Cleaning an old swiss knife

L

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Jan 5, 2007
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Hi

I just got my hands on this knife, look like an old swiss slipjoint, the only problem is that i cannot open anything on this knife unless i have a pair a pliers at hand...

I never clean any slipjoint so i''m wondering anything you guys recommend for loosening up this old thing.:confused: It got a crusty white stuff pretty much all over it maybe limestone ?

Here two pics of it :)
swiss2.jpg

swiss1.jpg


Thanks
 
Soap and water ought to do it. Just wash it as you would any kitchen knife, and allow it to dry with all the implements in the open position.
 
It looks like it's stainless (don't see any rust in your pics), so I'd first probably give it a good bath in warm, soapy water (use dish soap). See how much of the 'white stuff' can be flushed out of it, before trying something more aggressive. While in the warm, soapy water, see if anything begins to loosen up. If any of the blades/tools can be opened up, exercise them a bit to knock loose any other grit/dirt/etc that might be in there.

If that doesn't quite get it done, I'd dry it off, then flush it out with WD-40. Might even be worthwhile to let the WD-40 soak into the pivots for a little while, maybe a day or two (seal it in a zip-loc bag). Then see if anything loosens up again. As before, if you can, exercise the pivots/joints if they can be moved, and continue to flush with the WD-40. Once you're satisfied that most of the grit is out of it, give it another soap & water bath. Then, relubricate with your oil/lube of choice. Even a little bit of WD-40 will do for this, if you have nothing else. The WD-40 will tend to evaporate fairly quickly, but does leave a little bit of lubrication behind.
 
Hi guys,

Thanks for the input =)

The knife has been sitting in WD-40 for the week-end, this morning i had a quick check on it, all the tools open now some still need a bit of elbow grease to get them going but overall it's much better then on friday night. So another clean in soapy water, then another WD-40 treatment then lube and we are good to go.

Highly appreciated the tips.

Anyone know which brand of knife that would be ?
 
Definitely a Wenger. The clip point models were a collaboration with Buck.
I think the model is SwissMate II or Work-Man. Those are the ones I could find that have pliers.

If there is rust inside the knife WD-40 won't do much. Try soaking for an hour in vinegar to get the rust off. Diluted bleach works too, but don't mix bleach and vinegar.
 
Another thing I've done is to put my knife in an ultrasonic cleaner. It got a lot of gunk out.

There is always the "run it through the washing machine" method. I very rarely use this method because my wife gives me a lot of grief about it.

Ric
 
Last edited:
tabeeb762 said:
If there is rust inside the knife WD-40 won't do much.
Click to expand...

I beg to differ.

I have a Victorinox SAK that was left in a toolbox in the back of a pickup, in the Texas heat/humidity for a long while (3 or 4 years). Knife was rusted shut. I wrapped it in paper towels and saturated everything with WD-40, then sealed it in a Zip-Loc bag for about 3-4 days. The WD-40 was able to break down the rust in the joints enough to loosen them up. Once there, I continued to flush with WD-40 while continuing to exercise the joints. That flushed out most of the rust that was left. After that, a warm soapy bath, dried thoroughly, then re-lubed. There's still pitting on the blades/tools, but the rust is gone and the knife is functional once again.

I've done this with several very rusty pocket knives. It does work.
 
Obsessed with Edges said:
I beg to differ.

I have a Victorinox SAK that was left in a toolbox in the back of a pickup, in the Texas heat/humidity for a long while (3 or 4 years). Knife was rusted shut. I wrapped it in paper towels and saturated everything with WD-40, then sealed it in a Zip-Loc bag for about 3-4 days. The WD-40 was able to break down the rust in the joints enough to loosen them up. Once there, I continued to flush with WD-40 while continuing to exercise the joints. That flushed out most of the rust that was left. After that, a warm soapy bath, dried thoroughly, then re-lubed. There's still pitting on the blades/tools, but the rust is gone and the knife is functional once again.

I've done this with several very rusty pocket knives. It does work.
Click to expand...


Had an old Joseph Rodgers pocket knife that was rusted shut. Even the rust had rust on it. Only thing that loosened it was vinegar. Believe me I tried everything, including WD40.

WD40 is actually my least favorite oil. Its not bad as a lubricant and rust inhibitor, but there are much better.
Double TT is the best lubricant I've found. Its very light, gets in hair cracks, and doesn't gunk up.
PWD is another good one.
Bruno X is great for long term storage and gun barrels. Its thick like a gel and won't evaporate.
 
I've never tried it, but you might soak it in some CLR for half an hour, followed by a good rinse, complete dry and lube.

I also love WD-40, which seems to be working for you.
 
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