Great-Great-Uncles knives found. Restore?

stingray4540

stingray4540

Joined
Mar 26, 2007
Messages
2,798
Well my grandmother moved her 90+ aunt out of her old house, and let us go through it to make sure there wasn't anything we wanted.

Among other things, I found these stockmen (stockmans?).

Western
Boulder
Colo USA
445 (opposite side of tang)

Shrade+
USA 897UH
H0032 (SN inside liner)
Uncle Henry (in shield)

? Main blade is gone
Sheepsfoot is sharped away quite a bit.
Looks like Remington acorn shield?
Handles are metal
This is unrecoverable, but I'm curious non the less.

Problem is Uncle Jalmer's been dead for some time, and these have been sitting in the Garage all the while. He used them pretty hard, so I would like to get them in useable shape.

My main concern is the handles. The western appears to be bone that's really white and chaulky. The Schrade is also chaulky but In a different way.
I probably should've asked first, but I have them in a mineral oil bath at the moment.
Any advice on how to restore the handle material to usable condition?

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I'm not really sure what you're talking about, and the pictures don't show any chalky deposits. Some plastics will develop a white dusty residue, but your bone should not. If you have them in a mineral oilbath that should be ideal. Once you pull them out you'll want to exercise the joints a bit to make sure they get moving. You can clean up any rust that bleeds out of the joints with a toothbrush and either gun solvent or soap and water. If you use water make sure you rinse with very hot water and dry quickly You can then wipe everything down with oil and it shoudl be okay.

I'd use a little Flitz and steel wool to take of any surface rust and use a machine oil on the joints.
 
Thanks.
Sorry, the pics were taken after they were already in the mineral oil, so the chalkiness wasn't as obvious.
After 24hours in mineral oil it seams they rehydrated ok. Thats what I was most concerned with.

The Shrade+ is stainless I think, so it's not in bad shape, and the Western had minimal rust that was taken care of with the oil.

Both have decent snap left, and a lot of blade left, so I'm going to sharpen and start a rotation.

If I start carrying them, should I be concerned about the crack in the bone scale on the Western? It goes from the spring pin to the spring, so it's small.
Should I work some epoxy in there to keep it from getting worse, or just leave it?
 
The Schrade has Staglon handles, which are just Derlin made to look like stag. It's good you soaked them in mineral oil first, as it does a whole lot of good but no harm. I'd sharpen them up after a thorough cleaning, and put a lot of Protestant on those you aren't planning on using. The 897UH I have is a nice knife, with no blade rub on the main, and little to none between the spey and sheepsfoot blades. Snaps real nice and makes a good sound.

Cheers,
Connor
 
So how do I get Protestant on my knives? Do I just rub the knife against the skin of a non-Catholic Christian to coat them with Protestant skin oil? Or do I have to kill one and coat the knife in their blood?

I hope it's not the latter, 'cause trolls can smell the blood of a Christian. Last thing I need, is a mountain troll chasing me around on my next backpacking trip. Do you even know how hard it is to run with a 30lb. Pack on your back?!

Wait, I just realized. I'm a non-Catholic Christian, would that technically make me a Protestant? So if I just nick myself with the blade, would a little of my own blood suffice?


All joking aside, I think you misspelled the product name? The only google results I found were about religion.
 
LOL! I'm pretty sure he was trying to say Protectant like Breakfree CLP or something along those lines.
 
Ah ha, that makes much more sense, and a might easier to come by, I might add. No bloodletting necessary!

I think, however, that because of how well they came out of the oil bath, I will sharpen and carry them. This is the first time I've owned more than one pocket knife. And as hard as they seemed to have been used, I think it would please uncle Jalmer to see them put back to use as tools instead of sitting in some desk drawer or out in a garage, only to be forgotten about again. That is only an assumption though, as I, unfortunately, never knew the man.
 
I think your right. He obviously used the hell out of them and probably didn't see the point in safe queens lol.
 
:eek:
You've been a member of Bladeforums since 2007 and this is the first time you have owned more than one pocket knife?I find that truly amazing!I think i owned more than one when i was 5.I used to buy them in the gumball machines for a nickel.Or maybe it was a penny.1959.( :
 
Well it was around that time that my wife bought me my Case amber bone Texas jack. It meant a lot since I was in college at the time and money was tight.

Before that, I always had a leatherman. My first knife was a black slippy, I'm assuming a Buck, but that knife is long gone...

Most of my life is self taught, so simple things that a lot of people take for granted, took me years to discover. Like how convenient it is to have a good knife instead of always hunting for scissors or using your keys. No one ever taught me how to sharpen a knife. Appreciation for different steels, the craftsmanship involved in making a nice slip joint, etc.

And, while I've been a member since '07, I've never been in a place to spend money I don't have, on different versions of a tool that I already own. I think that has to do with having too many hobbies. I think I'm the only archer in my group that only owns one bow, knife enthusiast that only owns one pocket knife, one mountain bike, one backpack, lol.
Since '07, it seems there's always been something keeping me from investing more than the minimum into my hobbies: College, saving for a house, and my recent money pit, baby, lol.
 
stingray4540 said:
Well it was around that time that my wife bought me my Case amber bone Texas jack. It meant a lot since I was in college at the time and money was tight.

Before that, I always had a leatherman. My first knife was a black slippy, I'm assuming a Buck, but that knife is long gone...

Most of my life is self taught, so simple things that a lot of people take for granted, took me years to discover. Like how convenient it is to have a good knife instead of always hunting for scissors or using your keys. No one ever taught me how to sharpen a knife. Appreciation for different steels, the craftsmanship involved in making a nice slip joint, etc.

And, while I've been a member since '07, I've never been in a place to spend money I don't have, on different versions of a tool that I already own. I think that has to do with having too many hobbies. I think I'm the only archer in my group that only owns one bow, knife enthusiast that only owns one pocket knife, one mountain bike, one backpack, lol.
Since '07, it seems there's always been something keeping me from investing more than the minimum into my hobbies: College, saving for a house, and my recent money pit, baby, lol.
Click to expand...

Nothing to apologize or make excuses about! I think what you do should be worn as a badge of distinction and honor. I salute you sir!

Omar
 
Absolutely,I didn't mean it as any kind of knock at all.It's just not the norm around this place.When i was raising kids my knifepickin' was slim to none also.All the best to you my friend!
 
Ha, sorry for the unasked for life story. Too much vodka I suppose...
Don't worry, I didn't take it as a knock. Don't know why I felt the need to explain myself.
 
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Haha, no worries, I don't spend much money on alcohol. My brother is borderline alcoholic, so there always seems to be a bottle in my freezer if the mood strikes me ;)
 
stingray4540 said:
Well it was around that time that my wife bought me my Case amber bone Texas jack. It meant a lot since I was in college at the time and money was tight.

Before that, I always had a leatherman. My first knife was a black slippy, I'm assuming a Buck, but that knife is long gone...

Most of my life is self taught, so simple things that a lot of people take for granted, took me years to discover. Like how convenient it is to have a good knife instead of always hunting for scissors or using your keys. No one ever taught me how to sharpen a knife. Appreciation for different steels, the craftsmanship involved in making a nice slip joint, etc.

And, while I've been a member since '07, I've never been in a place to spend money I don't have, on different versions of a tool that I already own. I think that has to do with having too many hobbies. I think I'm the only archer in my group that only owns one bow, knife enthusiast that only owns one pocket knife, one mountain bike, one backpack, lol.
Since '07, it seems there's always been something keeping me from investing more than the minimum into my hobbies: College, saving for a house, and my recent money pit, baby, lol.
Click to expand...

I think that most of us could use a page from your book and not the other way around. Good on ya. Glad to see that you will be carrying your newly acquired knives. I think their owner would be proud.

- Mark
 
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