r/iaido • u/Mapachio • 3d ago

Rust in blade?

In winter 2024, Katanamart/Yari no Hanzo released the pre-order for this iaito in my country (Spain). I ordered one and received it in mid August.

Since I received the package, the sword sat unused on my wall for a little over a month, until I had the chance to use it at iaido practice in late September/early October. I used it ONCE, for ONE hour, and as soon as I got home I cleaned and oiled it, and again it sat unused for a bit. Today I was intending to use it again but, to my surprise, I found these spots on the tip of the blade. They seem to have a texture and they don't go away when cleaning the blade, so I guess it's rust. The bigger spot is about 1x2 mm, the other spots are smaller than that.

Am I right? Is there anything I can do?

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3

u/Melodic-Pudding-953 3d ago

What is the blade material? An alloy blade shouldn't do this.

2

u/Mapachio 3d ago

1045 carbon steel blade

2

u/Tobi-Wan79 3d ago

You need some kind of abrasive to remove this

1

u/OceanoNox 2d ago

You can try uchiko first. I think it will be difficult to fully remove with only uchiko, though.

I have seen stuff like Pikal being used for reticent oxide before. It removes oxide very readily (but will mess up a hamon), because it's a chemical cleaner. It's also something I would use with vinyl gloves.

1

u/KoreanJesusUwU 2d ago

I used a rust eraser and it tooked the rust off my first steel iaito really well just follow the grain of the metal and it should be good. I have extra sweaty hands so if you're the same you should definitely wipe and oil right after practice so it doesn't rust, and don't oil to much cus that also causes rust since it traps moisture. But its just how carbon steel works. like if i didn't practice at least every other day it would rust. Also honestly it will fade the hamon abit if the rust is ever there but you can only really tell in bright light so accept the WABI SABI! :D

1

u/Blitz_Buggy 1d ago

Check the humidity where the sword is stored. Might be a very moist environment where you are. I have a set of cheap digital temperature/humidity gauges. I have a dry home, under 30% relative . Keep it oiled up. As far as removing it, you might try a gentle metal polish, fine steel wool, grey Scotch Brite pad, a brass or steel wire brush disc as for a Dremel (the only power tool I recommend), 1,000 grit emery cloth (sandpaper) or anything abrasive, really, but don’t use anything too aggressive. Always sand/rub/polish in the direction of the metal grain so your efforts don’t show. The more you use your sword, the more risk there will be for blemishes. It’s just the nature of things and your blade will gain more signs of use (and abuse)

1

u/MichaelRS-2469 1d ago

Mother's Mag and Aluminum Polish OR Flitz Metal Polish usually does the trick with a decent quality paper towel and some very light rubbing.

Actually if you want to keep the abrasives even further down you can try toothpaste. The kind that promises to whiten your teeth, not the kind that says it will freshen your breath. It works for some very light rust. And if it doesn't work here you at least have an extra tube of toothpaste.