How To Clean a Buck Knife? 3 Amazing Methods

Buck knives are mostly used in the wild in hunting games. But the worst part about the knife blade is it suffers from rust if do not clean and maintained your knife blades properly.

Buck knives require a good amount of maintenance as the blades of the buck knives are made from high carbon steel in combination with stainless.

There are many different types of materials that are used for making buck knives but high-carbon steel is mostly preferred over other metals.

If you are using a buck knife then you must make sure that you are cleaning your knife properly. If you are just leaving your blades then they might easily suffer from corrosion.

Some of the hunters say crazy things that to use a dishwasher to clean their buck knives, But do not put your knife in the dishwasher.

Cleaning knife blades may sound complicated but it’s quite a straightforward task. Therefore I have prepared a complete guide on how to clean a buck knife.

You must know that your investment in your buck knife will pay you much better only if you know how to clean your knife blades correctly.

Therefore, it’s worth investing your time in cleaning and maintaining your buck knife. Doing this means you have a clean knife whenever you are going on hunting adventures.

Related Post: Best Buck Knife For Fishing & Hunting

How To Clean a Buck Knife?

There are many different ways of cleaning your knife blade and these are some of the most common ways to clean your knife blade.

Here is an easy guide on how to clean a knife. It doesn’t matter how dirty your buck knives are, but you can still clean your knives.

If your knife doesn’t get clean with the methods then your knife is very dirty. Then in that case you can use the third method of cleaning the knife and it will absolutely remove the dirt from your blades.

# Method 1 

The first method of cleaning your knife blade is quite simple and is very cost-effective. These are some of the materials that you will require for cleaning your buck knife.

Materials Required: 

• Scrubber
• Warm Water (Not hot)
• Dry Cloth

Steps: 

1. The first thing that you have to do is to rinse off the dirt and grime from your buck knife using warm water. You can use your fingers for cleaning the blades. But make sure that you are careful. It’s always recommended to use cut resistance gloves during the process.
2. Now you can gently use a scrubbing pad and run it lightly over the knife. This will help to remove the remaining dirt from the blade. 
3. Once you complete the process then you can dry your buck knife by using a dry cloth. Make sure that you remove the moisture as this can rust the knife blade.

# Method 2 

Well, if you are having rotor oil in your garage then you can try out this method. It’s only recommended to use rotor oil for cleaning your knife blades and not use it as a lubricant for storing your knife blades.

Materials Required:

• Rotor Oil
• Warm Water
• Cleaning Cloth

Steps:

1. Firstly you have to apply rotor oil to your buck knife from one end of the handle to the tip of the knife blade. 
2. Now you can rinse off the oil from the blade with running warm water.  
3. You have to repeat the process as this will help you remove the rust from the blade in a much better way.  
4. Rinse off the oil with water again. Make sure that the oil is well removed from the blade.  
5. Now the blade should be free from dirt. If this is the case then you can dry your knife blade with a thick cloth. Be careful to remove water droplets from the blade.

How Do I Clean a Very Dirty Buck Knife? 

For cleaning a very dirty buck knife you will require a bit of patience and time. As your knife is very much dirty you will require a bit of scrubbing to remove the stubborn dirt.

For cleaning your knife blades properly you will require vinegar, baking soda, and salt in a cupboard.

Materials Required:

• Warm Water
• Vinegar
• Baking soda
• Scrubbing pad
• Salt
• Dry Cloth

Steps: 

1. The first set is to rinse your buck knife with warm water and get rid of the dirt from your knife. You can use your fingers carefully to remove the dirt particles from the blade.
2. You can gently use a scrubber or a sponge because you cannot just clean it off by rinsing the blade.
3. Now you have gotten rid of most of the dirt from the knife blade. So now you have to start deep cleaning the knife blade. Mix equal parts of baking soda and water and create a paste.
4. Dip the scrubbing pad or the sponge onto the paste and rub the blade gently with the paste. You must continue doing this until you use all the paste.
5. Rinse the knife blade with water. If you can still see some stains then you can use equal parts of vinegar and salt to speed up the cleaning process.
6. Wash the knife blade with the vinegar and the salt solution and you can use a sponge to remove the residue or the stains.
7. Now finally you are done and you have to use a dry cloth to clean your knife blade thoroughly. Make sure that you clean the water particles properly.

Well, you can also use metal Brite for polishing your knife blades as it does a great job on buck knives and other types of hunting knives.

The Metal Brite can be used for removing rust, remove oxidation, and discoloration from the knife blade.

Make sure that you stay away from cleaning your knife blade with chloride. If you have to sanitize your blade then you can use a very low dilute bleach and then wash off your blade with soap once you finish.

How Can I Clean Blood From My Buck Knife? 

It’s very important to clean the blood off from the knife blade, but also from the handle of the blade after a successful hunt.

You should never allow the blood to dry on the knife blade as it’s unhygienic and even the dried blood can stain out prematurely and rust your knife blades.

Also, it’s very difficult to clean animal blood from the knife blade once it gets dried. The dried blood will prevent you from being able to use your buck knife right away.

Well, if you are outdoors and you don’t have access to water, then it’s always recommended to wipe the blood from the blade and the handle.

Once you are home you can clean the blood from your knife.

Materials Required: 

• Liquid dish soap
• Warm water
• Stiff brush

Steps: 

1. Firstly, you have to rinse your knife blade with warm water so that you can lose the dried-out blood and the animal remainings from the knife. It’s not recommended to use how water or boiling water as it can damage the knife blade. Also do not soak your knife blades for a long time.
2. Now squeeze a few drops of dishwashing soap on both sides of the knife blade. Scrub the blade carefully with a stiff brush.
3. Rinse the knife blade with warm water and dry the blade with a cloth.

How Do I Care For My Buck Knife Handle?

Well, there are many different types of wood that are being used for making knife handles and it mostly depends upon the handle material.

Well, these are some of the most common ways to clean your knife handles.

• If your knife has a wooden handle then it’s recommended to use knife handle oil to cure the wood. Mineral oil and danish oil are some of the best oils that you can use to waterproof your knife handles.
• If you are having a micarta or plastic handle then you can clean your knife with soapy water and dry cloth.
• Metal knife handles such as brass, silver, or stainless handles can be cleaned by using a dry cloth with some good rubbing and buffing.  

If you are having wooden knife handles then you can use linseed oil for oiling your knife blade for additional protection. Handles made from synthetic and plastic will not require much maintenance and oiling.

If you are having a wooden handle then make sure that you apply the oil and let the oil dry. Make sure that you only use a couple of drops so that the oil get’s absorbed.

Once the wood absorbs the oil you can rub the handle with a clean cloth to remove the extra oil.

How Do I Store My Buck Knife? 

There are many different ways to store your buck knife and the best way to store your buck knife is pristine conditioning. Besides cleaning and oiling your buck knife regularly it’s always recommended to store the blades properly.

If you are someone who is using the knife fairly often then you should definitely keep the knife blade in a sheath so that you protect both the handle and the blade.

However, if you are looking to store your buck knife for a longer time then you must make sure that you improve the sheath using cardboard and tape.

Well, it takes a little time to make a cardboard and a protective sheath for your knife. But the cardboards are actually pretty much sturdy and most importantly it won’t trap moisture.

When you are storing your knife blades for a very long time then you shouldn’t make the mistake of storing the knife in a leather sheath because it’s not a great

Don’t make the mistake of storing your knife in a leather sheath. It’s a great way to carry your knife with you, but it’s not great when you need to store your knife for an extended time.

Because In most cases the leather sheath is manufactured from corrosive chemicals. Also, the leather absorbs and traps moisture, and storing your knife blade for a long time leads to corrosion.

Conclusion 

Regular cleaning of knife blades and maintenance can drastically extend its life and also it can improve the functionality of the knife.

Oiling your knife with knife oil can prevent the knife from suffering from corrosion. If you are having a folding knife then it will require more oiling than the fixed blade knife in order to keep the joints and moving parts correctly.

Also, you should not neglect the handle of the hunting knife. You can use knife Handel oil such as danish oil and mineral oil as a part of maintenance.

Finally, you have to make sure that you store your knives properly by keeping them both rust-free and sharp. The best way to store your buck knife is to improvise the carbon sheath and not the leather ones.

Related Post: Best Buck Knife For Fishing & Hunting

FAQ: How To Clean a Knife Blade

Cleaning a knife is not a difficult task. But still, most people don’t know how to clean and buck a knife. That is why people ask a lot of question-related about it.