I have a Gerber Steadfast hunting knife that I recently used to cut up a deer. The guy I worked with has the same knife and suggested to simply put it in the dishwasher and that will clean it. Is this bad to do to a hunting knife? Thanks for your suggestions.
Don’t do it.
A little story here. I had a very nice "vintage" ice cream scoop from the early 1900s. It had a vulcanized rubber handle on it. My family used it for decades, as it came from my grandfather’s store, where he used to scoop and sell ice cream floats and whatnot. Well, as my father got older, I hired a caregiver/nurse to stay with him. It was cheaper than a nursing home and I wanted to keep him in his old house. Sure enough, the caregiver decides to wash everything in the diswasher. The rubber handle on the antique ice cream scoop couldn’t handle the high water temperatures of the dishwasher and…well, it failed. So much for family keepsakes. We had that thing for a hundred years and it looked just fine..until someone decided to take a shortcut and use the dishwasher.
March 5th, 2010 at 8:09 pm
Who did you kill now Bob.
References :
March 5th, 2010 at 8:47 pm
As long as there is no leather or unvarnished wood on it
References :
March 5th, 2010 at 9:27 pm
Depends on what the grip is made of. If it is plastic or metal there should be no problem. But if it is leather or some other material you may have a problem. And I would oil it afterwars.
References :
March 5th, 2010 at 10:05 pm
"a hunting knife" is a generic term that covers knives that you can and knives that you cannot wash in a dishwasher.
1. ask him for his knife and check for handle condition – if it is relatively the same as yours, go for it.
2. OTOH, it seems to me that 2 minutes with hot water and dish detergent is all it should need.
References :
March 5th, 2010 at 10:30 pm
Does it have a leather handle or a bake on finish? If not it’s fine. If it has a serrated blade you have to be careful because you don’t want to break off teeth.
References :
March 5th, 2010 at 10:40 pm
I just looked up your knife and there’s doesn’t appear to be any reason that you couldn’t put it in the dishwasher.
The grip is referred to as: "SoftGrip overmold over a hard substrate" While I’m not sure what exactly that means, but it sounds like a fancy name for either hard rubber or some sort of plastic. You’ll have a better idea on this than I do.
If it works on your buddy’s knife just fine then go for it, although I would recommend using the top rack just to be safe with the handle.
References :
I’ve always just hand-washed my knife, it literally only takes a minute or two; and fixed blades are quite easy to clean, but to each their own.
March 5th, 2010 at 11:21 pm
Not a good idea for most blades and handles given the heat and strong detergent. If could remove protective finish and even worse with a folder……. because it removes all the oils….so it will need a good sharpening and disassemble and oiling.
I do not recommend it and many pros say no as well.
References :
z
March 5th, 2010 at 11:36 pm
Why woud it be bad?
How is it different than any other knife?
I put mine in the dishwasher all the time.
-Connor
References :
March 6th, 2010 at 12:18 am
Putting *any* of your good knives thru the dishwasher isn’t a good idea because what is used to clean the dishes is abrasive. So, over time, it will possibly ruin the knife blade itself and/or dull it.
I always clean my hunting knives by hand with Dawn dish soap, then dry them some with a paper towel then set them on a paper towel for a few hours to dry thoroughly.
Added–
Get the smell out? Since when do knives stink? If they stink.. time to get a new knife completely.
Who ever puts their good knives thru the dishwasher are crazy. Ever watch Alton Brown on the food channel? Funny how a chef says not to do that and I think a chef knows more bout that stuff anyways.
References :
March 6th, 2010 at 12:34 am
Don’t do it.
A little story here. I had a very nice "vintage" ice cream scoop from the early 1900s. It had a vulcanized rubber handle on it. My family used it for decades, as it came from my grandfather’s store, where he used to scoop and sell ice cream floats and whatnot. Well, as my father got older, I hired a caregiver/nurse to stay with him. It was cheaper than a nursing home and I wanted to keep him in his old house. Sure enough, the caregiver decides to wash everything in the diswasher. The rubber handle on the antique ice cream scoop couldn’t handle the high water temperatures of the dishwasher and…well, it failed. So much for family keepsakes. We had that thing for a hundred years and it looked just fine..until someone decided to take a shortcut and use the dishwasher.
References :
March 6th, 2010 at 1:04 am
Yes, I do. It’s the best way to get the smell out.
I don’t know what kind of knives you guys/gals are using, but If it can’t handle a dishwasher, it sure as hell isn’t suitable for hunting IMO.
References :
March 6th, 2010 at 1:32 am
Can you clean a gun in a dishwasher?
References :
March 6th, 2010 at 2:14 am
If you have fine blades, they should never be put in a dishwasher, let alone left in standing dishwater. This will destroy your edge and dull the blades. Simply put they should be washed with hot soapy water and dried off quickly. Use the hottest water you can stand. The heat from the water will help the entire knife dry quickly and avoid water getting into the handle.
References :