I’ll put a good edge on a carbon blade then before I put it away I run it through wax to prevent any corrosion while it’s stowed away. I’ll pull it out and it seems to have lost its level of sharpness that I had it at. Talking to a buddy (79 years old) that’s used knives all his life from ranch work to jungle use and he has edges that seem to loose their edge after being stored away also. I guess what I’m wondering is do blades corrode at a like micro level or something that’s not visible but does effect the edge.
Edge retention
- Thread starter pshn60
- Start date
- Joined
- Sep 20, 2015
- Messages
- 6,975
Try the same thing with a folder. You won't see any deterioration.
Why ?
The sheaths dull the edges just sliding it in and out. At least with all of my Cold Steels with their silly glass fiber filled plastics. I hate the things. Drove me away from EDCing fixed blades and back to folders. Folders stay cleaner for food prep too. Can't wash the inside of a leather sheath.
- Joined
- Apr 12, 2009
- Messages
- 13,197
It's also possible that the blade was put away with a little bit of sharp, but fragile, burr left on the edge, which then folds and 'dulls' the edge when it's used again. I tend to believe this happens pretty often.
Wowbagger makes a good point about fixed blades stored in sheaths. Some sheaths will be hard on edges, literally. I've read a lot of gripes about 'hard' sheaths in Kydex and similar materials, damaging or dulling edges of blades stored in them.
There's probably some truth in some 'micro-corrosion' going on, at literally a microscopic level. But I've yet to see any evidence of that in any of my own carbon steel blades left in storage for a long time. But I'd think, if there's enough corrosion happening to noticeably dull an edge, that same corrosion would likely be visible on the blade as well. If there's not enough to see with the eyes, then I'd likely not suspect much significant dulling as a direct result of corrosion.
Wowbagger makes a good point about fixed blades stored in sheaths. Some sheaths will be hard on edges, literally. I've read a lot of gripes about 'hard' sheaths in Kydex and similar materials, damaging or dulling edges of blades stored in them.
There's probably some truth in some 'micro-corrosion' going on, at literally a microscopic level. But I've yet to see any evidence of that in any of my own carbon steel blades left in storage for a long time. But I'd think, if there's enough corrosion happening to noticeably dull an edge, that same corrosion would likely be visible on the blade as well. If there's not enough to see with the eyes, then I'd likely not suspect much significant dulling as a direct result of corrosion.
- Joined
- Jun 4, 2010
- Messages
- 6,642
In my personal experience this is 100% a real thing. I believe this is less prevalent with folders due to most of them being stainless.
I solved this issue by making my own sheathes - I use a hot wax impregnated leather liner in a Kydex outer shell. This not only eliminates virtually 100% of storage or carry related rusting (can carry carbon steel fixed blade IWB right through the Summer) but my carbon blades stay perfectly sharp for long periods of time in storage. It also makes for very good retention in handle configurations that often don't stay secure without a handle loop.
FRN sheathes not only dull the blade with shockingly little contact, I've used them to "strop" an edge back into shape as well. They are a menace and makers really shouldn't use them - like making a handgun holster lined with 2000 grit wet/dry - its just plain stupid.
- Joined
- Oct 8, 2013
- Messages
- 282
True Dat!