I recently bought a set from them, based on recommendations found in this sub. Within a week more than half of the pieces had noticeable rusting. To their credit they were quick to respond and sent me replacements for all the defective pieces within a couple of days. I dropped off the package to ship them the defective pieces yesterday, and I noticed today, when I emptied the dishwasher, that two of the replacement pieces have developed rust. These are pieces I've had for less than a week and have used maybe three times. I know stainless steel can rust if used improperly, but running flatware in a dishwasher isn't that. I don't know where they source their steel, maybe they just got a bad batch. Who knows? Anyways, just a heads up for anyone considering them.

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Junior_Ad2955 t1_iuaohky wrote on October 29, 2022 at 9:37 PM

Anyways, I hate to hear that because they are a great company and they will replace anything that has issues and they have created dozens of jobs in the US and saved a century old factory. Hopefully they get this issue sorted out

Triumph790 t1_iuavjp6 wrote on October 29, 2022 at 10:30 PM

Our Liberty set is 10 years old (they went by the name "Sherrill Manufacturing" at the time) and is in spectacular condition - heavy use and always cleaned in the dishwasher. Still shiny and no bending - you can scoop ice cream with the teaspoons without bending them. We have the 65-piece Lexington set. Sorry to hear you had a problem, and glad they stand behind the product.

surelythiscantbeit t1_iuaztou wrote on October 29, 2022 at 11:04 PM

The ice cream spoon scoop test, absolutely critical.

Junior_Ad2955 t1_iuao9l5 wrote on October 29, 2022 at 9:35 PM

That is a very interesting development. We have 2 different sets from them, and have given probably 12 sets as gifts over the last 3 years and have never heard of any of it rusting

surelythiscantbeit t1_iub03jg wrote on October 29, 2022 at 11:06 PM

I got a set of the american industrial about 2 years ago and haven't had any issues with probably hundreds of dishwasher cycles at this point (heavy wash, heated dry).

Hopefully they're able to root cause and fix the problem quickly, sorry you've had to deal with it!

mt379 t1_iud1pir wrote on October 30, 2022 at 12:21 PM

I got ikea flatware that sounds like it's holding up 100x better.

surelythiscantbeit t1_iudnl10 wrote on October 30, 2022 at 3:20 PM

From the comments it seems like OP is the only one who’s had issues and everyone else seems happy with theirs. I’ve used ikea flatware as well and it definitely gets the job done at a much lower price, so probably a better value. I’m really happy with my liberty set tho and would 100% buy again, it somehow just feels more substantial and higher quality than my previous set

Arcade80sbillsfan t1_iubegu6 wrote on October 30, 2022 at 1:01 AM

Funny we bought ours last year. Liked them so much bought a holiday set in beginning of the year.

Bought a set of peace ones for hippy stepmom in spring and those have been great too.

I'd contact them and say it seems to be something with their batch.

Also are you sure it's rust...if it's not orange but black instead that's the polish they use and it's not all off when you receive them (kind of pain to get off but obviously worth it)

HumanKumquat OP t1_iuc5jgy wrote on October 30, 2022 at 5:13 AM

Oh no, it's rust for sure. The forks had a ton of polish in the tines and it's not that.

Arcade80sbillsfan t1_iudgtjh wrote on October 30, 2022 at 2:31 PM

Yeah I'd ask to speak with someone because that is not the experience we've had at all and that's with the cheaper of their stuff.

Really feels like must have been a bad batch somehow.

BaconFortress_ t1_iuby8wv wrote on October 30, 2022 at 3:54 AM

Just curious, but did you get matte or polished stainless?

I bought a matte set a few years ago and had a similar experience with rust in the dishwasher. It would rub right off but was weird.

It seems they can pick up tiny amounts of non-stainless steel on the surface during manufacturing, but once you've washed a several times, they're fine and don't do it anymore.

HumanKumquat OP t1_iuc5fg8 wrote on October 30, 2022 at 5:11 AM

It's the polished Annapolis set. Another reason why I think it's a bad batch of steel is because one of the knifes had a small separation crack, almost like what slate or sandstone looks like. I've never seen steel do that before.

IdLikeToBuyAVal t1_iud95wb wrote on October 30, 2022 at 1:31 PM

We have this exact set we bought nearly 5 years ago and they still look nearly brand new. This is really disappointing, I hope they make it right for you!

kosnarf t1_iualrk4 wrote on October 29, 2022 at 9:16 PM

I have multiple sets of Hampton Stainless steel flatware that I have used over 10years. No bending and no rust.

ricardo9505 t1_iuanwm9 wrote on October 29, 2022 at 9:32 PM

I got my dad and a few uncle's whom worked as dishwashers, cooks. I just pick up the phone and ask them. I take most reviews with a grain of salt. Like with cookware someone boasting how durable something is after only using 6 months is pointless.

yestertempest t1_iudo5gg wrote on October 30, 2022 at 3:24 PM

I've tried so many brands over the years, including Knork and Liberty. They all rusted just like you said. There is something going on with cheap-to-middle tier flatware manufacturers, they either lie about the quality of steel they're using or they're otherwise cutting costs in some other way that affects quality. As soon as I moved up in class so to speak and tried more expensive brands, the quality of steel became immensely better. I suggest looking at Yamazaki (Japan) or Ricci (European brand...they're made in China or Vietnam, but still amazing quality in my experience). Ironically, even the 18/8 Yamazaki flatware does not rust like the cheaper stuff does. Ricci is 18/10 and has never given me any problems whatsoever. It's gorgeous stuff and well worth it.

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punkass_book_jockey8 t1_iucj182 wrote on October 30, 2022 at 8:13 AM

The kids sets I bought from them this year are just as spectacularly shiny as the baby spoons I bought 5 years ago and used daily. I hope it’s just whatever batch you got. The kids stuff is still solid.

gothfru t1_iudagqn wrote on October 30, 2022 at 1:42 PM

Hmm. We bough a set 6 months ago and no signs of rust. Maybe a bad batch?

random-engineer t1_iudeejp wrote on October 30, 2022 at 2:13 PM

Is it a satin finish? We had problems with another brand where the satin section would touch other silverware in the dishwasher. It would cause staining, but not rust (that I remember). I assumed it was some sort of galvanic reaction, but never got too deep into it, we just quit using that silverware, and handwash when we do.

HumanKumquat OP t1_iue8hm6 wrote on October 30, 2022 at 5:43 PM

I replied to someone else already but no, its the polished Annapolis set.

vacuous_comment t1_iuf1sjw wrote on October 30, 2022 at 8:55 PM

I would not want replacements from a company whose stainless steel rusts that quickly.

We got hotel grade stuff from WMF, bought it in Germany. Really nice stuff and lasts.

Hessarian99 t1_iuiduxq wrote on October 31, 2022 at 3:47 PM

Possibly a manufacturing error

Let them take care of you but if it happens again I'd suggest going to a different brand

dpak90 t1_iucbmaw wrote on October 30, 2022 at 6:30 AM

Even china from china doesnt rust!

LovelyDadBod t1_iucqxrh wrote on October 30, 2022 at 10:07 AM

As a general rule, don’t buy anything “stainless steel” from China that doesn’t come with a mill cert, this includes almost all consumer products.

China generally uses inferior quality control in mill’s and will lead to flash rust of stainless components. This is typically because of carbon contamination as they’ll stamp stainless components on the same equipment as carbon steel ones.

FragrantButtSweat t1_iuczjt5 wrote on October 30, 2022 at 11:58 AM

That’s all well and good, but Liberty flatware is manufactured in the USA not China.

HumanKumquat OP t1_iue8f92 wrote on October 30, 2022 at 5:42 PM

LT is American, and they source their steel from American mills.

FlattenInnerTube t1_iujnj8g wrote on October 31, 2022 at 8:52 PM

Then they need to have some stern discussions with their mill supplier. There was a rash of "316” stainless in the US food/bev process equipment industry about 10 years ago that had significant corrosion issues. Tubing, valves, heat exchangers. The ”316” that was coming from overseas was, in fact, 304 or even lower grades. Hard lessons were learned about testing materials and mill certs.