Bulk Cleaning Knives and Protectant

Spec.-K · Jun 11, 2023

So....I bought a few hundred knives/tools off a former security guard that had been "collecting" them FOR YEARS...

Many are in great shape, but most have the usual dirt and pocket lint, and what not...
SO....I've been cleaning them in an Ultrasonic Cleaner with some Simple Green, rinsing them in warm water, shaking them dry, and then blasting them with an air compressor before adding some Hoppe's No. 9 Lubricating oil to the joints.

Does anyone have any recommendations for a better way to do it...?
Any recommendations for a protectant...?
One guy told me that he soaks knives in some ATF before wiping them down and blasting them with some air.
Another guy told me that I should be using Ballistol, but it seems quite expensive.
Any recommendations are appreciated!
Thanks everybody!

brassman5050 · Aug 25, 2023

Buy the concentrate and mix with water and the cost is more affordable

ilikegunspdx · Aug 26, 2023

Spec.-K said:
So....I bought a few hundred knives/tools off a former security guard that had been "collecting" them FOR YEARS...
Many are in great shape, but most have the usual dirt and pocket lint, and what not...
SO....I've been cleaning them in an Ultrasonic Cleaner with some Simple Green, rinsing them in warm water, shaking them dry, and then blasting them with an air compressor before adding some Hoppe's No. 9 Lubricating oil to the joints.

Does anyone have any recommendations for a better way to do it...?
Any recommendations for a protectant...?
One guy told me that he soaks knives in some ATF before wiping them down and blasting them with some air.
Another guy told me that I should be using Ballistol, but it seems quite expensive.
Any recommendations are appreciated!
Thanks everybody!

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Depends what your standards are. If you are using atf or some homemade bullbubblegum then I can't help you. If you want fast and simple there are tons of options. A simple one is spray with Eezox if you want synthetic ester based protection or boeshield if you want old school parrafin based cheaper protection. Use ceramic boron nitride based protectants if you want extremely long term protection at a higher cost (too expensive to spray on but a tiny bit goes a mile).