Need your advice restoring an old Ka-Bar Hunter.

Diomedes Industries

Diomedes Industries

Joined
Mar 19, 2007
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Okay - here is the deal. My father (and grandfather) owned a Ka-bar hunter (stacked leather washer handle - classic design).

My father, while he was younger, used a bastard file (or two of varying coarseness) and changed his knife (the grind) to a flat grind.

It was well done and he finished it with a convex edge - but the high chomium blade has a mildly rough finish on it and no longer looks polished.

What can I do to polish this blade back to a high shine? Should I use higher and higher grits of wet/dry wrapped around a file?

What can I do with a decent amount of mechanical skills - but no dedicated knife making tools?

Thanks,

TF
 
Post pics man, Are you sure you want to erase all that charector, history, and story? I sure wouldn't, another thing that bothers me is if he was able to reshape his HARDENED knife blade with a couple of files. I honestly would question if it doesnt need to be re heat treated. Now he may have been able to stone it down or use a stone file, to reshape it. But if I wanted to make it pretty again I'd use some good quality wet/dry sandpaper, starting at 320 and work up from there to however high of a polish you want. Definantly use a paint stick instead of a file, that way you dont accidently tear through and gouge it. Whatever way you choose, post pics and let us see your work :D

Jason
 
Jason,

You make good points... I will have to check it out. He suggested it actually - and I am so excited to get it.

I will post pics and get more opinions.

TF
 
I understand, my dad gave me his first hunter, a Sheffield skinner kit blade my grandfather ordered and my dad made a handle for it out of Brass and Whitetail, main beam. It's scratched up to be sure, he told me to polish it up and make it purty, but I just cant erase his history from it, every scratch is a story, weather it was a squirell, rabbit or deer, pheasant, quail, coon, or groundhog that put it there. All I can do is add my own and pass it on down.

Jason
 
You may have better luck with a rubber backed block. I use a piece of corian with rubber on one side. The hard backed side is nice for starting grits because it's more aggressive, the rubber backing will help blend better in higher grits. You will probably want to dull the edge before hand rubbing. We'd probably need to know more about the finish to be sure where you should start, but my guess is that you'll need to start at 120 or 220. It won't take long on 220 to get an even finish, then it's just a matter of deciding how high you want to take it.
 
I sure wouldn't, another thing that bothers me is if he was able to reshape his HARDENED knife blade with a couple of files. I honestly would question if it doesnt need to be re heat treated.
Click to expand...

FWIW - many older knives were not hardened to the degree that they are today, they were originally designed and hardened to be able to sharpen with a file - technology has changed as has steel, and a "soft" blade is not necessarily bad. I've seen old original buffalo skinners that skinned thousands of the critters - the blades are well worn, but got the job done......different times, different needs, different aesthetics.........
 
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