The polish and the powder required us to dirty kitchen towels to scrub them into the metal surface, while the sandpaper was slightly less nimble and difficult to maneuver on the knife’s sharp corners. Ultimately, we preferred the dedicated erasers for their ease of use. Fortunately, a knife expert reassured us that the tiny pits won’t weaken the strength of the blade as long as it doesn’t rust further and require more erasing that would remove more metal. However, they revealed black marks where the rust had been that indicated “pitting corrosion”-that is, tiny holes where the corroded metal was removed. We also let three additional new carbon-steel knives rust and compared the erasers with more common household products: medium-grit sandpaper, metal polish, and a mild kitchen cleansing powder.Īll five products removed rust effectively after just 3 to 4 minutes of gentle scrubbing per side. We let new carbon-steel knives air dry and develop rust, scrubbed them, and repeated the process three times. We tested two models (priced at $5.73 and $7.29), both medium-grit (the style sold by most companies experts told us that the scratch pattern it leaves behind most closely resembles the existing grain of most carbon-steel knives). (Rust should not be confused with patina, a beneficial form of oxidation that affects only the outer surface of the metal, turning it charcoal-gray and protecting it against rust.) You simply lubricate the eraser’s surface with water and rub it gently along the knife’s blade with the grain (these products can leave scratches, so it’s best to move back and forth in the same direction while following the metal’s grain).
Rust erasers, made from a rubber compound surrounded by a medium- or fine-grit abrasive, are designed to rub away the unsightly corrosion that can build up on and damage carbon-steel knives by removing small amounts of the rusted metal from the surface.
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