D2 and a bit of damp

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Billy-o

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Apr 19, 2018
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Canada
Concerning the rust resistance of D2:

I got rained on yesterday. Wetter than I thought, obviously, and found an Elver in D2 in the sorry state witnessed here.

ELver-Rust-1.jpg


Elver-Rust-2.jpg


Gave it a wipe down with a bit of carboard and it looks like this now.

Elver-wiped-2.jpg


Elver-wiped-1.jpg


Most of my D2 knives have spots of (pretty much indelible) staining on them, and occasional blushes of manifest oxide.

Rather handsome now, in a windswept and devil may care kind of way :)
 
That looks like O1, I have never had a D2 blade rust like that over night. In my experience 1095 is instant, O1 over night rust
 
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Not saying I don't like it :) Just that it is D2! People dedicate time in their lives innovating ways of precipitating the effect ... when it turns out that all you need to do is stand in the rain with the right kind of (admittedly slightly sub-par) sheath.
 
That’s quite bad for a semi-stainless steel. My real steel Luna (D2 blade) has got soaked by rain a few times in the short time I’ve owned it and I’ve never gone out my way to dry it. There’s barely a blemish on it.
 
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I like it :) if you want to lose the orangeness but keep the patina look try using a leather strop with some compound on a bit like polish. Works even better with stropping compound and a loose pliable bit of leather.
 
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That went off pretty quick for D2 billy-o, must be the sheath helping it along?

Regards cleaning or polishing, who remember Micromesh? Someone on BritishBlades used to sell mixed grit packs. A washable sandpaper type thing, but it‘s cloth with the grit embedded in it. Good stuff it was, and I just found an unopened pack of all the grades in the cupboard while looking for a knife box :encourage:

I have a few tarnished blades in there, not least the Vanadis-20 steel Rasul which is looking the worse for lack of use. And Rob Evs would kill me if he saw my little utility necker.
 
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I remember, and lucky you to have found a packet of his wares. I wrote to him in the ember days of BB. He was in south Wales and I am wracking my brain for his name. Nice guy.
 
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I remeber, and lucky you to have found a packet of his wares. I wrote to him in the ember days of BB. He was i n south Wales and I am wracking my brain for his name. Nice guy.

It escapes me too. Jedadiah? He’s on here somewhere.

 
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There were at least two series of Micromesh, other was rubber backed upto 12000 mesh and other was for metal, coarser.
 
There were at least two series of Micromesh, other was rubber backed upto 12000 mesh and other was for metal, coarser.

The stuff that went up to 12,000 was used for fine applications like aircraft cockpits. It was also popular on the watch forums for polishing glass bezels.
 
It escapes me too. Jedadiah? He’s on here somewhere.


ye olde days :)
 
Just in case of interest: I was ordering a couple of blade blanks from Brisa today, and I discovered that they are discontinuing the Elver. Can still get them in Elmax and D2 for a while, but that will be that.
 

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