Lost tool found

[Valkie]

35 years ago, I was gifted a Vic soldier with my companies name emblazoned on the scale.
It copped heaps over the years, used for all the rough jobs in favour of my "newer" ones.
Scratched, chipped, but still sharp and fully functional.

About 5 years ago, it dissapearing, gone, just no longer around.
I looked everywhere, searched everywhere, could not find it.

Today, while crawling under my house to fix the TV reception, I noticed it lying in the mud ( under my house is almost always damp for weeks after rain due to the property draining to the front of the property)
It was just lying there waiting for me to find it.

Now, it's in a bit of a state.
Loks like a bit of aluminium corrosion on the spacers, and the scales are a mess.

I'm soaking it I warm soapy water at the moment.
I will wash the dirt and grime off it and start attacking it with WD40 and seeing if I can salvage it.

But it's now found, and regardless of its final condition after attempted salvage, I will keep it.
It's been a great tool.

Lost tool found.

[magentus]

Your poor SAK waiting under the house for 5 years to be rescued. I'm glad you found it

[MadPlumbarian]

I can only pic what it looks like, I lost my first sak in the woods, after a year in the wilderness of all four seasons, I tripped and fell all to shake my head and see something odd under some leafs, and sure enough there it was, and yeah the pitting on the spacers, and all the other corrosion, I was only 12-13, so it got what I thought was the best cleaning! I still have it, but it’s retired!
JR

[Valkie]

I can only pic what it looks like, I lost my first sak in the woods, after a year in the wilderness of all four seasons, I tripped and fell all to shake my head and see something odd under some leafs, and sure enough there it was, and yeah the pitting on the spacers, and all the other corrosion, I was only 12-13, so it got what I thought was the best cleaning! I still have it, but it’s retired!
JR

I have been soaking it in WD 40 and attempting to open it every few hours.
I can now open the two blades by hand ( with effort)
But the can opener and bottle opener are very stiff and require serious assistance.

I'll keep this up for a while and then try something else.

Any suggestions anyone?

[Old Boy]

I've never tried this but I read somewhere that when aluminum corrodes it forms some sort of extra layer which you can get rid off by cleaning with vinegar. Maybe that layer is somehow creating more friction?

If you want to try it maybe do it in very small amounts in case the vinegar creates more problems?

[Chako]

You could try baking soda and water. Brake cleaner will remove surface rust but will probably damage some plastics and rubber. At home, I use a cheap ultrasonic cleaner and a battery operated toothbrush to clean my tools. Depending on the need will determine what cleaners I will put into the ultrasonic cleaner. I also tend to prefer REM oil afterwards on things I do not eat with as it leaved a film residue that keeps on protecting. A light coat of mineral oil for things that will come into contact with food.

[ThundahBeagle]

35 years ago, I was gifted a Vic soldier with my companies name emblazoned on the scale.
It copped heaps over the years, used for all the rough jobs in favour of my "newer" ones.
Scratched, chipped, but still sharp and fully functional.

About 5 years ago, it dissapearing, gone, just no longer around.
I looked everywhere, searched everywhere, could not find it.

Today, while crawling under my house to fix the TV reception, I noticed it lying in the mud ( under my house is almost always damp for weeks after rain due to the property draining to the front of the property)
It was just lying there waiting for me to find it.

Now, it's in a bit of a state.
Loks like a bit of aluminium corrosion on the spacers, and the scales are a mess.

I'm soaking it I warm soapy water at the moment.
I will wash the dirt and grime off it and start attacking it with WD40 and seeing if I can salvage it.

But it's now found, and regardless of its final condition after attempted salvage, I will keep it.
It's been a great tool.

Lost tool found.

Yeah!  Better than finding $20 in the pocket of pants that went through the laundry!

Give it a good cleaning and I bet it's still serviceable.

Now, if only I could find that Huntsman I lost last month...

[ThundahBeagle]

I've never tried this but I read somewhere that when aluminum corrodes it forms some sort of extra layer which you can get rid off by cleaning with vinegar. Maybe that layer is somehow creating more friction?

If you want to try it maybe do it in very small amounts in case the vinegar creates more problems?

I've used vinegar to clean some of my old tools - Estwing Camp Axe with leather wrapped handle, Craftsman, S-K, Snap on sockets and extensions and driver bits.  Sometimes because I was working on my truck or Jeep when it started raining and the toolbox was open, other times I have bought used tools like sockets or a Millers River eggbeater hand drill off of Craigslist and they needed a good what's for.  It really does work.  I soaked mine, fully immersed in the suspension (not the wood or leather parts!) and monitored daily.  Could see the rust particles dissolving off.  It's slow enough you can pull the tools out at any time, rinse, and dry before any acid etching gets bad.

Highly recommend for metal.  Not sure it's any good for cellidor, though

[AzteCypher]

I've tried a combination of working some mineral oil in, waiting a few hours then running it through my ultrasonic cleaner with warm soapy water.  If you don't have an ultrasonic cleaner, you could fill up a plastic resealable container with warm to hot soapy water and shake it for about a minute.  Going through this process two or three times has helped me dislodge whatever caused the implements to get stuck.

My theory is that after the initial thorough wash to dislodge the bulk of it, the mineral oil helps loosen the smaller particles.  Washing it again in warm soapy water helps pull those smaller particles out.

This process hasn't failed me yet and has at least taken me from "no moving that tool" to a "gentle/weak snap".

[Valkie]

I've never tried this but I read somewhere that when aluminum corrodes it forms some sort of extra layer which you can get rid off by cleaning with vinegar. Maybe that layer is somehow creating more friction?

If you want to try it maybe do it in very small amounts in case the vinegar creates more problems?

Makes sense, I'll give it a go.

[Valkie]

You could try baking soda and water. Brake cleaner will remove surface rust but will probably damage some plastics and rubber. At home, I use a cheap ultrasonic cleaner and a battery operated toothbrush to clean my tools. Depending on the need will determine what cleaners I will put into the ultrasonic cleaner. I also tend to prefer REM oil afterwards on things I do not eat with as it leaved a film residue that keeps on protecting. A light coat of mineral oil for things that will come into contact with food.

I have a cheap ultrasonic cleaner, something else to try, thanks.

[Valkie]

Thanks for the suggestions.
I try them all over the next couple of weeks.
We are going away next week, so it will be a little while.

Again, thanks.

[Valkie]

I gave the tool a good siaking in vinegar whike in the ultrasonic bath.
Initially i tried 1/2 hour and found improvement.
So i gave it a two hour soak and ultrasonic bath.
I immediatel folloed up with a good wash is hot soapy water while manipulating the blades and other implements.
 
Finally, after it dried, i gave it a good oiling and further manipulation.
Its now considerably easier to open all lnives and tools, but still not perfect.

I am continuing to oil it and manipukate it frequently, it seems to be freeing up a little at a time.
The scales have not lost any of their embossing and the vlades and tools appear rust free.

The hardiness if these tools is amazing .
I believe, in a few more days or working it and cleanibg it several more times, it may be fully functional again.

Thanks to all with your suggestions.
When i figure out how to reduce photo size, ill post a picture.

[nate j]

When i figure out how to reduce photo size, ill post a picture.

Glad it is starting to improve!
 

I find the easiest way to get a pic small enough is to take a “zoomed out” photo, then use the built in photo editor on my phone to crop it down to a close up.  When done correctly, the result is a pic small enough to post.

If I don’t get the zoom correct in the moment, and the cropped pic is still too large, then I email the cropped pic to myself, and choose the largest size option less than 512KB.

Both of these approaches are fairly quick (obviously the first one is fastest), neither requires any special/additional apps or software, and neither requires anything goofy like transferring photos from phone to laptop to edit them.

Hope this helps!