Knife Repair, Modification, Restoration & Improvement

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This group is hosted by D ale, for knife enthusiasts who are interested in repairing, modifiying, restoring or improving knives, including fixed blades, folders and automatics of all types.

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Knife coating removal & Forcing Patina

by Brad T.

Sep 29, 2014

I for the most part don't like Blade coatings. Yeah, I know I have another discussion out there about those coatings. But that was before I discovered/warmed up to the beauty of a properly forced patina blade.

I recently came into possession of a 2014 KaBar BK2 Campanion. The knife came with a highly aggressive textured Epoxy coating.

I hated it. So I removed it in my Blast cabinet at work with an aluminum oxide media. Industrial Blast cabinet + Alum Oxide media = 15 minutes. The coating was well applied and thick.

This was what I had left.

I thought about what to use for a week or so. Decide to use what I had sitting my office fridge, Garlic/Dill pickling solution. I steeped it for about an hour, hung it and let it Drip dry for 30 minutes. As I did not properly plan for this, I did not neutralize the knife afterward. Unless giving it a Lacquer thinner bath is neutralizing. As you can see below the pickling solution gave it a greenish tint.

I also modified the sheath for this knife. Look for that discussion back in the group.

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  • up

    In Memoriam

    D ale

    Brad,

    I'm getting in this discussion a bit late ..but .......................

    Warming whatever solution you use in forcing the patina will increase the rate of reaction & usually facilitate a more uniform result. Moving the metal around in the solution will also help obtain a more uniform result. Suspending the metal in the solution such that no metal contacts the container will also aid in uniformity, i.e. if you just toss the metal in the solution & let it lie on the btm .. the reaction of the btm side will be inhibited relative to the top side. I learned the hard way .... see below. Simple stirring & flipping the hatchet helped .. but .. any surface next to the container did NOT etch @ the same rate as that fully exposed to the etching solution.
    What I've done here is more etching .. ferric chloride .. but certainly forces a patina. Anyway .. same theory holds true for both applications.

    What you want for forcing a patina is a weak acid .... ketchup/vinegar/fruit or veggie juice/etc.

    Hope this helps.

    D ale

    Oct 27, 2014

  • up

    In Memoriam

    D ale

    Another example here.

    I used readily available ferric chloride. This is a VERY CAUSTIC acid. I'm not suggesting anyone else use this. Ketchup is safer & works fine  ..albeit.. a little slower.

    Oct 27, 2014

  • up

    Brad T.

    D ale,

    You are becoming a co-contributor to my discussions. With your previous experiences comes a wealth of knowledge, I appreciate & encourage your contributions. Thank you.

    Oct 28, 2014