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Old 08-13-2005, 07:55 AM
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hammerdownnow hammerdownnow is offline
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I book marked this last week and have been meaning to get back to it. I love that Old Hickory Chef.

Vinagar is a gift from the Gods. Anywhere a mild acid is useful, a safe, healthy, gentle one to use is vinagar. Some people believe vinagar is the key to longivity, and I don't doubt it a bit. I do know vinagar, old hickory's and the kitchen is one three way that can keep all parties satisfied.

I think what you are looking for is a "patena" rather than an "etch". A patena is like a controled, neutralized rust, that prevents or slows the formation of the red type that just keeps on eating at your steel. Etching is a more aggressive type of removing steel, layer by layer. To see how much steel is removed from your blade by etching you can put something on the blade to "Resist" the acid. Then etch, then remove the resist and see and feel how much steel you have etched away.

Everyone can get their hands on a bottle of fingernail polish and a bottle of fingernail polish remover. First, clean your blade well. Wash it down well with the fingernail polish remover(straight acetone is better) to remove all oil, wax and fingerprints. Then wash with dishsoap and rinse well. Some polish removers have lanoline in them to replenish oil in the nails that the acetone depletes while removing the polish. Washing the blade well with soap removes that oil that could ruin or slow down your etch.
Take the little brush in the polish bottle and write your initials, name, a number or do a design on a smooth part of your blade. Drop it into a glass and fill with white vinagar and soak for 8 to 24 hours. Remove from the vinagar and rinse and wash off the black sludge. Remove the nail polish with the remover or acetone and look at your creation. where ever the polish was resisting the vinagar/acid, it will be raised proud of the surface of the blade. Many interesting effects can be done with a resist and vinagar.

A patena on a blade can be done in a much shorter time. A ten minute soak will color your blade enough to resist rust, but not sacrifice steel. Also wrapping the blade in a vinagar soaked papertowel for ten to fifteen minutes will do a nice patena and is much easier to keep off your wood. (Experiment with times due to tempature and other factors)

Vinager is a natural antibacterial. Wiping your kitchen knives down with it, (then rinsing in water) can keep you healthy. Vinagar has the added benifit of polishing stainless steel, copper and brass. Ants and roaches hate it. Wiping your counters and cutting boards down with vinagar killls germs and repels insects and eats away mineral deposits and soap scum. I keep a spray bottle of vinagar on the kitchen sink. Try spaying a fly,ant or wasp with it and see what happens. They act like you sprayed em with like, acid or something....oh yeah....you DID! BUhahahahhahah!!!!!!


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Last edited by hammerdownnow; 08-13-2005 at 08:15 AM. Reason: fix text
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