Old Schrade

Morrow

Morrow

Don't make this weird
Joined
Apr 11, 2007
Messages
27,773
My father called me the day before Thanksgiving asking if I would sharpen an old knife for a friend of his. The knife belonged to this man's father. Here is the knife.

schrade3.jpg


It seems to be in good condition. All three blades have obvious signs of use with a nice patina showing. All three blades open and close solid and there is no blade play when open. I really like the knife but as you can see from the pictures, there is some rust. All blades are marked the same Schrade Cutco Walden NY.

schrade2.jpg


I'm comfortable sharpening the knife but I'm unsure about taking the rust off. I've always just used Flitz to remove surface rust but never on an older knife such as this. Any suggestions?

Anyway...I just wanted to share as this knife has some sentimental value to it's owner. This guy is about 70 and this was his father's knife. If anyone has any other suggestions to clean this one up....please yell.
 
I would just sharpen it up and wipe some oil on the blades. Since he's still carrying and using the knife, I don't see the point in doing anything serious with regards to curation or conservation.

Beautiful knife by the way - I'm honored to have seen it.
 
Won't Flitz polish the patina off?

I would just use some oil and rub the blades down well, and be done with it.
 
Thats a nice looking old knife. I bet it has a lot of stories to tell.. Nice pics too.
 
Won't Flitz polish the patina off?
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I don't know how harsh Flitz-brand products are, but anything abrasive would ruin that knife's character and historic interest.
 
I do not want to take away any of the character of this knife. I'm concerned about the rust though.
 
Bob W said:
I don't know how harsh Flitz-brand products are, but anything abrasive would ruin that knife's character and historic interest.
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I read somewhere recently, that someone used Flitz on an older knife and it did clean off a lot of the patina.. Someone, I think it was on here, recommended using naval jelly on rusty blades. I don't remember which thread it was in though
 
338375 said:
I read somewhere recently, that someone used Flitz on an older knife and it did clean off a lot of the patina.. Someone, I think it was on here, recommended using naval jelly on rusty blades. I don't remember which thread it was in though
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actually....some 3-in-one oil...paper towels.....and some elbow grease took the rust right off. I just kept putting on oil and rubbing until the towels stopped showing rust. problem solved.
 
I would'nt do a thing to that old boy exept sharpen it It's taken a lifetime of use to get it to that interesting state, and at this point the rust is not going hurt anything. You'll do more damage to the knife trying to get the rust off, than the rust is doing at this point in time. Like the other posters have said, just rub the blade with a little 3-in-1 on a paper towel till its not comming off red anymore. Even after wiping off the oil, there will be oil residue left down in the pitted areas to stop future corrosion. A small drop on the hinges will do. :thumbup:

Flitz, navel jelly, or anything else will ruin the whole charater of the knife.:thumbdn:

I DO find it interesting that only the sheepsfoot blade is that rusty. It makes me wonder if he has some special use for it that he does not want to subject the other blades to?
 
jackknife said:
I would'nt do a thing to that old boy exept sharpen it It's taken a lifetime of use to get it to that interesting state, and at this point the rust is not going hurt anything. You'll do more damage to the knife trying to get the rust off, than the rust is doing at this point in time. Like the other posters have said, just rub the blade with a little 3-in-1 on a paper towel till its not comming off red anymore. Even after wiping off the oil, there will be oil residue left down in the pitted areas to stop future corrosion. A small drop on the hinges will do. :thumbup:

Flitz, navel jelly, or anything else will ruin the whole charater of the knife.:thumbdn:

I DO find it interesting that only the sheepsfoot blade is that rusty. It makes me wonder if he has some special use for it that he does not want to subject the other blades to?
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I pretty much did exactly as you suggested. It is weird that only one blade was rusting. My father told me the man said he used the sheepsfoot blade more than the others. When I pass the knife back I'll give a quick lesson in taking care of carbon steel blades. Am I a bad person for wanting to keep this one? :D I cut myself after sharpening it....that makes it mine right?

Anyone want to venture a guess as to this one's age?
 
Anyone want to venture a guess as to this one's age?
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According to Levine's Guide 4th Ed. the "Schrade Cutlery Co." brand was used from 1904 to 1946. There are probably some subtle details that a real Schrade collector could use to date it more closely.
Here's one that's marked "Schrade Walden", 1946-1950s according to LG4. It belonged to my dad when he was a rancher in west Texas after WWII. Guess which blade was used to turn bull calves into steers over the years he carried it;).
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Berkley said:
According to Levine's Guide 4th Ed. the "Schrade Cutlery Co." brand was used from 1904 to 1946. There are probably some subtle details that a real Schrade collector could use to date it more closely.
Here's one that's marked "Schrade Walden", 1946-1950s according to LG4. It belonged to my dad when he was a rancher in west Texas after WWII. Guess which blade was used to turn bull calves into steers over the years he carried it;).
attachment.php
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Thank you...I appreciate the info.
 
morrowj_98 said:
actually....some 3-in-one oil...paper towels.....and some elbow grease took the rust right off. I just kept putting on oil and rubbing until the towels stopped showing rust. problem solved.
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That is exactly what I was going to recommend. Super looking knife -- I'd love to see an "after" picture.
 
morrowj_98 said:
actually....some 3-in-one oil...paper towels.....and some elbow grease took the rust right off. I just kept putting on oil and rubbing until the towels stopped showing rust. problem solved.
Click to expand...

Excellent. Thats good to know for future use. Seems some of the knives I have been looking at lately could use this treatment..
I too would like to see how it looks after you got it done.
 
here it is now....i actually soaked the whole knife in mineral overnight. cleaned the metal up with alcohol. the brown on the big blade isn't rust even though it looks like it in the pic.

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That's an AMAZING knife. I am a sucker for old knives and this is a beauty.

thanks for sharing,
Brett
 
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