Durability question

[Diver]

I bought some TSA knives.  My intent is to pop one of these into a backpack left in each car.  They had obviously all been EDC for the prior owners and looked worn, beat, and dirty.  They don't need to look great, but they do need to be functional for my purpose.  I decided to clean them up, popped off the scales and began cleaning and lubricating, as well as carefully inspecting each for corrosion or other wear.  They all cleaned up rather nicely, though the scales are all scratched up.  The actual knives were really in pretty good shape.  For my purposes they are fine, but I am left with a question of how long a SAK should last with normal wear and tear?  How long should a set of the standard scales last?  I expect them to pick up scratches from knocking around a pocket with a key chain, but should they hold up a year?  5 years?

In my own case I have never worn out a pocket knife of any brand.  I either lose it, or get bored with it and switch to something else before it wears out.

Right now I am so pleased with these knives I am inclined to replace the scales with new factory scales and proceed as planned with putting them in all the cars and backpacks.  They look like they would be good for a lifetime with new scales.

[twiliter]

I bought some TSA knives.  My intent is to pop one of these into a backpack left in each car.  They had obviously all been EDC for the prior owners and looked worn, beat, and dirty.  They don't need to look great, but they do need to be functional for my purpose.  I decided to clean them up, popped off the scales and began cleaning and lubricating, as well as carefully inspecting each for corrosion or other wear.  They all cleaned up rather nicely, though the scales are all scratched up.  The actual knives were really in pretty good shape.  For my purposes they are fine, but I am left with a question of how long a SAK should last with normal wear and tear?  How long should a set of the standard scales last?  I expect them to pick up scratches from knocking around a pocket with a key chain, but should they hold up a year?  5 years?

In my own case I have never worn out a pocket knife of any brand.  I either lose it, or get bored with it and switch to something else before it wears out.

Right now I am so pleased with these knives I am inclined to replace the scales with new factory scales and proceed as planned with putting them in all the cars and backpacks.  They look like they would be good for a lifetime with new scales.

A lifetime if not abused, several lifetimes in some cases. 

[SAK Guy]

I bought some TSA knives.  My intent is to pop one of these into a backpack left in each car.  They had obviously all been EDC for the prior owners and looked worn, beat, and dirty.  They don't need to look great, but they do need to be functional for my purpose.  I decided to clean them up, popped off the scales and began cleaning and lubricating, as well as carefully inspecting each for corrosion or other wear.  They all cleaned up rather nicely, though the scales are all scratched up.  The actual knives were really in pretty good shape.  For my purposes they are fine, but I am left with a question of how long a SAK should last with normal wear and tear?  How long should a set of the standard scales last?  I expect them to pick up scratches from knocking around a pocket with a key chain, but should they hold up a year?  5 years?

In my own case I have never worn out a pocket knife of any brand.  I either lose it, or get bored with it and switch to something else before it wears out.

Right now I am so pleased with these knives I am inclined to replace the scales with new factory scales and proceed as planned with putting them in all the cars and backpacks.  They look like they would be good for a lifetime with new scales.

A lifetime if not abused, several lifetimes in some cases. 

+100!

[Diver]

I tend to agree on the knife itself, but there is the question of what constitutes abuse?  I've actually experienced more corrosion on knives sitting in a drawer than those I carry daily.  Sitting in a drawer does not sound like abuse, but if it leads to corrosion, I guess it is.  I intend to toss these into cars and backpacks.  Is that abuse?

I am most curious about the cellidor scales.  They scratch up and then look awful.  This batch I received seems to have knives that have held up well, but the condition of the scales is really variable.  None of them are totally free of scratches, though they vary from "used" to "ugly".

If I pop for new scales, what is most durable?

[twiliter]

If they are modern Victorinox or Wenger (within last 50 years or so), there should not be any corrosion issues from disuse, and if in a reasonably dry drawer without direct sunlight they should remain as you left them indefinitely. Not abuse in my book, lots of knives are collectors only which never see any use. Submersion in salt water will damage them if not attended to in a timely manner (ask me how I know  ), so that's abuse. Throwing them, using the blade for a prybar, oversharpening or grinding wheel sharpening, using as a hammer, etc. all count as abuse IMO. Using and maintaining the tools as intended by the makers is not abuse.

As far as the scales, the cellidor stays nice for a long time, and there are examples on the forum of older users that still look great, so it depends on how much they contact other objects regularly, and how much wear you will accept before they look shabby. I hear nylon scales are more durable, but they look different than the cellidor ones so that makes it a personal preference as to how nice they look to you.

[Diver]

Thanks.  I'd have to agree with you on everything you call abuse, especially the salt water.  (scuba diving)

From the looks of these, the "abuse" was tossing them in a pocket with keys and other objects, carrying them around awhile, (years?) and eventually having to turn them over to TSA.  Cleaning, what is that?  :-)

There was one knife with nylon scales in the group that seems to be in good shape except the logo, which is imprinted, is getting worn off.  I have no idea how long any of these were in use.  Giving the matter a little further thought, I am inclined to get a batch of cheap sheaths for these, along with some new scales, and toss them in the bags and cars as I intended, and just call it good.  Unfortunately, the scales and sheaths would still add up to more than the cost of the knives.

[Crow]

 

Scales can be recovered. Unless they are totally broken or warped. Even most used ones can be pretty if taken care right. Sometimes little worn look makes them more delightful for your eye.

If you are to put them in car,  in pouch! Do you really need them to be in pristine condition?

[Diver]

Scales can be recovered. Unless they are totally broken or warped. Even most used ones can be pretty if taken care right. Sometimes little worn look makes them more delightful for your eye.

If you are to put them in car,  in pouch! Do you really need them to be in pristine condition?

No they do not need to be pristine.  If I needed that I would have bought new.  These will be used/abused, but I would like to at least do what I can reasonably.  How would you recommend "recovering" the scales?  I saw one fellow on YouTube who painted them, but I thought the result was sort of so-so.

I also did some looking for nylon scales and only found 84mm on eBay.  I can't find them on Swiss Bianco's site.  You use the term "pouch" instead of sheath.  I'm not sure what you are referring to here.

[WoodsDuck]

I'm always impressed by how much life these beat half to death SAKs still have. I got a used Climber off EDCSource, which looked like it was recovered from an episode of Hoarders. It was completely gunked up, just nasty as you can get. I gave it a hardcore scrubbing, blasted a bunch of crap out with hot water, then WD40, then back to soapy water. Now the scales are still pretty worn, but the knife looks ready for another 50 years of EDC service. I gave it to my mother for her purse carry and she loves it.

[strmliner]

Thanks.  I'd have to agree with you on everything you call abuse, especially the salt water.  (scuba diving)

From the looks of these, the "abuse" was tossing them in a pocket with keys and other objects, carrying them around awhile, (years?) and eventually having to turn them over to TSA.  Cleaning, what is that?  :-)

There was one knife with nylon scales in the group that seems to be in good shape except the logo, which is imprinted, is getting worn off.  I have no idea how long any of these were in use.  Giving the matter a little further thought, I am inclined to get a batch of cheap sheaths for these, along with some new scales, and toss them in the bags and cars as I intended, and just call it good.  Unfortunately, the scales and sheaths would still add up to more than the cost of the knives.

+1...I've done the same thing for SAKs that live in my cars.  A couple of things:

• The nylon scales probably wear a bit better than cellidor, though the imprints (if they existed on that pair of scales) do wear off
• If you want to clean up the cellidor scales, sand them with progressively higher grits (eg, 600/1000/1400), then some rubbing compound, then polishing compound...generally cleans them up nicely
• If you want sheaths, go for it, but seems like overkill for something that will live in the glove box or a trunk-bag
• Personally, I save new scales for SAKs I want to pocket carry...I've settled on nylon scales for vehicle knives

I pull these out of the vehicles once a year for cleaning, sharpening, etc.  If I've pulled one out for use, it gets cleaned/sharpened before it goes back into the vehicle.  I expect these will last my lifetime if not lost.

 

[ColoSwiss]

If you want to clean up the scales a bit, toothpaste is a mild abrasive that will remove a lot of the smaller scratches and rub marks.

I carry my users in a pocket with keys and don't worry about how they look. The Traveler (top) has had over a decade of near-continuous carry.

[Diver]

I'm always impressed by how much life these beat half to death SAKs still have. I got a used Climber off EDCSource, which looked like it was recovered from an episode of Hoarders. It was completely gunked up, just nasty as you can get. I gave it a hardcore scrubbing, blasted a bunch of crap out with hot water, then WD40, then back to soapy water. Now the scales are still pretty worn, but the knife looks ready for another 50 years of EDC service. I gave it to my mother for her purse carry and she loves it.

Sounds like your experience is consistent with what I see with these.  That's good because these are going to all my immediate family members when they go into the cars and packs.

So far I've cleaned a bunch of them (still working through them) and they have all improved significantly with a treatment of Gun Scrubber followed by Ballistol.  I think repeated cleaning/lubricating will bring back the actual knife mechanisms.

Based on the comments on this thread, I have tried a bit of sanding and polishing compound.  That seems to have gotten another layer of dirt off the surface of the scales on those where I tried it, but the scales also seem to dull a bit due to the sanding and the polishing hasn't fully brought it back.  I think I need much more polishing to get them looking good.  I'm also thinking a layer of clear gloss might help the scales.

[SAK Guy]

I'm always impressed by how much life these beat half to death SAKs still have. I got a used Climber off EDCSource, which looked like it was recovered from an episode of Hoarders. It was completely gunked up, just nasty as you can get. I gave it a hardcore scrubbing, blasted a bunch of crap out with hot water, then WD40, then back to soapy water. Now the scales are still pretty worn, but the knife looks ready for another 50 years of EDC service. I gave it to my mother for her purse carry and she loves it.

Sounds like your experience is consistent with what I see with these.  That's good because these are going to all my immediate family members when they go into the cars and packs.

So far I've cleaned a bunch of them (still working through them) and they have all improved significantly with a treatment of Gun Scrubber followed by Ballistol.  I think repeated cleaning/lubricating will bring back the actual knife mechanisms.

Based on the comments on this thread, I have tried a bit of sanding and polishing compound.  That seems to have gotten another layer of dirt off the surface of the scales on those where I tried it, but the scales also seem to dull a bit due to the sanding and the polishing hasn't fully brought it back.  I think I need much more polishing to get them looking good.  I'm also thinking a layer of clear gloss might help the scales.

Flitz polish is suppose to shine them up....I use it for other stuff like knife blades etc. It's a micro polish so no scratches.  Will probably shine them up some depending how sanded they are.

[WoodsDuck]

I'm always impressed by how much life these beat half to death SAKs still have. I got a used Climber off EDCSource, which looked like it was recovered from an episode of Hoarders. It was completely gunked up, just nasty as you can get. I gave it a hardcore scrubbing, blasted a bunch of crap out with hot water, then WD40, then back to soapy water. Now the scales are still pretty worn, but the knife looks ready for another 50 years of EDC service. I gave it to my mother for her purse carry and she loves it.

Sounds like your experience is consistent with what I see with these.  That's good because these are going to all my immediate family members when they go into the cars and packs.

So far I've cleaned a bunch of them (still working through them) and they have all improved significantly with a treatment of Gun Scrubber followed by Ballistol.  I think repeated cleaning/lubricating will bring back the actual knife mechanisms.

Based on the comments on this thread, I have tried a bit of sanding and polishing compound.  That seems to have gotten another layer of dirt off the surface of the scales on those where I tried it, but the scales also seem to dull a bit due to the sanding and the polishing hasn't fully brought it back.  I think I need much more polishing to get them looking good.  I'm also thinking a layer of clear gloss might help the scales.

Flitz polish is suppose to shine them up....I use it for other stuff like knife blades etc. It's a micro polish so no scratches.  Will probably shine them up some depending how sanded they are.

I've also heard some people have success with very fine sandpaper and wadding polish. I've never used it on a SAK's scales, but Nevr-Dull does put a nice shine on metals, so who knows.

[Poncho65]

SAK are just about as a durable knife as you are gonna find IMO I lost one of my Executive's out in the yard while working on something in the Fall I was totally bummed out   I found it 6 or 8 months later and even after all the weather, snow and all I found it and not a bit of rust I was amazed by this and it put SAKs on a whole new playing field to me

[Diver]

I've got some Flitz around and will give that a try.  Nevr-Dull is a new one on me, so I don't have any of that handy.

From what I am seeing so far, I think part of the problem is dirt embedded right into the worn surface of the scales.  Even though I don't have them shiny yet, I feel like they are cleaner as a result of the sanding/polishing I have done so far.

The cleaning lubricating of the knives was really effective with about half the knives.  The other half were all improved, but need a repeat or two before they'll really look clean.

When I started the thread I was thinking of the scales as wear items and thought I would simply have to replace all of them.  Now I am thinking that I can clean up most of them, though I would still like to find a source for new 91mm nylon scales.

[Diver]

Update:  I tried the Flitz and it seems to be about the right level of abrasiveness to take out the light sandpaper scratches.  I think the polish I was using was a bit too mild for the current condition of the scales.  Perhaps that polish will be useful after smoothing them out a bit more.

[SAK Guy]

Update:  I tried the Flitz and it seems to be about the right level of abrasiveness to take out the light sandpaper scratches.  I think the polish I was using was a bit too mild for the current condition of the scales.  Perhaps that polish will be useful after smoothing them out a bit more.

Glad it helped!

[Diver]

Update:  I tried the Flitz and it seems to be about the right level of abrasiveness to take out the light sandpaper scratches.  I think the polish I was using was a bit too mild for the current condition of the scales.  Perhaps that polish will be useful after smoothing them out a bit more.

Glad it helped!

Right now it looks like the trick is to figure out the products with the right level of abrasiveness, and go at the scales in stages.  Flitz seemed to fit between the sandpaper and the polishing compound I was using, taking out the sandpaper scratches better than the polishing compound.  Now I need to polish more, and go back over areas I didn't hit hard enough the first time.

I thought the scales were toast at the beginning, while the knives would clean up nicely.  Now, I'd say when I am done these are going to look like they were lightly used, as opposed to TSA sacrifices.

[Aloha]

Late to the party as usual.  My method is wet/dry sand paper ( wet ).  I go up to 2000 then use Mothers Mag Wheel Polish for the final shine. 

Regarding durability of SAKs, I'd say outstanding "all things considered".  Abuse comes in many forms in my mind.  Scuffed scales, dinged scales, or marred scales of any degree to me is not abuse.  Snapped blades, broken tools, or missing implements on the other hand......

This scale "wear" in no way limits the function of the tool.  I buy all my SAKs on the resale market and have re conditioned only a couple because, 1) I wanted to test out techniques, 2) The scales were pretty gross.

Good score on some serviceable SAKs btw   

Lastly, I've even stropped a SAK celidor scale  .  It came out nice but Mothers and an old t shirt worked fine.   

 

[Diver]

Late to the party as usual.  My method is wet/dry sand paper ( wet ).  I go up to 2000 then use Mothers Mag Wheel Polish for the final shine. 

Regarding durability of SAKs, I'd say outstanding "all things considered".  Abuse comes in many forms in my mind.  Scuffed scales, dinged scales, or marred scales of any degree to me is not abuse.  Snapped blades, broken tools, or missing implements on the other hand......

This scale "wear" in no way limits the function of the tool.  I buy all my SAKs on the resale market and have re conditioned only a couple because, 1) I wanted to test out techniques, 2) The scales were pretty gross.

Good score on some serviceable SAKs btw   

Lastly, I've even stropped a SAK celidor scale  .  It came out nice but Mothers and an old t shirt worked fine.   

 

Thanks on the "good score", but I think I got a pretty typical deal.  No complaints.  This is the first time I've tried to recondition these things, and I was very pleased with the condition of the knives themselves.  The scales are coming back as I polish with various products trying to figure out what works best.  I need to get them a bit smoother before the auto polish will be the right thing to use, but they are coming along surprisingly well with some of the suggestions in this thread.  It's all been a tremendous time sink, but I've learned a bit from the exercise.  :-)

I've also become convinced these can last forever with care and maintenance.

[Poncho65]

Glad you found a solution Diver

[Diver]

I guess I have solved the problem of refurbishing.  I may still try clear coating one set of scales just to see if it improves it or messes it up.