Grandpa's Buck 112 Restoration and Preservation ** EXTREMELY PIC HEAVY**

Wood Splitter

Wood Splitter

Joined
Jul 16, 2011
Messages
993
I recently came into possession of my Grandpa's Buck 112, which he wore and used constantly from the time be bought it until he couldn't use it anymore.

My Grandpa was a logger here in the PNW, he took care of his tools, but he used them hard. Unfortunately, this Buck 112 along with a few dozen other items (including a couple more blades) were packed away and left in a storage locker for roughly 4 years (until we moved back to the PNW).

It was not oiled or cleaned before storage, and red rust had accumulated on the blade. Green oxidization on the brass, and the pivot was full of grit. When the blade was open, I would have to force it back down, the spring tension just wasn't enough to get past all the grit and grime.

The leather sheath was dry and cracking.

I decided to essentially preserve the entire package. Remove the red rust, clean the grit from the inside, remove the green oxidization without destroying the patina underneath, and preserve the leather sheath.

I tried my best to take pictures of the entire project, but I got a little carried away so there aren't many WIP pics, mostly before and after shots.


What I did to it below...


I used 100% pure neatsfoot oil on the sheath. I have never before seen leather absorb so much oil so quickly! It was just drinking it in.

For the red rust, I used a small piece of veggie tan leather to rub most of it off, then used my thumbnail to scrape the harder to get rust off, followed by a tiny amount of oil. I could have used some polishing compound, but I wanted to preserve as much patina as I could.

The oxidization was all taken off with my thumbnail as I didn't want to hurt the patina underneath.

I flushed the pivot with Benchmade Blue Lube Cleanser, and removed the grit and grim from inside with a large sewing needle and strip of leather.

After it was cleaned, I applied a few drops of Benchmade Blue Lube. At this point, it was smooth and easy to open and close. No up and down play, and very little side to side.

After that, I put a couple drops of mineral oil on the scales.


Before pictures...











































And some WIP pics.




I'm not sure what this is, but it was caught under the back spring...














And here's the finished project next to my brother's 112.





































 
Any idea what steel they used in that era? I have my grandfather's Buck woodsman. 440c I think on that one. Very cool patina on the brass! The orange color is awesome.
 
Any idea what steel they used in that era? I have my grandfather's Buck woodsman. 440c I think on that one. Very cool patina on the brass! The orange color is awesome.
 
sure looks like that knife got put away wet! nice save..enjoy your Grandpa's knife!
 
lobo9er said:
Any idea what steel they used in that era? I have my grandfather's Buck woodsman. 440c I think on that one. Very cool patina on the brass! The orange color is awesome.
Click to expand...

Thanks! Sorry, but I'm not entirely sure what steel was used during that era... I'll have to check on that.
 
Very nice job cleaning up that 112 and maintaining the patina, the orange color is cool.
 
I'm glad you found your Grandfathers knife.If it could speak I bet it would have some great stories to tell.
 
lobo9er said:
Any idea what steel they used in that era? I have my grandfather's Buck woodsman. 440c I think on that one. Very cool patina on the brass! The orange color is awesome.
Click to expand...

Buck was using 440C on that era knives. Thanks of putting in the elbow grease to restore your Grandfather's knife. He'd be proud of you. DM
 
Outstanding! Always happy to see any Buck returned to service, especially those with family history attached to them. Someone upstairs is smiling, good job!
 
It looks like he really used it a lot. You did a great job on it. Your photographs were very good at telling the story.
 
Nice job on the knife and great story to go with it - I like carrying/using knives (and hunting with firearms) that I have a connection to. OH
 
Brilliant photo journalism on a massive scale wood splitter. You walk the earth like a capable GIANT with a camera. That thumb nail will re-grow. You will be a Grandfather one day perhaps and your stuff could become the project of a devoted descendant. Bravo and many thanks for your work shown here.
 
Now that is what I call a good old honest knife

Good work exercising restraint on the restoration project

Great tread , thanks for sharing it
 
The blade is 440C but it has been sharpened down a lot. You could send it to Buck for Spa treatment and blade replacement. It would have a 420HC blade but would look amazing.
 
Many thanks for the kind words folks, I appreciate it.

Just some some more info for clarifications sake (I was exhausted when I made this post, left out some pertinent info).

My Grandpa is still alive, but ill. Dementia and Parkinson's. Fortunately, he still remembers me, and I hope to be able to show him his old Buck knife soon. Perhaps he will recall where/when he bought it, some old tales etc as he has done before with logging.

My Grandpa spent a lot of his time on saltwater, and often times had to wade through the water to shore. I can almost guarantee he had this Buck 112 on his hip through it all, so the condition of the leather is not surprising.

I have no plans on sending it in for a spa treatment or a reblade, as it simply has far too much sentimental value as is.

Again, I really appreciate the kind words, and I'm glad you all enjoyed the post. I'm rather new to the Buck forum, but hope to contribute some more when I can.
 
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