What happens when you put a dirty knife up in a leather sheath . . .
Please don’t store your knives in any sheath for any length of time – clean them up when you are finished with them – a light coat of oil – if you are talking a fishing knife or a skinning knife use mineral oil – then store them in a machinist’s style wooden box with felt lined drawers – make sure to leave plenty of space so they don’t “bump” one another – that will damage the cutting edge . . .
They can be brought “back to life” – start with a rust removal product and a wire brush – then get out the belt sander – you just keep scratching it – you just keep replacing the “big” scratches with smaller scratches . . .
240 grit scratches . . .
Replaced with 400 grit scratches . . .
Replaced with 600 grit scratches . . .
Replaced with 1000 grit scratches . . .
Replaced with “coarse” polishing compound scratches . . .
Replaced with a “Polishing” grit compound scratches . . .
Be very careful using a belt sander – the lightest touch is plenty – it is far easier to tease a little more off the surface of the blade then to suddenly realize you have taken too much off . . . Trust Me – that IS a real Oh Fuck moment . . .
Fresh wheels on the buffer then Flitz followed by Simichrome – then a little saddle soap on the leather stack handle . . .
Then set a 20 degree bevel on the blade and sharpen it – and yes I will post pics when it’s all done . . .
If you are thinking about trying something like this – I would recommend to you to pick up a couple of old beaters to practice on before doing something like this to someone’s “special meaning” knife . . .
Have Fun! – Run the Gun! – and remember – Fish Heads are Cheap!!
Guns, Fun, Food and More 