Folding knife maintenance guide
Before using it for the first time, take pleasure in discovering your new knife and admiring the work of our knife makers. You have just acquired or received a Forge de Laguiole folding knife, we invite you to read our maintenance guide before using it. Your knife needs a minimum of care to stay in good condition and guarantee its longevity.
Folding knives do not like water or the dishwasher
A Laguiole knife cannot be washed, it must be wiped! The natural materials of the handle, such as precious woods or horn, are sensitive to humidity; it is therefore preferable to keep your knife in a dry place.
Mechanism
To maintain the mechanism of your folding knife it is necessary to add a drop of oil from time to time (3 in 1 multipurpose oil or a vegetable oil).
With the knife in the closed position, put the oil at the joint between the blade and the spring, open it again so that the oil is applied to the whole mechanism, and finally wipe off the excess. For two and three piece knives, you can do the same operation on the corkscrew mechanism and the punch.
Blade
To remove food residue, we recommend that you wipe the blade with a soft cloth or sponge that is slightly damp and then wipe it immediately with a dry cloth. To preserve the longevity of the blade you can apply a little oil to create a protective film (food oil).
The materials
o T12 blade: T12 steel is an exclusive French steel hot rolled by the Bonpertuis steel mills. This steel is a mixture of chromium and carbon and is therefore semi-stainless, which guarantees a high quality cutting edge and easy sharpening. Some very acidic foods can oxidize this blade, so after use it is recommended to wipe the blade with a damp cloth and dry it to avoid the appearance of oxidation spots.
o XC75 carbon steel blade: The XC75 carbon steel blade will oxidize over time and become dull, this is totally normal. Carbon is oxidizable, which is what gives it its excellent cutting properties and its ease of re-sharpening. It is also recommended to wipe the blade immediately with a damp cloth and dry it carefully to delay oxidation, the application of a drop of edible oil to create a protective film is also recommended.
o Stainless steel damask blade: We advise you to clean the blade of your stainless steel damask knife with a damp cloth after each use and to dry it before storing it in a dry place.
o Carbon Damascus blade : The maintenance is the same as for a carbon steel blade. In order to preserve the moiré aspect of your Damascus carbon, you can apply on your blade, an edible oil.
Be sure to always accompany the blade of your knife when closing it!
Our folding knives have a stop, which prevents the blade from pressing into the spring when the knife is closed. When assembling the knife, the knife maker looks for balance in the tension of the blade and the spring. When the knife is closed, the blade can be pressed down and there is a slight springiness. However, the stop does not serve to hold the blade.
It is necessary to accompany the blade when closing the knife to avoid blunting the edge with a sudden closure.
Sharpening of the blade
For a regular sharpening in order to preserve the optimal quality of the edge of your blade we advise you to sharpen on a natural stone, (Moisten the stone for about ten minutes before sharpening) by keeping a sharpening angle of 20°. You will find below a demonstration video.
Be sure to sharpen your knife regularly to keep its edge. If the edge of the blade needs to be revised, we advise you to contact our Forge de Laguiole after-sales service.
Of course, we recommend a normal use of our knife, the blade should not be used as a lever or a screwdriver, which could cause damages not covered by the warranty.
Handle
- Wooden handle: A wooden knife can get a slight patina over time, to protect it and keep its beautiful appearance, you can apply a little linseed oil to nourish the wood.
- Horn handles: horns are very sensitive to temperature variations and humidity, so keep your horn knife in a dry place at room temperature.
- Stainless steel, aluminum or acrylic handles, compressed fabric, synthetic materials: The maintenance of these knives is facilitated, these materials are less sensitive as natural materials could be. For cleaning, simply wiping with a damp cloth and then with a dry cloth will do the trick.
- Mammoth ivory handle, bone, warthog tusk : Concerning the storage of your knife, be sure to keep it outside its leather sheath. In case of prolonged contact, the tanning of the leather can stain the handle of the knife.
Bolsters
- Brass bolsters: If the bolsters lose some of their shine or oxidize slightly, you can apply a brass/copper maintenance product (Mirror type). Then rub vigorously to restore their original shine.
- Stainless steel bolsters: solid stainless steel bolsters are easy to clean, a quick wipe with a damp cloth will do.
Be careful, however, metal parts can be scratched when in contact with other metal objects (keys, coins…)
Our after-sales service
We provide repair and after-sales service on all the knives produced in our Forge de Laguiole workshops (subject to the availability of certain raw materials and spare parts).
All our Forge de Laguiole knives are guaranteed against manufacturing defects, under normal use.
Each Forge de Laguiole knife can be maintained (polished, sharpened, repaired) and repaired with care by our cutlers.
If you would like to call on our after-sales service, you can contact us at contact@forge-de-laguiole.com. Please include a photo of your knife with your request so that we can identify it. Once this initial contact has been made, our team will then tell you the steps to follow for the proper handling of your knife.
For any repair, our after-sales service team will take care to carry out a complete expertise to send you a detailed estimate, no paying repair will be undertaken without your prior agreement. Please note that no estimate of the cost of repair can be confirmed on the basis of a simple photo.
By following these maintenance tips you will be able to keep your Forge de Laguiole folding knife for many years, and pass it on to future generations!