Knutty wrote:Well I've got to change my answer (you know, the one no one noticed and everyone forgot). SB is now on my "junk steel" list. Oh, I know it's great if you prefer wiping and cleaning your blades rather than using them, but for me, it's crap.
And yeah, I know what I'm about to describe isn't "light use," but I don't care.
I've been carrying my SB Stretch a lot lately, for reasons I won't bore you with. I used it to cut the seal off a gallon jug of muriatic acid, and that's when things started to fall apart.
That's all I did... Use the very tip of the blade to cut off the seal. I didn't dip the blade in the acid, let it sit for a few hours, then giggle myself silly. But after the first time, the tip turned to crap. Not rust, really, just sort of like a combination of brass and a turd.
Then, because my knives serve me rather than the reverse, I did it again. Same thing; just the seal. And I did rinse/wipe it off immediately afterward. But this time, the ENTIRE SB portion of the blade turned the copper/turd color. It went all the way through to the back of the blade, so that looking at the spine, you could easily tell where the SB was and where the soft outer layer of the steel whose name I forget is.
But I don't always carry the SB Stretch. I also carry my 2015 forum knife, the S90V Native 5. Yes, I used that one to open a jug of muriatic acid. My knives serve me. And did the S90V cry like a little b**ch? No, it did not. You can't even tell it's been used.
Also used a VG-10 Endura for the same ... this one is between the other two. A bit discolored, but nothing to cry about.
Yeah, I know why this happened to the SB. I know it's not a stainless, and I know you need to pamper it. My point is that it's a crap steel UNLESS you want to spend more time pampering it than using it.
The area of the SB you are complaining about, is it just a matter color difference? Is the steel's ability to take an edge and hold it changed in that spot? That is what I'd worry about. For me personally, a non-stainless steel changing color is just a characteristic of the steel. But when it comes to things we care about we all have our quirks or pet peeves. I don't care if the tip of my blade is centered perfectly when it is closed. But I can't stand blade play when it's open and locked. For some others it's just the opposite or something else bugs them. Can you tell us if the steel's performance ability is reduced?
About the Tuf-cloth or Tuf-glide I don't feel as strongly about it as I used to. Not the right thread to go into details but I've come to think it's not the SUPER anti-corrosion product I used to think it was. One small detail. Using it on M4 I couldn't even force a patina on the steel until after a month or two from the last application. But it seems to be a common belief that M4 is one of the better steels (non-stainless) when it comes to not rusting. OTOH, SB (I think) will patina when used for food (prep or eating) even if I just applied Tuf-glide. Same with the white steel on a Carter knife. Anyway, please let us know if the blade's performance has been changed.
Did you read the warnings of the muriatic acid label? I have some of that stuff. I read the label and it says "DO NOT use your Spyderco Stretch knife to open this container if it has a SB laminated blade". :) Just kidding. :D
I do know what you mean about not wanting to pay more attention to the blade steel of non-stainless blade knives. I worked around a swimming pool with my Carter neck knife. I put it in it's sheath and didn't look at it until the next day. I was horrified to see the amount of corrosion. Of course everyone (even me) knows not to put carbon blade steels away without at least a good wiping. AND, now that I am using a Spyderco mule 20 (CTS-B70P blade steel) I'm a little more dissatisfied with the Carter knife. Nothing wrong with the knife. It's a GREAT knife. But it does require more babying than my Mule 20. I even have good swimming with it in it's sheath hanging from my neck. I intentionally didn't wipe it off. I left it in the sheath (kydex) overnight. Absolutely NO corrosion at all. I haven't tried to compare the B70P to the white steel on Mr. Carter's knife regarding edge retention. But I've used the mule a lot and it holds an edge great. So if I have two knives with basically the same edge retention but a lot of difference in corrosion resistance I'd go with the stainless. And it's not just the B70P. There are lots of good stainless steels out there now. And I'm so impressed with the B70P I got three of them. Of the second and third mules I was going to give my son one and I was going to put a really beautiful wood on it as a handle and see how it sells on ebay if I put it up for auction. But I messed up. I asked my wife to use my mule (my keeper) in the kitchen. Long story short. I don't have that knife any more! :) So now I still have 3 but I don't know if I'll sell the third one or give it to my son. I'll get back on track now.
Sorry about your experience with the SB. No matter what your reasons are for disliking it they are your reasons. Did your knife blade have a patina on it before opening the acid? I've always heard a patina helps prevent non-stainless steels from corroding worse. If the acid did effect the steel that it won't hold and edge on that area is it a small enough of an area the tip can be removed and still be inside the handle when close? On mine I have about 1/8" of blade on the spine inside the handle when closed. As I think about it I think a stretch with a shorter blade would be very nice. A full size handle with a shorter blade is great for certain uses.
I think I've rambled enough.
Jack