Is the green on this old Buck knife tarnish, or something worse? It has been in a leather sheath in a desk drawer for a few years. Any ideas bout cleaning it up? I have a Schrade with the problem but not nearly as bad, any ideas about how to clean these up?
unless i'm mistaken, the bolsters were or are made of brass. you should be able to remove it with some Brasso polish. it's just tarnish from being in the leather sheath. brass cases stored in leather belt loops will create a very similar green tarnish to them. something to do with the acids in the leather i believe.
It should remove very easily using most any kind of polish, even car polish.
"Bronze and brass turn green due chemical reactions between the copper in those alloys and the atmosphere. The green is most often copper carbonate. This coloring is called a Patina or Verdigris and can be used intentionally"
Thanks guys, I carried that knife in high school almost 40 years ago. Not in the classroom, but it was in my tool belt through the 2 years of the high school construction trades classes. I stripped a lot of wire and fine shaped a lot of trim wood with that knife.
View attachment 179978
Is the green on this old Buck knife tarnish, or something worse? It has been in a leather sheath in a desk drawer for a few years. Any ideas bout cleaning it up? I have a Schrade with the problem but not nearly as bad, any ideas about how to clean these up?
The green is called "patina." Patina is a thin layer that variously forms on the surface of copper, bronze and similar metals (tarnish produced by oxidation or other chemical processes). So it's not really a rust. Your handle won't get damaged by it.
If it bugs you and you want to clean it, grab a very fine mesh, a sponge-mesh, I don't know how you say this in English, it's not my native language, I think it's called wool.
Find a small piece of wool, fine wool, not the abrasive rough type, buy a tube of FLITZ paste off eBay, around $5–10, I forgot exactly how much it was but it's around there somewhere, it's probably the best metal polish on the market, it's American with German chemicals, and it's really good for metals and plastics. More than good.
Put a drop on the wool and scrub until the paste goes dry. When it's dry, it no longer works. Wipe. Repeat. Then switch to microfiber towel, put more paste and with circular motions buff it.
Put alcohol on a piece of cotton and wipe it.
Post a photo later. Good luck. That Buck is a classic.
Never use water to wash your knife, blade, handles, mechanism. You don't need water. Only clean your knives with alcohol. Dries up quickly and disinfects everything. And don't pour it, even though nothing will happen.
Actually the true name for that patina it is Verdigris. We Swedish Mauser collectors are very familiar with it, it's on every surplus Swedish m/96 sling ever made. I just wipe it off with a rag and some Rem Oil.
Here is some information I found on another site to tell the age of your knife.
YEARSYMBOL
1968 - BUCK over USA
1973 - Added model # to above
1986 <
1987 >
1988 ^
1989 V
1990 X
1991 +
1992 -
1993 /
1994 \
1995 C
1996 Backwards "C"
1997 Upside down "U"
1998 U
1999 A squared "C"
2000 Backwards squared "C"
2001 Upside down squared "U"
2002 anvil
2003 A "T" symbol
2004 Upside down "T"
2005 Idaho
2006 -|
2007 V
2008 ^
2009 >
2010 <
Additional date information for the Buck 110 Folding Hunter and the 112 Ranger:
1974 to 1980: one dot on either side of the model # (example: .110.)
1980: two dots on the right side of the model # (example: .110..)
1981 to 1986: two dots on either side of the model # (example: ..110..)
Here is some information I found on another site to tell the age of your knife.
YEARSYMBOL
1968 - BUCK over USA
1973 - Added model # to above
1986 <
1987 >
1988 ^
1989 V
1990 X
1991 +
1992 -
1993 /
1994 \
1995 C
1996 Backwards "C"
1997 Upside down "U"
1998 U
1999 A squared "C"
2000 Backwards squared "C"
2001 Upside down squared "U"
2002 anvil
2003 A "T" symbol
2004 Upside down "T"
2005 Idaho
2006 -|
2007 V
2008 ^
2009 >
2010 <
Additional date information for the Buck 110 Folding Hunter and the 112 Ranger:
1974 to 1980: one dot on either side of the model # (example: .110.)
1980: two dots on the right side of the model # (example: .110..)
1981 to 1986: two dots on either side of the model # (example: ..110..)
Dallas is correct! Just get some Brasso! We used it in the Army to keep our Brass Polished. And I have used it on my Buck Knife and other items. You will not believe what things look like after using it.
Squeeze a few drops into your walnut or corn cob media while tumbling cases, and they come out looking like brand new cases when done.
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