How many have forced a Patina on M4 or others?

B

brvheart

Joined
Oct 13, 2014
Messages
194
Hey there -

With the GB2 coming and my GB1 sitting there in safety never having seen anything outside of tape and paper, I was considering forcing a patina on the GB2 when it gets here. Who else here has done this on the M4 steel (or other steel) and had success? Is there anything that I should watch out for? Best way to achieve the blade blade?

Pics would be appreciate as well as details if you can spare.

I was looking at this thread on baldeforums as a base - http://lhmn.us/1eViX
 
I forced it on my GB1 with boiling apple cider vinegar. It turned out alright, but it took a lot longer than I thought it would.
 
No need to force it in my opinion. Drying the blade off thoroughly has worked satisfactorily for me.

 
I forced a patina on my super blue Endura. I used vinegar. Left the blade in for about an hour. I got a nice dark dark gray with a shadow line at the lamination. Nice contrast between the super blue and the 420.
 
No need to force they show use very quickly.

Manix 2 CPM M4
Bradley Folder 2 CPM M4

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This will do it in minutes....

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I freaking looked at my SB E4 without blinking for 30 seconds and patina set in! SB pat as effortlessly
 
M4 falls somewhere in the middle of the spectrum and develops a patina easily but not instantly. I own many carbon steel and tools steel knives and they all have some patina but I never force it. I eat a lot of fruit and that has done the trick. If you want a patina then just clean the blade with some solvent so there is no residual oil on it and just use it. The more fruit the better. My M4 Mule has seen a lot of kitchen use and it has a heavy patina. My SB Caly3 is almost black. If you want an even patina then chemicals are your best bet and if you want some aweful mustard or onion Damascus pattern there are plenty of threads on that.
 
Solid black works for me and is what I prefer my blades to have - that was part o the reason for wanting to force it, the other is from what I read it helps protect the blade naturally - is that accurate? Also I really like black blades...

Should I take the entire knife apart when soaking it?
 
I am guessing that I should remove the CF/G10 handles on the GB2? The one thing that I am worried about is having to resharpen the blade when I am done. I have a sharp maker but have not mastered it yet and don't want to ruin the blade by hacking it up after the patina....
 
Are you using vinegar? The knife should be fine. The CF and stainless steel shouldn't be hurt by vinegar. If you are comfortable taking the blade out then take it out and throw it in a glass of vinegar. Sorry I can't help much as I haven't forced any patinas.

As far as sharpening goes, well, knives need to be sharpened so you are gonna have to cross that bridge one way or another. There are plenty of sharpening services. I suggest figuring that sharpmaker out.

Good luck! :)
 
Thanks bear! I totally want to figure out that SM - just not ruining my GB2Folder out of gate :)

I have been practicing on the two that I can - I think what I am doing is re-profiling which takes forever. I don't have a knife that I know for sure is 30/40 degrees with the right edge - so I think it is just a matter of biting the bullet and grabbing a spyderco - say my tenacious and using it to really learn this thing.
 
Me? No. I oiled the pivot and applied a rag soaked in vinegar on the blade. You can see where the patina stops in this (horribly lit) photo.

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anything acidic works i usually use apple cider vinegar or mustard, seems to work better if the blade has been scrubbed with detergent to remove all oil and the blade is still hot from running it under boiling water
the military only has rust cause it was lost in the laundry for a few months




 
I really like the Gail Bradley and I really like a good patina. But I don't think a carbon fiber Handle and a patina blade go together. It's like old & new mixed together. Just my subjective thoughts.
 
While this isn't a "forced" patina, it's what has happened to my Gayle Bradley after several years of use around the ranch as a field knife. It's not pampered and spends most of its life in a toolbox. Gets wiped down with an oily rag once in a while and sharpened when needed. Still very smooth...just shows its age a bit.

gbold1.jpg

gbold2.jpg
 
That thing still looks great!!! Especially the handle and the clip - looks brand new - the blade looks great also :)
 
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