.

[foofie]

Lubing is the most over thought aspect of this hobby. OP, just put some lube in there and move on to something more important like the edge. We all like different lubes. I use mineral oil. Many think it is inferior and it may be. I think it is cheap, easy and effective. I keep it near my cutting board anyway so it is always handy. I have knives that have never seen a single drop of oil that are smooth as glass. I use it on knives mainly to keep corrosion out of my pivot. Since corrosion prevention is my main concern I prefer the entire ricasso as well as the washers oily so I say oil it all.

Agree with this. I use mineral oil very sparingly.
I have found too that too much lube is counter-productive. Excess lube collects dirt and lint, which leads to more frequent washing, which leads to the need for more lube application.

[vivi]

If I have taken the knife apart I'll lube both sides of the washers. I usually don't, so I just put a few drops of mineral oil in the pivot, cycle the action a few times, then wipe off any visible oil.

Mineral oil is so cheap its basically free, you can buy it in any town on earth, its food safe and it gets the job done. Seriously, $1 worth would last a lifetime if it didn't have an expiration date.

I think lubing is incredibly over thought as well.

[para-para-paramilitary]

is mineral oil the same as baby oil?

[bearfacedkiller]

Baby oil is usually just mineral oil with fragrance added. Mineral oil has many uses. I buy it in the laxative section of the drug store.

[The Mastiff]

Yep, good advice above. I'll add the spray on aerosol lubes that dry and leave the non sticky coating of whatever is the lube. I use teflon usually. Being dry it doesn't collect and trap grit but it also has no corrosion protection so if that is important to you then select another.

[dplafoll]

If I take it apart, which it sounds like that's what you're doing, I'll put it back together with 2-3 very small dots of 10w Nano-Oil on each side of each washer. I want just enough to be effective, but not so much that it's going to attract a ton of lint. But as others have said, lubrication is often overthought. It's one of those aspects of the hobby that you can put more into if you want and it gives you some positive feeling about it, but you could also not do that and be functionally OK. Same with sharpening; I bought a $300 sharpening system because I wanted it, not because I needed it over my Sharpmaker.

[Fred Sanford]

Dude, you're putting WAAAAY too much thought into lube. Just lube it. It really isn't that critical.

[peacefuljeffrey]

Baby oil is usually just mineral oil with fragrance added. Mineral oil has many uses. I buy it in the laxative section of the drug store.

Thank you for both of those bits of information. I didn't know either of those things; now I think I'll get some mineral oil to have on hand.

By the way, would there be any drawback, then, to using baby oil to lube a knife, if you like the scent? :D

[para-para-paramilitary]

I usually use motor oil in a syringe. Personally I feel baby oil is too thin, there is no film strength. Try putting a drop of mineral oil and motor in between you thumb and index finger now squeeze and rub. You'll find that mineral oil get displaced and you can feel your skin rubbing vs the motor oil which retains a film.

Now I'm not saying mineral oil is inadequate, I would probably use it if I had a food prep knife. I was just sharing my preferences and the reason.

[para-para-paramilitary]

I lube both sides of the washers for good measure. I've tried graphite lube and wasn't impressed. I use plain old Vaseline or Phil Wood bearing grease.

Vaseline now there's an idea, stays in place, film strength and safe. Currently I use it on speedsafe knives because I hate the smell of industrial grease.

[para-para-paramilitary]

If I take it apart, which it sounds like that's what you're doing, I'll put it back together with 2-3 very small dots of 10w Nano-Oil on each side of each washer. I want just enough to be effective, but not so much that it's going to attract a ton of lint. But as others have said, lubrication is often overthought. It's one of those aspects of the hobby that you can put more into if you want and it gives you some positive feeling about it, but you could also not do that and be functionally OK. Same with sharpening; I bought a $300 sharpening system because I wanted it, not because I needed it over my Sharpmaker.

Yeah over lubing is quite common. Though for the sharpmaker I usually end up with a crooked edge, which is why I'm thinking of a consistent edge sharpener

[JRinFL]

Despite the smell, I think I will switch fully to Ballistol for lubrication. I will try vasoline for those very rust prone edges, though.