Spots on my ZT350

[TripleDigitRide]

Can you tell me what may cause these spots, and what would possibly remove them?

The knife is a month or so old. The spots appear to be brown in color, much like rust. I've tried to remove them with gun cleaner, gun lubricant, and even let the blade soak overnight in PB Blaster. They don't appear to be fading, much less coming off.

The knife has been used to cut tape and shrink wrap, and I've never had this issue with any other knife. The knife is a "blemished" model from KershawGuy.com, so I am not expecting ZT to fix or replace it, but I am a little bummed.

[mikegideon]

Blem or not, I would put that question to the ZT folks.

[TripleDigitRide]

Blem or not, I would put that question to the ZT folks.

I am waiting to hear back from ZT and KershawGuy. :(

[mav]

I have no idea what the spots are, but I wouldn't worry about them.   My ZT0300 has some slight discoloration for hard use, and it is not a blem.  They all are really nice knives, but they aren't really collector grade.  I would just use the heck out of the knife.

[TripleDigitRide]

I have no idea what the spots are, but I wouldn't worry about them. My ZT0300 has some slight discoloration for hard use, and it is not a blem. They all are really nice knives, but they aren't really collector grade. I would just use the heck out of the knife.

It is a work knife, so I'm not overly concerned. I've never had this issue before, so I'm more curious than anything.

[mikegideon]

I'm curios too. I have 3 blades with that coating.

[willis68]

Spray some WD 40 on it and see if it wipes off

[mikegideon]

I was thinking it may need some kind of solvent.

[TripleDigitRide]

Spray some WD 40 on it and see if it wipes off

I let is soak overnight in PB Blaster, but I'll try WD40 when I get home.

[Capbyrd]

Have you tried a scotch brite pad?  Really fine one?

[TripleDigitRide]

Have you tried a scotch brite pad? Really fine one?

I haven't tried that.

[Capbyrd]

Try a really fine scotch brite pad and then follow that up with a light coat of frog lube

[UncleJak]

Do the Spots look like this:

[buck1032]

UncleJac beat me to it. When I read the title I thought you might have had our very own Spots work on your knife. LOL

[TripleDigitRide]

Do the Spots look like this:

I wish it was that easy. All I'd need was a little shaving cream.

[Spots]

I knew Id end up in this thread somehow. Maybe some 0000 steel wool? Id test first though on a ppace you cant see as well

Sent from the backwoods of Nowhere

[mav]

What was the final outcome?

[TripleDigitRide]

I contacted both KershawGuy and ZT to see if they had seen this before, or if they had any suggestions on possibly removing the spots. I emailed the same photo that I posted here. It's a blemish, so I didn't bother inquiring about a return or exchange.

 

ZT responded first. They claimed to have never seen anything like it before, and were  unable to suggest a way to remove the spots. I mentioned the Scotch-Brite that someone else suggested, and they said "go for it". Pretty well a waste of time.

 

KershawGuy said that it appears to be rusting under the Tungsten DLC coating. I also mentioned the Scotch-Brite suggestion to him, and he said that would only damage the coating. While he didn't have to, and i didn't even ask, he told me to send it back for a replacement. He should have received it late last week. If he ships the new one as fast as he did the first, the replacement should be here Monday or Tuesday.

Edited June 16, 2013 by TripleDigitRide

[mikegideon]

Sounds like Kershawguy is living up to his reputation. He didn't have to do anything on a blem.

[TripleDigitRide]

Sounds like Kershawguy is living up to his reputation. He didn't have to do anything on a blem.

I was pleasantly surprised. Not only did he offer to exchange it, but when I told him that I wasn't concerned enough to hassle with shipping it back, he insisted. Who am I to argue with a guy who has so many knives?

[Capbyrd]

Dave is top notch! 

[BJB]

Do the Spots look like this:

That's what I was thinking when I read the title LOL

 

Spots get off his d@@n knife

[TripleDigitRide]

Well, looks like I spoke too soon. 

 

Dave (KershawGuy) sent me an email informing me that he was able to remove the spots with some WD40. Because I had tried this myself, I was pleasantly surprised. He didn't have any other 350TSST's in stock, so I told him to send my knife back or I'd take a 350ST, whichever he preferred to do.

 

I received my knife today...with the same spots as it had when I sent it back. :ugh:  While I'm definitely bummed, I knew the blemished models didn't come with a warranty, so there are no hard feelings. However, I don't think I'll be buying another one. Being a work knife, minor imperfections aren't an issue, but rusting is not something I expected from such an expensive knife. Honestly, I've never experienced rust issues with any knives I've owned, even those cheap $5 throw away knives. Oh well.

[mikegideon]

It's not plain ole rust. I'm betting something got really dinked up in the coating process. I'm betting that blade lasts for a long time. Your blem was just really a blem. At least you got it for a real good price.

 

I know the DLC coating is tough. Still, if I subject any of my coated knives to heavy use, I'm gonna expect them to get ugly quicker than the stone washed blades.

[TripleDigitRide]

It's not plain ole rust. I'm betting something got really dinked up in the coating process. I'm betting that blade lasts for a long time. Your blem was just really a blem. At least you got it for a real good price.

 

I know the DLC coating is tough. Still, if I subject any of my coated knives to heavy use, I'm gonna expect them to get ugly quicker than the stone washed blades.

Yeah, I'm not going to sweat it too bad. The spots are getting darker as time goes on, but who knows. Had they been there from day one, I would sweat it a whole lot less.

 

Edited June 21, 2013 by TripleDigitRide