Forcing patina?

jackknifeh · #21

Great info on forcing patina. The first thing I did was put the blade in a potato for a few hours with some but little effect. Then I tried vinegar. Again, little effect. Then I used mustard and that made a bigger difference than the others. The edge was a little dull so I stropped it to get the edge sharp and bevel shiny again. Then I used mustard again trying not to get any on the very edge. Some mustard did get on the bevel though. As soon as the mustard was dry I washed it off. There were 5 small pits on the bevel like Toomzz mentioned. I was able to remove the darkness inside the pit that I assume would have turned to rust and further damage.

Then I remembered that I always coat knife blades with Tuf-Glide. When I started with the potato the entire blade was treated including the edge. I am thinking the Tuf-Glide prevented patina from forming as fast as it would without it. I say this because after I stropped the edge and bevel I assume there was no Tuf-Glide there. Tuf-Glide advertises that it can't be washed off but I'm sure sharpening/stropping does remove it since that is removing steel. Then the pits formed because the mustard was on bare steel. Since my goal was to prevent corrosion with a little patina I think my goal has been satisfied. I would love to try creating the beautiful designs that Gunnut35 did but if I do that it will be on other knives first. I have a consistant change in color on the blade except for the tang/pivot area. I'll leave the inside area of the blade alone like Creepo suggests. I'll just keep it oiled properly.

I appreciate all the info you guys provided.

Thanks,
Jack

toomzz · #22

Cool-cool-cool Gunnut! Love it!

:cool:

VashHash · #23

I need to get some mustard for my 1075 condor golok. Love those designs from the mustard. It kinda matches that brocade fabric you used as the background. I figure I try it on a $40 machete before I use it on the M4 millie. I wanted to get some on the way home but I forgot

jackknifeh · #24

How long has it taken patina to form on your blade using mustard. I say mustard because it worked faster than the other things I tried. I tried it on M4 steel. I'm asking because I've left mustard on the blade for up to 2-3 hours and a couple of other times I washed it off as soon as it appeared to have dried, maybe 30 minutes max. The amount of time I've had something on the blade seems like a very long time to me to get the results I've seen in the pictures in this thread (which really look great). I coated my blade with Tuf-Glide as soon as I got it and applied it a couple of times after that also. What I want to know is did the Tuf-Glide protect the blade from a patina forming or have my results been normal? I really would like to know this because I'm not only interested in patina but also the performance of the Tuf-Glide. If I had two pieces of non-stainless steel I'd do a comparison but I don't. Thanks.

Jack

VashHash · #25

I found it took about 30 mins for the patine to form. After that its just hard to clean off but you have to use a thin layer of mustard so it can get oxygen to the steel and oxidize. Its actually the vinegar in the mustard that really does it but the mustard makes a vinegar paste instead of liquid so its more managable. I've done it a few times and I'm liking the patterns but I need to do it some more. Tuf glide will most definitely stop the patina. I advise you wash the knife in warm soapy water then clean it really well with alcohol to get bare steel. Some others say to scuff the metal slightly so the acid can etch it easier. Either way it seems to be working on my machete. Just needs a few more applications so I get a strong pattern. Then I'll try darkening it up some to make it stand out more

jossta · #26

I think the Bradley fell out of my pocket this weekend in a cab, but I haven't given up on finding it yet. If I do, I think I see some mustard in it's future.

Although, it is usually the one I carry if I think there's a chance I could misplace it since it's the only one that's not a Sprint or discontinued. I think my mistake was unclipping it and just letting it ride in the pocket.

jackknifeh · #27

VashHash wrote:I found it took about 30 mins for the patine to form. After that its just hard to clean off but you have to use a thin layer of mustard so it can get oxygen to the steel and oxidize. Its actually the vinegar in the mustard that really does it but the mustard makes a vinegar paste instead of liquid so its more managable. I've done it a few times and I'm liking the patterns but I need to do it some more. Tuf glide will most definitely stop the patina. I advise you wash the knife in warm soapy water then clean it really well with alcohol to get bare steel. Some others say to scuff the metal slightly so the acid can etch it easier. Either way it seems to be working on my machete. Just needs a few more applications so I get a strong pattern. Then I'll try darkening it up some to make it stand out more

Thank you. What you said confirms what I was thinking and hoping. I hoped my using Tuf-Glide was doing some good and believed it was but now I think that has been confirmed. If I can't cause corrosion intentionally after using Tuf-Glide then I can be confident it will protect the steel under normal every day use, even inside the pivot area which I saturate with it on any new knife, then about once a year after that. I recently used Quick Release on one Delica because using Tuf-Glide the lubrication feature only lasted about 2 weeks, then there was a tiny feeling of no lubrication. The Quick Release seems to keep the lubrication longer and it also claims to have similar corrosion protection by bonding to the metal instead of just providing a wet layer of oil like oils that have been around forever (WD-40, 3-in-one, etc.). I'm not knocking the oldies, they have been around forever because they work for what they were designed for. But with technology new and improved products seem to be available now.

Jack

jackknifeh · #28

jossta wrote:I think the Bradley fell out of my pocket this weekend in a cab, but I haven't given up on finding it yet. If I do, I think I see some mustard in it's future.

Although, it is usually the one I carry if I think there's a chance I could misplace it since it's the only one that's not a Sprint or discontinued. I think my mistake was unclipping it and just letting it ride in the pocket.

Hope you find your GB. I'm sure the driver will turn it in if you dropped it in a cab. Now if I had been the driver I'd have a new knife. :D Just kidding I think. :confused:

Jack

jossta · #29

jackknifeh wrote:Hope you find your GB. I'm sure the driver will turn it in if you dropped it in a cab. Now if I had been the driver I'd have a new knife. :D Just kidding I think. :confused:

Jack

Yeah, I just have to figure out which cab company, lol. Going to try calling some places during lunch today.

jackknifeh · #30

jossta wrote:Yeah, I just have to figure out which cab company, lol. Going to try calling some places during lunch today.

I lost my wedding ring once. Now I know a wedding ring isn't nearly as important as a knife :) but I did get it back through a series of events that are only just short of miraculous. I'm sure you'll get your knife back. My son recently misplaced his Delica and got it back so you are in good finding lost things company. :D

Jack

jossta · #31

Good to hear. That's how I usually am too, but not so sure about this one though. Fingers crossed...

Saralach · #32

Has anyone tried a patina on the stainless handled knives? Both the handle and blade? Curious if that works.

The Deacon · #33

Saralach wrote:Has anyone tried a patina on the stainless handled knives? Both the handle and blade? Curious if that works.

AFAIK, you can't really force a patina on stainless steel. Some stainless blades may discolor a bit, but to nowhere near the extent a carbon steel would. Know solid ZDP-189 will darken somewhat. On the other hand, the stainless steel that Spyderco uses for handles is very rust resistant, so I doubt you'd see any change at all.

Saralach · #34

Someone on the CS forums posted a video for a patina on SS using sulfamic acid crystals made into a paste. Going to try foods first. I'm patient and have more than enough knives to rotate EDC.

jossta · #35

jackknifeh wrote:I'm sure you'll get your knife back. My son recently misplaced his Delica and got it back so you are in good finding lost things company. :D

Jack

FOUND it. Thanks for the confidence :D .

jackknifeh · #36

jossta wrote:FOUND it. Thanks for the confidence :D .

Glad to hear it. Do you have an honest cab driver to thank or was it somewhere else?

Jack

jossta · #37

Fell out in a friends car before the cab. Going to pick it back up today, maybe play with some mustard.

Senate · #38

apples work great and fast too.

SkullBouncer · #39

Thanx for the info here, esp. gunnut.

This thread earlier motivated me to work a patina into brass and copper -- I as well collect brass sculpted pieces like incense burners, figurines, etc.

I did my first application, got a nice patina pattern across a curved piece, gonna touch up with a combination of a bottle of brasso I picked up and a box of Q-tips to randomly deoxidize with spots and striping in combination of using the mustard method in the next application..

Fun :cool: / SB!!