Want a unique blade finish? Try a potato

[hawkenman]

When I was a kid I was awed at the finish of my grandfather's pocket knife blade. It was a dark luster with a damascus type finish. He told me he achieved this finish by sticking the blade in an ice potato for a couple of weeks. Well 35 years pass and I had just bought a Case Trapper knife with a carbon blades, the blades had a chrome finish, so I tried it. I stuck the main blade up to the handle in a large ice potato, placed it in the bottom of the fridge for two weeks. The chemicals in the potato did a marvelous job. After a little cleaning and a light coat of oil I have a knife just like my dear old grandpappy.

[GRIMJIM]

Can I ask what's an ice potato?

[hawkenman]

Sorry, in the deep south baking potato's are referred to as " ice potato's".

[Graybeard]

Been in Bama all my life and never heard that one. Osh as in mispronunciation of Irish potato yes but never ICE. Just OSH.

[Joel]

Lots of "organic" stuff will color a carbon blade. Potatoes, Tomatoes, either fresh( and big) or canned work.  I use mustard quite often on my cutdown machete blades. Vinegar is a classic.  You don't have to put them in the fridge, in fact that slows things down some.

[singleVI]

Can we see a picture?

[dodd3]

Can we see a picture?

here ya go this was stuck in a potato for 4 days in the fridge came out pritty good.
bernie

[singleVI]

Hmm, looks neat. Would it do the same to the Chrome-Vanadium blades on my Case Trapper?

[hawkenman]

I got the same results on a brand new Case with Chrome-Vanadium blades but it took about 7 days.

[Horsefeathers]

I just made a recent discovery of the same incident. I cut open green "black walnut" husks and my carbon steel knife blade took on a finish similar to a gun blue. I switched to hammer to peel them and the hammer turned blue. Would these finishes allow you to use the blades without getting that odor when you cut a tomato etc. for the first time with a polished carbon blade? Is this the thing to do with carbon steel blades? Most of my blades are polished and used only to slice meat.Wondering?....Horsefeathers.