All About Pocket Knives

I'm not sure which model Gerber my knife is, but I do like it a lot. I got it new in the late 70's.
Usually though, when I take it out of the leather case it has patina on the brass.
Wiping it down takes care of it.
But, is there a proper way to prevent patina, or do I need to wipe it down every few months as a patina prevention routine?
You can just see the beginnings of the green deposit in this photo.

First) Welcome.
B) I've heard leather may not be the best for long term storage
3) I've been wrong before

I always thought brass naturally gets a patina with time.

I wonder if Renaissance Wax would provide a barrier, therefore
holding down the patina development.

Bob

The green stuff is called verdigris. Its harmless just wipe it off. Store the knife outside of the sheath. Do you happen to use mink oil on your leather? My dad did and his knives seem to grow more verdigris in storage than mine do.

Steve Warden wrote: I've heard leather may not be the best for long term storage

I completely agree. I took mine out of their leather cases long ago. You have to keep brass clean and wipe them down every so often or that green stuff comes back. I don't even store my fixed blades in their leather sheaths just in case.

___________
Mike

I have used plastic wrap on the brass guards, etc of my fixed blades that are stored in a leather sheath. Helps, but even then, the green stuff creeps in. So even without direct brass/leather contact, it still forms.

Leather contains Tannic acid which when contacted to brass will produce the green patina. I would recommend long term storage for knives in a padded zipper case. Even with that, brass will need to be periodically polished. I use Semichrome or Flitz polish.

eveled wrote:The green stuff is called verdigris. Its harmless just wipe it off. Store the knife outside of the sheath. Do you happen to use mink oil on your leather? My dad did and his knives seem to grow more verdigris in storage than mine do.

Yes, Verdigris.
That's the correct name.

https://www.google.com/search?q=verdigr ... irefox-b-1

But, it sounds like the answer is to store it out of the case. Or, remove it from the case now and then to wipe it down, perhaps?

It's still gonna go green.
I store all my knives that have leather sheaths wrapped in either Saran wrap or sandwich baggies to keep the bad leather rustmonster away. (With a little 3n1)
Haven't had a problem yet.

Haven't heard that about mink oil. My dad put it on his (and my) baseball gloves when I was kidding (he played a couple of years on a little minor league farm team). Always love the smell. Still use it on most everything I've got that's leather (sheaths to work boots).

The Ides of March!!!
Not a bad day, unless you're Caeser.

ET TU BRUTE!!

Brass bolsters stored in a sheath will definitely promote verdigris. If left long enough, the verdigris will actually etch the brass.

A while back, I bought some Vapor Phase Corrosion Inhibiting plastic zipper bags. VCPI or even VCI for short. They are available in many sizes. They are used for long term storage of metal parts and pieces. The ones I bought are sized such that most of my folding hunters with brass bolsters (Camillus, Buck, Schrade, Case Shark Series, etc.) can be dropped inside, zipped closed, and THEN put in the sheath. The bags provide an effective barrier between the leather and the knife. And, the VPCI properties of the bag's interior provides added corrosion protection for the knife in general. When purchased in bulk, the cost of the bags can be as low as $0.03 - $0.05 each. I went in with several other collectors and we bought a case to bring the cost down. I also obtained some larger ones that are great for items like handguns.

They also make VCPI/VCI paper too. In fact, that is what Bear & Son wraps their knives in from the factory.

Thank you. Didn't know about VCPI.
I'm gonna have to check into that.

On all my knives with brass bolsters & liners, about once a year or so I give them a good polish with either Brasso or Mother's Mag Polish. Keeps the brass looking nice and keeps the verdigris at bay. I don't really like the look of dull patina on brass.