cleaning your knife

[songsingingman]

I've been looking at my knives and some have a build up inside ,you know lint,dirt. just general build up from carry. What do most of you use to clean this out? Do you shoot it full of wd40 and scrub out with a toothpick?
Or is there a better product to use. I've got an old 6347 case 64-69 period that I picked up and I'm wanting to give it a good cleaning before I put it up. Thanks for any suggestions. Alvie,songsingingman.

[deo-pa]

Two things I do are:

1) Use a plastic bristle "wire" brush (see below). My local dollar store has a pack of one plastic and one brass brush for $1.00. It does a good job getting down inside the channel and has enough stiffness to pry the gunk loose.

2) Flatten a Q-tip a little bit with a small hammer and slide it back and forth inside the blade channel.

[TripleF]

Compressed air is what I'd use if there's just lint and dirt.....

[orvet]

The Dollar Store also sells pre-flattened Q-tips that ladies use for makeup.
They work well too.

If the crud inside is dry I blow it out with my compressor,
If there is a lot of oil/grease inside I use Birchwood Casey gun cleaner. It dissolves the crud & blows it out.
It does not hurt the handles either. I have even used it on celluloid with no apparent ill effect other than it was cleaner than before I sprayed it on.

One tool I use a lot is a sonic cleaner. Water and few drops of Dawn dish washing soap and let it vibrate in there for a few minutes and you will be surprised at what comes out! That is the best way to clean them, IMO.

[TripleF]

Dale.....how do you let it "vibrate"?

[orvet]

The sonic cleaner vibrates, that is how it cleans the items in it.
Basically sound waves (vibrations) moving through the water cleans the gunk out of the knife.

[jerryd6818]

And does a darn good job of it. (sonic cleaner) Some work better than others and the good ones can get real expensive, real fast. But it really works great.

[philco]

Something I've found to be very useful in cleaning out the crud from the bladewell of a knife is dental picks like your dentist uses to clean your teeth. They work really well for getting into those tight spots where lint and gunk love to hide out.

[313 Mike]

I use all the methods you guys have mentioned (minus the sonic cleaner), and I have also found a secret weapon of sorts....a denture toothbrush. It has normal bristles on one side, and on the opposite side is a flexible hard rubber pick that gets down in the well real easy like.

[Jdub]

[quote="orvet"]The Dollar Store also sells pre-flattened Q-tips that ladies use for makeup.
They work well too.

If the crud inside is dry I blow it out with my compressor,
If there is a lot of oil/grease inside I use Birchwood Casey gun cleaner. It dissolves the crud & blows it out.
It does not hurt the handles either. I have even used it on celluloid with no apparent ill effect other than it was cleaner than before I sprayed it on.

One tool I use a lot is a sonic cleaner. Water and few drops of Dawn dish washing soap and let it vibrate in there for a few minutes and you will be surprised at what comes out! That is the best way to clean them, IMO.[/

Does the sonic cleaner have any effect on the handles?(stag or bone)

[mrwatch]

There are sonic cleaners like they have at Walmart for jewelry cleaning. The pink liquid works good on brass. It has a solenoid vibrating at 60 hertz/cycles. Not a size for a long pocket knife. A ULTRA SONIC CLEANER HAS A PIZO ELECTRIC TWEETER CEMENTED TO THE BOTTOM OF THE stainless steel tank. Mister clean works well on brass clock movements as it does not foam up. I have from a Sunbeam denture cleaner to a whopping 5 gallon size ultra sonic which I got free.

Pakistan Dental picks can usually be found at flea markets etc. As a wood carver my dentist saved up some used diamond tipped bits from filling cavities. They work good in a 35,000 rpm micro carver. For eyes etc. I am not sure about using them to jig bone for scales as they are pointed, but free.
Bob

[big monk]

Check this thread out !!!!! for more help***

http://www.allaboutpocketknives.com/kni ... eaner+wd40

[jerryd6818]

Does the sonic cleaner have any effect on the handles?(stag or bone)

Not so far. This is the one I use. I love it. I use a few drops of Dawn dishwashing liquid in warm water and it works great. It even puts a little shine on the bolsters. When the cleaning cycle(s) are finished, I rinse the knife under running warm water, then blow it out with the air hose. Oil the joints and you are good to go. It's restored snap to several knives with lazy blades. (can't help worn tangs of course)

[Colonel26]

One of those ultrasonic cleaners is on my list this year. I know guys who use them to clean gun parts too. They tell me you can clean parts until you think all the crud is gone, put it in the ultrasonic cleaner, and be amazed at what still comes out.

[jerryd6818]

One of those ultrasonic cleaners is on my list this year. I know guys who use them to clean gun parts too. They tell me you can clean parts until you think all the crud is gone, put it in the ultrasonic cleaner, and be amazed at what still comes out.

At least in the one I have, they tell you to not use chemicals in it. I'm not sure I get that because the basin is stainless steel.

You might want to check that out before you plunk down your hard earned cash.

[orvet]

One of those ultrasonic cleaners is on my list this year. I know guys who use them to clean gun parts too. They tell me you can clean parts until you think all the crud is gone, put it in the ultrasonic cleaner, and be amazed at what still comes out.

It amazes me at the crud I can get out of a knife that I think is clean.
Run it through one of my sonic cleaners and the water is dirty and there are chunks of crud and rust in the bottom of the sonic cleaner, even when the knife appeared to be clean to the eye!

[Mumbleypeg]

All the above are great recommendations for heavy cleaning. As for lubrication and cleaner, the very best product I have found for routine cleaning and lubrication of knives, firearms, fishing reels, etc. is Tuf-Glide by Sentry Solutions. http://www.sentrysolutions.com. (BTW you can find it cheaper on Amazon than the company web site). I've used it for several years. The company says it was developed under government contract for use by troops in dusty climate in Operation Desert Storm. A little bit goes a long ways. It doesn't harm wood, plastics, celluloid, bone, stag, or anything else I've used it on. There is both a liquid form and a cloth (can be replenished with the liquid) that you can use to wipe down the item after you're finished cleaning and lubricating. Basically it's a dry lubricant in a volatile liquid carrier. You wipe it on or apply a couple drops and it dries leaving the lubricant in place. Leaves a great rust preventative and because it's dry it doesn't attract dirt, dust, lint, etc. like oil does. Any other Tuf-Glide users here?

Ken

[#goldpan]

Well I use an ultrasonic cleaner. I got a cheap one from Harbor Freight. I love what it does and that is get my knife clean! Like the Jerry and Dale have already said a little water and dash of Dawn dish soap and your good to go. Oh and I also add a splash of hydrogen peroxide. It helps the micro bubbles carry the crud away from your knife.

Randy

[jerryd6818]

I also add a splash of hydrogen peroxide. It helps the micro bubbles carry the crud away from your knife.

Randy

Good idea Randy. I'll have to try and remember that the next time I clean a knife.

[Colonel26]

I'll be a making a trip to harbor freight in the near future! I have some old knives and some new additions to the Ithaca and Marlin piles that are due for their once ever 50 years cleaning! (At least that's what it appears the former owners thought).

For normal ol cleaning out a knife, especially a new stainless knife, I find flushing it out with plain ol WD-40 does wonders. It may not be a great lube, but it is a very good cleaner. I've restored snap to several old knives just by flushing out all the old dry cruddy oil and gunk with WD-40 or Kroil for the really bad ones.

For lube and rust I usually use Ballistol like on my guns. Ballistol will emulsify with water, so if my knife gets wet it's still protected and lubed.

[Jdub]

Does the sonic cleaner have any effect on the handles?(stag or bone)

Not so far. This is the one I use. I love it. I use a few drops of Dawn dishwashing liquid in warm water and it works great. It even puts a little shine on the bolsters. When the cleaning cycle(s) are finished, I rinse the knife under running warm water, then blow it out with the air hose. Oil the joints and you are good to go. It's restored snap to several knives with lazy blades. (can't help worn tangs of course)

Hey thanks,I appreciate it.

[just bob]

I bought a used sonic cleaner on ebay with no instructions. How long do you let it cycle for when cleaning a knife? Noisy aren't they?

[jerryd6818]

I usually run 2-4 cycles at approximately 4½ minutes per cycle. That may be more than it needs but that's what I do. Mine is so quiet you can hardly tell it's running.

[#goldpan]

Mine has a shorter running cycle than Jerry's, about 3 minutes. I normally go for about 15 minutes of total run time. At about 15 minutes the water is palpably warm.

Randy