Advice? Care and feeding of very old celluloid picture knife!

[Two Dog Man]

Howdy All,

I came across a pair of very old Wabash picture knives with what turns out to be celluloid scales. They are both quite small, two blade pen knives. One is already badly deteriorated but this one still has a visible recognizable image. I have been told to be careful about storage with other knives, but I also haven't cleaned them up yet and I was wondering if there is anything I should know before I go to that task. Here's a shot of the best of the two:

Any advice would be wonderful!

 

[ConBon]

I think you would get more advice if you posted this in the Maintenance, Tinkering, & Embellishment forum.

 

[Two Dog Man]

Thanks, great idea!

 

[Mossyhorn]

I would avoid keeping celluloid handled knives with other knives. It's been known to cause rust.

 

[Two Dog Man]

I've been warned of that already. Thanks.

 

[supratentorial]

If it's collectible for you, you can can preserve it with mineral oil. If collector value isn't important, you can "clean" it.

I keep my celulloid knives separate from my other knives but ideally I'd keep them in one of these.

http://www.mil-spec-industries.com/images/4/images/Explosive-Resistant-Container.jpg

 

[Two Dog Man]

LOL! Nice photo. Yes, I've heard they are "unstable" and highly flammable.

 

[Arathol]

Don't clean it, don't oil it, leave it as is. Anything you put on that knife may trigger degradation as this stuff is not only unstable but unpredictable. Petroleum products, including mineral oil, are almost certainly going to do that. It does appear that outgassing is occurring already though. Keep it away from anything you don't want to oxidize.

 

[Cfin]

Supratentorial. Great pic. I want one.

 

[Two Dog Man]

Don't clean it, don't oil it, leave it as is. Anything you put on that knife may trigger degradation as this stuff is not only unstable but unpredictable. Petroleum products, including mineral oil, are almost certainly going to do that. It does appear that outgassing is occurring already though. Keep it away from anything you don't want to oxidize.

Can I at least take some fine steel wool to the blades and gently remove the rust patches as long as I don't use any oil or rust preventative?

 

[user knife]

I would avoid keeping celluloid handled knives with other knives. It's been known to cause rust.

Ditto

 

[supratentorial]

I don't think it will cause a problem for the celluloid if you put mineral oil on the blades, scales ("liners") and springs. I can't think of any reason for the celluloid covers to be oiled. Arathol, is that what you meant? Or do you also think the metal parts should not be oiled??

In general it seems that people have a tendency to want to "restore" but you can't "restore" metal you can only refinish it... and then it is no longer original. If you refinish the old knife with rust removers or fine steel wool or buffing, you will remove all that is left of the original finish as well as the rust. Preserving is good enough if you want a vintage knife... if you want a refinished vintage knife, there are plenty of them that are readily available on the big auction site. A little bit of mineral oil will help remove active rust and protect the metal surfaces. Other than that, just keep it away from an open flame. If you really want to refinish the blades, mineral oil and fine steel wool or buffing are a couple options. Naval Jelly (not to be confused with navel jelly ) would also remove the rust. It contains phosphoric acid and I wouldn't want it anywhere near celluloid. Based on what I can see of the blades in the photo (the knife is closed), there will probably be some pits unless you completely resurface the blades. But it's much easier just to buy a new knife with stainless blades if you want a traditional folder that doesn't have any rust or patina.