Scissors “re-tempering”

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LukeMachado

Joined
Sep 29, 2024
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Hello guys! I hope you all are having a nice sunday! So, Im a tailor and happen to own some antique big chunky tailor scissors, mostly French and German. What happens is that i love to restore them, give them a bit of its original glory. I have already done some 3 or four… But recently i was gifted with one other, from a friend, also a tailor who liked my service. That one is a especially antique french (plus 130 years) was his father’s. Thats alright the scissors can be restored, its in good shape and Such, only have one issue… the “legend” tells that in some point in the past, that pair of shears went “untempered” due to a electric discharge, around 1930-1935… It was on the bench, and a thunderbolt hit the building where was the tailor shop located, some way the discharge went down by the wires, And finally hitting the scissors making it red instantly. I dont know if that is possible, but several members of the family atested me that happened, so the “legend” goes on… lol
So, i got the scissors for restoration with the intent to “make it new again”, and as i cleaned it, and cutted a new bevel on the blades, i realized that yes, it was waaaay softer than these scissors used to be, And my question relies on: can it be re-trmpered? And if yes: is there a “safe” way to do it, since i have no idea of what kind of steel is it made of? My fear is the blade wrapping or cracking in the quenching process. I hope some one can give me some “light” in this quest! Salute all!
 
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Can it be done? Probably. But I'd try to find someone who makes scissors professionally to do it. Scissors are a whole different monster than knives. Scissors are both twisted and bent in a very particular way...
 
It sounds like a good story, but I doubt it. I have things lightning has hit and there is no doubt. They would be fused shut and useless as well as quite burned. If they work and look more or less normal the lighting bolt did not hit them.

If you are truly worried have someone with a Rockwell tester check the hardness.
I would think the best thing is to leave them as is and enjoy their antique history and lighting story.
 
If they're 130 years old that helps on steel type. At that age they'll be a fairly basic carbon steel, so you can heat treat them as if they are 1070
Get some anti-scale compound or find someone with an inert gas furnace, you don't have much spare material to play with so don't want decarb
 
Alex Topfer said:
If they're 130 years old that helps on steel type. At that age they'll be a fairly basic carbon steel, so you can heat treat them as if they are 1070
Get some anti-scale compound or find someone with an inert gas furnace, you don't have much spare material to play with so don't want decarb
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Yep! I was thinking about that! Would you have any advices about quenching in water or oil?
 
Fast oil quench is less likely to break them. How large are these?
Honestly i agree with the others; leave them as is and buy a new pair. It'll likely cost as much. But what you're thinking of is possible
 
LukeMachado said:
Yep! I was thinking about that! Would you have any advices about quenching in water or oil?
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I'd probably get a gallon of Parks #50 and try that if you are set on trying to re-heat treat them. I'd definitely not recommend water (or brine), unless you want to end up with a shorter pair of scissors...
 
Alex Topfer said:
Fast oil quench is less likely to break them. How large are these?
Honestly i agree with the others; leave them as is and buy a new pair. It'll likely cost as much. But what you're thinking of is possible
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It is 16” long in total, 10” blade, im considering to heat treat it just because it is in such a good shape, in the matter of size and functionability that is a shame it dont hold an edge… and sadly, they dont make these sizes anymore 😢😢😢
But im still considering, And looking for more information to do that in the less risky way possible
 
So they are a big pair. I don't know about scissors or fibre arts
Finding someone local to you who knows what they're doing is probably a good idea

My guess is the big risk is that they snap at the hinge, that's where there is a lot of stress risers. Of course that bit doesn't need to be hard, so i would probably do a partial quench and leave the hinge back soft
Also while they're apart getting them 3d scanned and taking proper documentation photos. If you're going to risk damage then document them as they are
 
Alex Topfer said:
So they are a big pair. I don't know about scissors or fibre arts
Finding someone local to you who knows what they're doing is probably a good idea

My guess is the big risk is that they snap at the hinge, that's where there is a lot of stress risers. Of course that bit doesn't need to be hard, so i would probably do a partial quench and leave the hinge back soft
Also while they're apart getting them 3d scanned and taking proper documentation photos. If you're going to risk damage then document them as they are
Click to expand...
Sure! About the partial quench, i was thinking about that! Tbh, the the half to tip is the part of the blade that is used to work… i was planning to quench just 3/4 of the blade, and let the backpart cool by itself
 
Can they be disassembled and treated separately as halves? Some movement or warping is almost certain. The amount of warping and the tempering after the quench will determine if you can bend or shape them to deal with it.
 
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