Spyderco Forums

So I am considering some orange G 10 aftermarket scales for my Cruwear Military.

My question to you all is when they start to get dirty is there a good way to clean them?

Magic Eraser! I used to use a child's toothbrush, warm water and some Dawn but that gets a bit messy. Much easier to use a magic eraser and I think I get better results as well.

Magic Eraser will make them look new again but they also shred and wear out fast. You could also try a nail brush and some Barkeeper's Friend.

I have preached this so many times but as far as I know only 2 or 3 ever listened to me. I've been using a product called BALLISTOL for cleaning and rejuvenating G-10 handles for almost better than 10 years now. It not only does a great job of cleaning it also restores and brightens the color of the G-10 and I truly believe it has a preserving effect to it as well.

Now if your G-10 sales are excessively dirty, greasy or grimey then you might want to use some "Platinum Overnight DAWN" dishwashing soap to get rid of the worst of it. I've also had great results cleaning really dirty and greasy G-10 with Bar Keeper's Friend cleanser too. But for the overall cleaning, rejuvenating and preserving I have yet to find any product that works as good as BALLISTOL on G-10 handles.

I usually take a soft bristle toothbrush to gently clean the handle and work it in. It really doesn't take a lot of it for it to work really well. I've even had G-10 material really old and faded and it worked like magic. Now the only negative aspect to it is the it does have a smell that has a petro-chemical odor to it. But it dissipates over time and it's not all that bad considering the great results you get from it.
I recommend getting the big can of BALLISTOL instead of the smaller aerosol cans because it is much cheaper that way and you'll find that BALLISTOL has a lot of great uses to it.

Just to second the above posts about magic eraser, those things work wonders, but for real though I've been wanting to get a can of ballistol FOREVER and just have been procrastinating about it, bc I suspect (although I can't get any official confirmation) that Spyderco official uses that stuff at the SFO. As has been noted, it's a great product.

Awesome!

Thanks for the excellent replies everyone

G10 is supposed to be highly resistant to chemicals, I wonder if something like brake cleaner or carb cleaner etc would do a good job.

Evil D wrote: ↑

Mon May 13, 2019 7:45 pm

G10 is supposed to be highly resistant to chemicals, I wonder if something like brake cleaner or carb cleaner etc would do a good job.

That's interesting you bring that up. Because one time I had a G-10 handle so greasy and slimey that I used a spray can of car starting fluid to cut through it and that worked pretty fast. Then I immediately treated it with BALLISTOL and it turned out great.

I've heard of carb cleaner used for a really wide variety of different cleaning jobs. But do stay away from acetone because it's mind blowing how potent that solvent is>> it's actually too potent :D

I like Ballistol, too. Isopropyl alcohol and a toothbrush can also lift crud.

I use Hornady One Shot gun cleaner/lube because it's what I usually have on the bench. I blast the whole knife and just wipe it down. Cleans my orange para 3 very well and that knife attracts gunk like crazy. I've also used isopropyl alcohol and it seems to work fine.

Yeah, Ballistol all the way. Dish soap and a toothbrush first if they're very dirty.

let it patina.

4 votes for Ballistol! I get into all kinds of crud with my work knife and all I have to do to keep it looking new is wipe it down a couple of times a week.

I agree with JD Spydo. Ballistol works great on G-10 scales in addition to a myriad of other things. I have been using the stuff for the last 8 years with no issues whatsoever. The bigger can of Ballistol will be the best value for you. A little goes a long way so you will have enough for your entire Spyderco collection as it grows (which it will).

Ballistol seems to work well. I’ve wiped down G10 scales of new knives as they’ve arrived with it. I can’t say for certain but it seems to work as a barrier and makes consequent cleaning easier. :)

I use electrical parts cleaner on G10 all the time. Never tried carb or brake cleaner. I also use the electrical parts cleaner on frn too. Really gets the grease and grime out of the knife. It "dries" out the G10 but after a little handling it looks normal again. CRC lectra motive was my go to for awhile. Now I use wechem force 100. I'm sure any of them will work.

Also I've used spray on paint strippers and those strippers in a can for removing coatings from busse knives. It hasn't harmed the G10 or Micarta yet.

wrdwrght wrote: ↑

Mon May 13, 2019 8:04 pm

I like Ballistol, too. Isopropyl alcohol and a toothbrush can also lift crud.

Hey "wrdwrght"? Do you use the 91% Isopropyl alcohol? I started using that to get off the worst of the accumulated grime and then finishing it up with BAllistol and have had really good results. I've found that by doing that in a two step method that it seems to do a more thorough job. I just started using the 91% Isopropyl rubbing alcohol about a year ago. In the past I used the 91% alcohol to remove stuff like glue off of scotch tape and other types of tape. Also I find the alcohol for internal cleaning without the worry of water getting trapped in moving part areas.

I'm glad you brought that up because I should have mentioned that myself. But I do find that the 91% Isopropyl alcohol does have a better overall result than the cheaper, weaker rubbing alcohol does.

But BALLISTOL also has ideal lubrication properties to it as well as a protection from minor corrosion.

Cryptohominid wrote: ↑

Wed May 15, 2019 3:13 am

4 votes for Ballistol! I get into all kinds of crud with my work knife and all I have to do to keep it looking new is wipe it down a couple of times a week.

Well just like "wrdwrght" just mentioned about the use of 91% Isopropyl alcohol ( rubbing alcohol you get at your local drug store) does get the worst of it removed so your Ballistol can work easier. Like I mentioned I found that the 91% Isopropyl works far quicker and far better than the weaker/cheaper versions do. I've found the 32 ounce size of the 91% Isopropyl alcohol to be really cheap on sales >> I just found a sale of two bottles for $3.99 at my local Walgreen drug store. And two bottles will usually last me a little over a year.

A big 32 ounce can of Ballistol usually will last me 3 to 4 years most of the time. Using those two products for cleaning, restoring, lubricating and protecting are not only very effective but also inexpensive for the long haul as well.

Ballistol or Magic Eraser.

The only issue with my orange scales is how quickly and easily they get dirty or visibly show the dirt.

Another vote for the Mr. Clean Magic Eraser! Been using those for years and they work great, I just cut a small cube or two off the main block when I need to clean a set of G10 scales. I can typically get a year’s use out of one block of it.