When you are buying Damascus steel knives ask the manufacturer for the proper instruction manual to take care of the knives because they are expensive, and you want to make sure that they function for a long period. If you are using them in the kitchen that most probably you will be then making sure to wash them and dry them with a delicate and soft cloth the minute you are done with the cutting before storing them.  Because the Damascus steel is damaged by the organic matter if that stays on it for too long and causes rusting and discoloration of the steel. Then after washing and drying you need to lubricate the knife with some sort of wax it can be either the wax that is used in the museums or any other that works.

If you want to keep the pretty intricate patterns all nice and enhance the longevity, then you need to regularly oil the Damascus steel knives. Apart from oiling, you need to keep polishing them once or twice a week with a non-abrasive polishing cloth. Using an abrasive cloth is forbidden because it destroys the intricate pattern etched through oxidation on the knives.

After all the washing, drying, oiling, waxing, and polishing you can store the knife but make sure that you keep them in a dry and moisture-free environment. Sometimes if you dry the blade but not dry the handle the moisture on the handle can rust the blade. So, make sure you do not leave it wet or use it in a wet environment for a long period.

REMOVING RUST FROM DAMASCUS STEEL

Sometimes even after putting extra efforts and taking good care of your knife onetime negligence can ruin your knife. But the good thing is that it is not the end of the world. And you can still remove the rust from it.

You don’t have to go to the market and buy stuff to remove the rust from your Damascus knife you can use basic vegetables having some acid in them available in your kitchen to remove that rust. If your knife is not completely rusted and is just showing some rust spots you can use lemon juice for that. Lemon has citric acid and that acid can remove the rust spots off your knife if you place it in lemon juice for some time. You can also use potato juice for this purpose and even you want to use a solid potato you can also do that. Just make a cut in the potato with your knife and leave the cutting edge of your knife in there for about 10 hours and oxalic acid in the potato will do its job. You can also use vinegar or any citrus fruit for that purpose.

If none of them works, then you can make a scrub by mixing a little bit of water with some baking soda and scrub that mixture on your knife with a brush but do not be that harsh and leave it for some time and then wash it. And it will be rust free.