1095 Rust/Corrosion Test

Self Made Knives

Self Made Knives

Well-Known Member
Here is my corrosion test on 1095, I know you've all been waiting on the edge of your seats! Please watch and comment, you might be surprised by the results. Discussion, disagreement, etc. encouraged.
[video]https://youtu.be/O7ZThs1y8xs[/video]
 
Well, Justin, I don't really know what it would compare to. On a hardened blade, they come out pretty smooth. The annealed blanks did come out a little more textured, but still fairly smooth. This is the way I finish my survival knives, I blast them and then blue them. They come out with a really nice finish, at least I think so, here's an example:
serial #11_1.jpg
 
I guys I should have asked what media are you blasting with? I recently came into a small blasting cabinet, not to get off topic to much.
 
I "think" it is called Black Diamond blasting media. I "think" its a byproduct of steel mills or coal industry or something like that. It's a little smoother than sand and not as much as dust, IMO. My local Ace Hardware store sells it.
 
It's a good thing you didn't use Ed's name, I've heard he can teleport to your location and eat you for doing stuff like that :happy:

Anyway, I'm a little surprised as well. I wonder if the heat let the wax melt off and the rain wash it away?

My personal experience, being in 300% humid Mississippi is that oil coated blades will rust sitting in the garage (forget the rain) a little less than clean steel, and wax will keep just about indefinitely unless it's cleaned off. The other end of that and something that I'm going to have to figure out with my new little horizontal belt knife....it rides on my belt and my belly tends to rest on it occasionally like in a sitting position. The handle seems to rust a bit after a few weeks. My guess is becuase the heat of my body is allowing that wax to warm and wear away. Now that's with plain steel, wax coated. I wonder if bluing or acid etching will help that any.

Anyway, the only other thing I would mention is that 3in1 oil isn't foodsafe. I wouldn't want to cut my apple after using it on a blade. The wax is safe and I still think that sitting inside, or protected, a knife will last longer and be food safe with the wax. Perhaps that's something to consider.
 
I was really surprised with the 3 in one oil . without a doubt the best at preventing rust , even under conditions you would not normally submit them to . Changed my mind . thanks for the test . Bubba
 
Nathan, I don't really think heat had any effect on the test. It was fairly mild here, in the upper 80's most of the time and I put them in the shade for that reason. Food safety, well crap. I've been slicing apples with oil coated carbon steel pocket knives since I was about 8 years old. Guess I'm screwed. Seriously though, that is a good point. I saw an article in a magazine the other day and the writer said he used Pam cooking spray on knives.

Bubba, I was a little surprised with the mineral oil too. I'm sure it's great for short term storage or kitchen blades, but I'm afraid most users don't take care of their knives as they should. I'm thinking of the guy who buys a knife, throws it in a drawer or glovebox in his truck and only gets it out a few times a year. I fall into that category myself. I usually only get a hunting knife out in the fall and when deer season is over, I'll oil it up and put it away for nearly a year.
 
Since Nathan brought up "food safe", anyone know if Ren wax is food safe? I doubt anything I tested was food safe, except maybe the mineral oil. Now I'm wondering, how many rust preventives out there are food safe?
 
According to what I read Ren wax is food safe once it cures. In the liquid form it has petroleum distillates present but as it dries it evaporates. As an alternative I just started using Briwax, which is all natural and food safe and pretty reasonably priced. I think somebody else recommended it on here a few months back. I just started using it so I don't have any history on its durability. Mineral oil is also food safe. I've used it on cutting boards and wooden spoons for the kitchen for years.

-Aaron
 
Yeah, I actually called Britax and they told me it is food safe once it dries completely. It leave behind beeswax and churuba wax....and I've heard and imagine renwax is the same.
 
As you stated, I wonder if heat treat followed by appropriate temper would change results... Maybe part 2 coming from you?????
 
I may be wrong, but I think as long as you're testing the same metal, the results of the test would be the same. The rate of corrosion might change, but would still be relative to each other. I am a little tempted to test some other products, so who knows.
 
Wow, Justin that's a good link. That guy put some work into that. I wonder why he didn't try Renaissance Wax though? It's funny, I heard people saying the Ren wax as better than Frog Lube, so I didn't even try the Frog Lube. But on this guys test, he didn't rate 3n1 oil very high, yet it did best for me. This is a complex subject!
 
I use frog lube on all my firearms these days. The only worry I have with it is that the paste gets very liquid like, very easily. It would think it would wife off quite easily with just normal handling on something like a knife that might come in contact with normal body heat enough to melt it quickly. I suppose if it was properly applied and such it wouldn't be that bad, but just the nature of it seems like it wouldn't work that well. But maybe it is something to think about, it really never occured to me to try it even though I've got tons of it at the house.
 
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