As a daily knife user and avid shooter, I’ve been looking for a product that would clean, lubricate, and protect my tools, with a special interest in my EDC knives. My EDC knife faces a lot of dirt, grime, dust, and lint.
Both my wife’s and my EDC knives have shown surface rust on occasion, but because we sometimes use them as eating utensils, keeping a constant coat of oil was not the answer. I had heard from the Emerson Knife crowd good things about a product from Sentry Solutions called Tuf-Cloth, so I investigated further.
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Sentry Solutions
Sentry Solutions claims that Tuf-Cloth and it’s partner product Tuf-Glide are oil-free lubricants that bond to metal and create a
non-toxic “micro-bonded crystal barrier” and prevent dirt and water from attaching to the treated area. Tuf-Cloth is a microfiber cloth impregnated with Tuf-Glide and a mineral spirit carrier that can be used to wipe down knife blades, firearms, or any metal surface that needs to be treated. Tuf-Cloth can be used as a CLP if you wish; it will clean a surface, lubricate it, and protect it. My experience and the directions suggestions for getting best results with Tuf-Cloth are to prep the area by cleaning it and letting it dry, then rubbing the surface down with Tuf-Cloth. I treated approximately 15 knives of varying size, a handgun, and a shotgun, and the amount of lubricant still impregnated in my Tuf-Cloth seems rather high.
Tuf-Glide is the partner product to Tuf-Cloth and is essentially the liquid form of the dry film lubricant being applied by Tuf-Cloth. I purchased Tuf-Glide in several sizes; a 0.5 oz precision applicator bottle, a 4 oz spray, and an 8 oz refill. The 0.5 oz precision applicator bottle is what I’ve used for most of my work with Tuf-Glide, and the needle applicator makes it easy to lube hard to reach places. My wife’s EDC knife is a Benchmade Pink Mini-Griptilian , and she had basically packed the pivot full of grime so the knife no longer moved freely. I flushed the pivot with some rubbing alcohol and waited a day, and it seemed to help a bit, but after I applied Tuf-Glide to the pivot, blade, and washers, it was like new. Because the knife was tight, I had to work in the Tuf-Glide, but after that, it is flick-able and like a Giptillian should be. I also used the needle applicator to lube the axis lock, which moves freely again. The knife has basically come back to life and my wife could not be happier, which scores big points in my book. The story was the same with several other knives did not even seem deficient; after applying Tuf-Glid to the pivot and washers, the knife opens smother and quicker.
I used the 4 oz spray bottle and the Tuf-Cloth on my CZ 75B, which has a gloss finish that I would hate to see rust. I field stripped the weapon and used the Tuf-Cloth on the barrel, then sprayed one pump on the slide and wiped it down with the Tuf-Cloth. I did the same with the frame. I used the precision applicator to put a drop on each frame rail and the trigger mechanism, and reassembled the weapon and waited for it to dry. After it dried, I did a function check and everything seemed great, and the action felt smoother to me. To test the water repelling function, I packed the pistol in my suitcase and took it on an overnight trip. My suitcase was packed in the rear of my SUV and got very cold, and I was sure to pack the CZ 75B so that it was as close to the outside of the case as possible. When we arrived at the hotel, I helped unpack and expected condensation on the pistol; there was some on the ammunition but the pistol did not have any apparent moisture. I left the case open on the night stand to warm up but it seems like the application of Tuf-Glide had prevented moisture from forming on the pistol. When I got home I applied Tuf-Glide to all my CZ mags for rust protection and to help them drop free easier. I believe I achieved both goals.
EDC Knives
For my EDC knives, I used the Tuf-Cloth and Tuf-Glide and achieved good results. For my Spyderco Sage 2, it has a flow through design and titanium scales. I do not worry much about rust, but it does collect dust and lint readily. To prep I washed the knife out with hot water. After drying, I wiped the blade and inside of the knife down with the Tuf-Cloth. I used the precision applicator bottle of Tuf-Glide to lubricate the pivot and washers. My Sage 2 has always been a bit stiff to open, but has always gotten better over time. After the Tuf-Glide was applied opening became incredibly smooth. The Sage 2 is not a flick-able knife, but it now glides easily. After three weeks of EDC there is minimal dust and lint and nothing adhered to the blade.
My other EDC knife, an Emerson Mini CQC-7, was dealt with a bit differently. The knife has G10 scales with a stainless steel and titanium liner, and a G10 backspacer. I completely disassembled the knife and cleaned the liners, blade, and washers with hot water. After everything was dry I rubbed the parts down with Tuf-Cloth. As I reassembled the knife I used Tuf-Glide on the washers. The end result was a different feeling knife. The blade, no matter what tension I applied with the pivot screw, almost flew out of the handle. Lockup was much more solid, from about 40% to 45%, taking considerably more force to release the blade. It was like a new Emerson. I do not carry this knife as much as I used to, but the days I did it was a joy, and there was no dust or dirt buildup in the non-free flowing handle. More carry time would be telling, but just how drastically and positively it changed the nature of a knife I knew so well tells me that Tuf-Cloth and Tuf-Glide are going to be applied to the next Emerson I get out of the box.
I used Tuf-Cloth and Tuf-Glide to wipe down and lube my 12 gauge Mossberg shotgun, and I could see the parkerizing soak up the lube. The action is much smoother and shells load quickly and positively. Tuf-Cloth and Tuf-Glide seem like a good solution for the knife user and shooter looking to lubricate and protect their gear. Sentry Solution products would not be good nor are recommended for cleaning powder residue from firearms. Sentry Solutions has some firearms specific products, mostly dry film lube and moly based lubes, but Tuf-Glide and Tuf-Cloth seem like all you would need to lubricate and protect your gear. Sentry Solutions also offers Tuf-Cloth and Tuf-Glide in a Marine formulation for additional anti-corrosion protection, and offers both normal and Marine formulas in a Field Kit that include a Tuf-Cloth, Tuf-Glide and a ceramic knife sharpener in a nylon case. If you have an EDC knife or carry piece that collects dust and lint, or just want to maintain your knives better, Tuf-Cloth and Tuf-Glide may be the answer for you.