Spyderco Forums

The paint from the clip of my FRN Delica is rubbing off. I wish to simply remove all of the paint from it and the nut/bolt that is securing it to the body (since it is also painted black).

Anyone mod their painted clip before in this manner?

I think it would look much cleaner with the paint removed.

Any thoughts on how I should go about removing the paint?

Thanks in advance.

Flitz Metal Polish, Autosol Metal Polish etc.... any good metal polish.

I bead blasted the clip on my Endura. Gave it a sweet matte grey finish. I have never tried any of the metal polishing compounds out there. Hope this helps :) Take Care!!!!!
Nothing worse than a scratched clip to ugly up a knife.

Here's a Delica I glass-beaded the clip and the barrel bolt on.

Maybe paint stripper would work?

Zrexxer wrote:Here's a Delica I glass-beaded the clip and the barrel bolt on.

Very nice indeed. Thanks for the great pic. I plan on removing the paint on all of my clips and their associated hardware after seeing that pic.

soaking in finger nail polish remover is the best way I have found,then if you want a hi polish use a dremel and jewelers rouge.
Heres a pic of my Paras clip that I just blasted,can't figure out the finish.I looks like it is DLC coated.At first I thought it was just some of the paint still on it but its not.

Ok I got I question for the Spyderco crew. Why can't we just buy clip whitout paint? I would be ready to buy some clips like that!

My EDC Delica is wearing thin in the paint dept. too, but I just call this character!

I like my scratched up ugly clip, it makes my knife have character. My whole knife is beat up. Because it gets used. Every knife I see on this site looks perfect and when I asked to see beat up knives you people shot it down like it was a sin to have a spydie that got used.

I'm about ready to say that I don't like the painted clips ... Makes the knife look old before it's time ... I dunno .... I've gotta give this some more thought though. I'm not sure I like shiny either .... see ... more thought ..

Stevie Ray wrote:I'm about ready to say that I don't like the painted clips ... Makes the knife look old before it's time ... I dunno .... I've gotta give this some more thought though. I'm not sure I like shiny either .... see ... more thought ..

My favorite clip is the CalyJr blasted grey clip. I'm NOT a fan of the shiny clip on my rescue and am considering ways to tone it down.

Zrexxer wrote:Here's a Delica I glass-beaded the clip and the barrel bolt on.

Well I took the plunge today and stripped the paint off of my FRN Delica clip and associated screw and sleeve. I also removed the paint from my Native III screw and sleeve. No need to remove the paint from the Native III clip as it is a wire clip and it is already unpainted. I used paint stripper and sandpaper (wet).

I am very pleased with the results, and my knife looks so much 'cleaner' per se.

Cheap mod to do, all it required was some elbow grease. It took me about an hour to do the hardware from two knives. I took my time as sandpapering the screw heads took some time.

Some observations though...

The paint came off really easy from my Delica clip using paint stripper. However the paint stripper had no effect on both pieces of the mounting hardware (i.e., the screw and the sleeve it 'screws into'. So to remove the paint I utilized sandpaper and I am very please with the results.

Moreover, it should be noted that the paint stripper took the paint off from only the sleeve part of the Native III. Like both the screw and sleeve from my FRN Delica, the screw portion of the Native III was not at all affected by the paint stripper that I used.

It is also worth mentioning that the sleeve portion of the Native III is in fact more robust and has a larger head which ultimately enables it to hold down the ends of the wire clip. As a result I believe the 'sleeve' portion of the Native III must be painted as compared to the other pieces used on the FRN Delica's mounting hardware.

As mentioned above, I am very happy with the results, and believe the new look aids the overall aesthetic beauty of these particular pieces in my collection. My knife looks like a twin of the knife posted by Zrexxer. (Thanks again for posting the pic)

If you are wondering if I will do it to any other painted clips/hardware in my collection? The answer is a definite yes and fully I recommend this relatively easy mod.

shabbasuraj wrote: However the paint stripper had no effect on both pieces of the mounting hardware (i.e., the screw and the sleve it 'screws into'. So to remove the paint I utilized sandpaper and I am very please with the results.

The screws are not painted, they are plated. That is why you had to sand the coating off. Probably plated with a black chromate, I would assume.

Burt :)

You learn a new thing everyday. Thanks for the info. :p

Nicky wrote:Ok I got I question for the Spyderco crew. Why can't we just buy clip whitout paint? I would be ready to buy some clips like that!

You can order a Rescue clip. It's not painted but shiny stainless.

dialex wrote:You can order a Rescue clip. It's not painted but shiny stainless.

How much is that? I can't find the ordering info/price anywhere.

I mean... If I own a paramilitary, I should be able to order a clip without the coating.

The last clip kit I got from SFO was 5.00 shipped.

I like both the painted black clip and the shiny clip. The black seems to be not so noticeable tho. The shiny clip looks more classy and impressive to me. I'll keep the clips as is tho I may spray paint the black clip if it gets too worn looking?