How to clean a SAK with wooden scales

[Maties]

Hi everyone,

I recently bought a second hand wenger SAK with wooden evo scales. It's nice and in a very good condition, but it's dirty and smelly, and it needs a good cleaning, and I don't know how to do it. I think water could damage the wooden scales.

How do you clean wooden scales SAKs?





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[Bunk Tuppins]

My suggestions:
-Don't immerse it in water.  Wood swells up and the shape can become distorted.
-You can wash the metal parts using cloth or paper towel, etc with soap and water, and/or rubbing alcohol.  Try not to get too much alcohol or water on the wood and wipe off any spills immediately.
-Once you have got it all cleaned up (and the wood is quite dry), put a thin layer or two of beeswax on the wood.

If the odor is something that has soaked into the wood (sweat, perfume, etc) you may be out of luck.  Wood is porous and rubbing with a damp cloth or even sanding it may not remove odors.  If nothing works you can try wrapping the knife with cloth and putting it in a box with baking soda (or charcoal) for a week or two. 

[nakken]

I have been wondering about the same for my Hiker wood. This seems like some great tips, cheers Bunk

And good luck, Maties. If you do get around to it, some before and after pictures are always welcome

[Maties]

Thank you, Bunk Tuppins, for the tips. I will try it.

I will make photos and post it if it works, nakken!

[HarleyXJGuy]

Hi everyone,

I recently bought a second hand wenger SAK with wooden evo scales. It's nice and in a very good condition, but it's dirty and smelly, and it needs a good cleaning, and I don't know how to do it. I think water could damage the wooden scales.

How do you clean wooden scales SAKs?





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Unfortunately you can’t.

Once they get dirty you must send them in. I’ll PM you the address.

 

[Maties]

Unfortunately you can’t.

Once they get dirty you must send them in. I’ll PM you the address.

 

I'll try anyway. I think it can get much better than it is

Now I've been googling and found something from the victorinox web page.

https://www.victorinox.com/global/en/Wood-%E2%80%93-the-material/cms/wood#Care

Cheers!

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[Bunk Tuppins]

I'll try anyway. I think it can get much better than it is

Now I've been googling and found something from the victorinox web page.

https://www.victorinox.com/global/en/Wood-%E2%80%93-the-material/cms/wood#Care

Cheers!

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I think the wood cleaning and maintenance info in the link mainly applies to cutting boards but it is fairly good advice for wooden knife scales.

Chances are good you can clean the wood up a bit (scrub with an old toothbrush and water then dry) and maybe deodorize it.  I've been avoiding buying used wooden pocket knives because they are pretty hard to clean and wood has a tendency to get scratches and dents.

[Maties]

Well, it's done and I'm satisfied with the result.

First I cleaned it with warm water and a toothbrush, after drying it I cleaned it with vinegar, then water again and drying. At this point the bad smell had gone completely.

Then I sanded it a little bit with a 250 grit sandpaper, and finally I applied a thin layer of oil for wood.

I don't think you can see much difference, but I leave a few images.

Before

After


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[Bunk Tuppins]

Looks good!  Has a nice grain on the scales.

[Rizio Il Ghiro]

  Nicely done!

[Maties]

Thanks! That proves it's possible to clean and mantain wooden scales on a SAK. Just don't soak it in water too much time... And don't do that very often.

Two more pics

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[Bunk Tuppins]

That looks like an Evowood 10.  I have the Delemont version of it.  It has become my favorite knife!   I have a bunch of SAKs sitting on my desk and I generally find myself reaching for this one.  I even bought a backup.  It's small and light and unobtrusive in the pocket.  Has all the tools I need (and I can take a 74 or 58 with scissors if I need them).  I enjoy handling wood somewhat more than plastic.  Of course plastic is better in situations where you might encounter water or grease and I do have a red Delemont version too...

[Maties]

That looks like an Evowood 10.  I have the Delemont version of it.  It has become my favorite knife!   I have a bunch of SAKs sitting on my desk and I generally find myself reaching for this one.  I even bought a backup.  It's small and light and unobtrusive in the pocket.  Has all the tools I need (and I can take a 74 or 58 with scissors if I need them).  I enjoy handling wood somewhat more than plastic.  Of course plastic is better in situations where you might encounter water or grease and I do have a red Delemont version too...

Well, I looked for this model on the sakwiki and I see it's an Evowood 14. Scales are made from swiss wallnut. It has scissors, but you can't see that in the photos.

I don't think I will use it usually, because for an EDC I usually carry SAKs with cellidor scales or alox, but I keep this with wooden scales becouse I find it beautiful, and I like the touch feel. I guess I'll carry it occasionally, when I want something a bit more elegant in my pocket.

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[Bunk Tuppins]

I have a Delemont version of the Evowood 14 too.  Nice knife.