Help - Remove Green Corrosion

[lancedwight]

I was cleaning my knife blade with vinegar and letting it sit for a day and a half to two days. I noticed this green corrosion after. I'm assuming they are correlated.

The knife is very special to me. What should I do to remove this safely?

Lance

 

[The Aflac Duck]

It looks like corrosion from the brass liners; brass/copper will typically corrode a green color.

Vinegar isn't a good cleaning agent for knives, I would advise against using it. Instead, I would suggest using Isopropyl Alcohol (rubbing alcohol) in a concentration of 90% or above. After cleaning, use a lube or protectant of your choice. I use mineral oil or Tuff-Glide, but you have a ton of options.

As for removing the green color, something like Noxon Polish should do the trick. You don't need much, so start with just a very small amount and work your way up.

 

[Obsessed with Edges]

Just some simple metal polish, like Flitz, Simichrome, etc, can remove that verdigris. Doesn't take much work to scrub it off, with the polish.

As mentioned, vinegar isn't really the best option for cleaning knives; especially if it's left to sit on the metal too long. The brass, nickel and steel are all reactive to the acetic acid, and that'll generate corrosion like the verdigris seen in your pics (it's the copper, in the brass alloy, reacting to the acid). This is the same sort of reaction seen with knives stored long-term in leather sheaths; the leather often has residual acids left in it from the tanning process.


David