A double edged sword old knife

[300Bucks]

Don't you just hate it when people know you collect pocket knives. One of them walks up and hands you a rusty mess of a knife and says something like "This was in the tool box of my Grandpa's truck, you can have it if you want to clean it up, I was just going to throw it away."

And you sit it on a shelf and think well maybe someday. Well, maybe this unkown knife to a Buck knife guy sat in a mineral oil soak for 8 weeks and then got the Go-Jo, hotwater, brush and WD-40 treatment.

An here is what is left of whatever it is. Blades are bad but will work on it more and give it back to the "gifter" as a keepsake if they will take it. Dang its a burden we bare being the local knife guy....I am probably not alone in this event.....
300Bucks

 

[orca8589]

Good job - :thumbup:

That happens to me occasionally, and like you, I clean 'em up and give 'em back, if the original owner is interested. Otherwise it goes in a special place on my shelf. If I do a little research (LG 4 - :thumbup and let the original owner know that it was made, say, only in the 1930's, and that grandpa probably owned it in the depression, it gives a whole new perspective to it. Instant heirloom.

thx - cpr

 

[IVANKERLEY]

now thats a patina dunno but i have an old western whittler that has similar scales and shield, or is it a camillus? dunno, was a nice one at one time
nice job on the cleanup, bet you could get an edge on the main blade but that sheepsfoot, wow dunno if it'd be worth it. Strike that i'll bet an old timer would give that thing hell to get it back to working even if it meant sharpening it until it looked like a toothpick
very nice of ya to do that for the guy
ivan

 

[Culhain]

I was given an old set of Henkels Knives by a young lady who was told by her "knife expert" uncle that they could no longer be sharpened. I still feel guilty that my powers of persuasion were not sufficient to convince her that her "knife expert" uncle was wrong. The knives were used for years unsharpened and eventually got to the point that needed to be re-profiled.

She paid $300 for an awesome set of new Wustoffs. I fixed up her old set of Henkels until they were sharper than her new Wustoffs. I still use 'em as she doesn't want "those old beat up knives".

 

[FortyTwoBlades]

The only time a knife can't be resharpened is when the blade is completely worn away.

I frequently fix up old knives for customers during the summer months. I get talking with them about knife culture and they mention some old piece that belonged to so-and-so and I always offer to shine it up for them. I've gotten around 50 or so slippies, old fixed blades...even severely abused modern folders back into working condition. Some people even give me knives they found at the dump or on the side of the road to clean up.

The most rewarding thing is seeing their faces when they get the knife (now transformed) back. They can never believe that there was such a pretty knife in their possession all that time and they just didn't know it.