Conservation of antique khuks?

G

Guy Thomas

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Feb 1, 2000
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So you buy some older khukuris as the start of a collection of antiques. The blades are somewhat rusty and stained, the handles are dried out and the sheathes are dry and brittle, possibly torn or cut.

The question is, as a conservator what should you do to that khuk? Obviously you don't want to try and restore it to it's new appearance, but some things need to be done. Surface rust removed, obvious dirt and grime removed, blade oiled, etc.

I used the search feature but didn't find anything obvious, could someone post a "primer" of antique khukuri conservation, possibly mentioning specific products and techniques. If this is here somewhere already a link would suffice also. Thanks in advance!

Guy Thomas
 
Paging Berk and John Powell!!!

( I'm almost certainly givng the wrong advice, but TO ME an old warrior ought to receive some respect and dignity. Do whatever minimal repair/restoration is necessary to put it back in serviceable condition, put the scabbard in order, and do a Yvsa - take it to full-body-shiver sharpness. That's me and I'm almost certainly wrong. But I like to think of the khuk retaining it's honorably earned scars but smiling in satisfaction at being once again ready to do whatever it's called upon to do. Like having great -gramp's Krag and gramp's Springfield and pop's Garand all sighted in, in the gun case with ammo, only needing a dry patch run through them to be ready to go. )
 
Guy, I'm no expert but have recently picked up some beginning knowledge on blade restoration, and this holds true for most antiques. A cleaning to remove any rust and grim. What I was told to use by some of the boys over on the ethnographic forum, www.vikingsword.com , was 0000 steel wool,for the metal and I've found Murphys oil soap works quite well on wood. To protect it after cleaning, for all surfaces, I use Renaissance Wax, because it doesn't change the appearance at all. It is used by museums on metal, wood, leather, paper, you name it. You can find it at www.restorationproduct.com Yhis is the guy that is the direct importer of the wax. Hope this helps. John should be able to give more detailed info.
 
Guy,
For leather care I unreservedly recommend Pecard Antique Leather Dressing to soften and preserve the fibers in old leather. For blade cleaning, where there is active rust I have found that Flitz metal polish paste, applied very sparingly and rubbed gently with your fingertip, then removed with a soft cotton cloth, will do an excellent job if you are patient, and is less abrasive than even fine steel wool. I agree with Bernard Levine that there is nothing better for protecting steel than USP mineral oil, available in the laxative section of your local pharmacy for very little money. Although I have used boiled linseed oil with success as a wood preservative, I have come to believe that mineral oil works as well or better. For horn, Hooflex Original Conditioner works well to prevent cracking, although maintining stable environmental conditions is important too - horn will crack if subjected to extremes in temperature/humidity, no matter how it is treated. My personal preference is to leave the patina intact on brass, rather than attempting to restore it to a shiny appearance. And I don't sharpen old khukuris, but leave them as I find them - to me the nicks and rolled edges are a part of their history. I reserve the sharpening for my new users. I try to remember that I am not the owner of the old pieces, but merely the present caretaker, so try to do the least possible consistent with preventing deterioration. When in doubt about how far to go in restoration, keep in mind the Hippocratic maxim: "Above all, do no harm."
Berk
 
You must send all your antique khuks to me for restoration and safe keeping. Contact me for further info.:p
 
Federico had some good info on mild restoration technique about a month ago. Maybe a search of posts by Federico would help.
 
Thanks for great help, all. It's generally the scabbard that needs the most help and sometimes there is nothing left to do except try to replicate the original.
 
This all reflects my ideas about what should be done. Basically a good cleaning and careful removal of active rust without changing the aged character of the khuk. Replicating sheaths, hmm, I'm just getting the hang of forging various steels and you want me to work with leather? It's actually the next phase of knifemaking that I need to get in to.

Thanks all for mentioning specific products too. I knew about the Hooflex but I've never heard about the Pecard Antique Leather Dressing. I've now got several new web sites to add to my favorites and a good idea how to approach those future antique khukuris when the KPF is solvent again!

Guy Thomas
 
:
I'm with Berk.:D Do no harm.
And yet it depends. If the knife, any knife is truly a valuable antique then it should be taken care of as such. But if the knife has been beaten up and someone has taken one of those damnable coarse grinding wheels to it, then do what's neccessary to make it usable and then use it.:D
Then some are in between and if it's something that's common but may gain value do the minimum, but if it's not likely to gain in value do what you wish with it.
I believe that a lot of old knives should be used when it's possible to use them without depreciateing them. Some of the knives like Ruana to name one of the more famous still sell for lots of bucks even when used if they have been taken care of. And general use as they're designed for shouldn't hurt them IMO, but we all know what opinions are.:)

Oh almost forgot. I think most leather suppliers that stock goods for caring for leather should have a Carnuba Cream. I know that Tandy did and they may still carry it. I once bought an old horsehide sorta Drs case and it was so stiff it couldn't be opened or shut without cracking the leather. Otherwise it was in pretty good condition. I bought it for the fittings and hardware on it, but then I used the Carnuba Cream on it. The Carnuba softened it to where it was once again usable to store things in. Great stuff and maybe cheaper than other materials of like.:D
 
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