To polish or not to polish?

well, i've dabbled in numismatics, and i can tell you with 100% confidence, that cleaning a coin of any metal seriously destroys it's value. it's about the worst thing you can do.

also, coins derive much of their value based on the amount of metal, and the details left from the stamping. This is what is mainly affected by cleaning, pocket carry, etc. The high points flatten, lose their definition, and metal weight decreases.

With those khuks you have... and my gosh, they're simply beautifull...
the "antique" value would be in an -unpolished- state.
is there a huge antique collectors market for khukuris? i really don't know, they certainly don't have the kinds of numbers and investments that numismatics has as a collectable. I've not ever heard of a plain, old, dingy khukuri selling at auction for millions.

I would say, keep it clean...
but avoid polishing it too much.

another serious consideration with "polishes" is that you end up with the white paste in areas of detail, which is horrid to remove.

I'd use a dry jeweler's cloth to remove heavy tarnish, and leave it be. It simply is not pretty when it tarnishes to blackness.

Congrats on your treasures, you should be most proud of those fine pieces. Thanks for sharing the pic, and i hope i've helped some.
 
Wow, Looks like some strong feelings on this issue!
:D Great, Lucky are kuks are ours to do as we please with!
I think Steve has got the right idea myself though!

Btice, That sounds like it would be an interesting mission anyway. Have fun & see how they choose do it there. let us know how you get on.

Regards,
Spiral
 
Hanes or Fruit of the Loom will do fine, as long as they've been washed so many times the arms are coming loose. Soft cotton, gently and patiently used, will clean even the most tarnished silver high spots and leave an increasingly lovely contrast in the low areas. By preference, I polish the front of my kothimoras, and leave the backs as found. It's true that old silver can lose much value by polishing - a Colt 1860 Army with siverplated gripstraps, for example, should be black and original, unless you want to polish away lots of resale value. Kothimoras, however, are a different item, from a different culture. Having observed the Gurkha mess dress silver on the TWO FAT LADIES Food TV show, I feel reasonably certain that no Gurkha officer would show up for a formal occasion with a kothimora in his cummerbund that was any less dazzling than the shine on his boots, or the pomade in his hair.
And I'll add a little anecdote in support - one of my kothimoras is a really nice piece with silver pins and rings in the horn handle, as well as a beautiful scabbard. I got it on eBay, very cheaply, from the widow of a weapons collector who posted it in its very uncleaned (read: black, dull, ugly, unphotogenic)condition, as her late husband had left it. She sent it with the 1975 Wallis & Wallis auction catalog from which he had purchased it. Guess what? It was shiny as a new penny in '75 - AND he paid several hundred dollars more than I did twenty-odd years later at a much more widely circulated auction.
Silver should look like silver.
 
With the silver on top of the leather I wondered about any type of compound use at all. Would it affect the leather? Guess I'll stick to wiping with an old t'shirt. I hope generic brands work OK.:rolleyes: Is there a specific soft bristle brush like a soft toothbrush or should it be a natural bristle??:confused:
 
Thanks to everyone for your input. I'm inclined to follow Dan, Berk and John on this one.

I have a very soft cotton flannel shirt that's recently retired. I gently bring the shine back up before displaying, then hopefully not have to worry about it again for a few years. Neither of these knives will be sold in my lifetime. :)
 
I ain't polished any of my silver worked or furnished khuk's. At least not yet.
My carry YCS is getting pretty dark from not being carried or used.
Interestingly it's getting a nice grey/gold sorta color to it and it was highly polished before I started leaving it alone. You can tell it's silver just from the way it looks, or at least I like to think so.;)
My Royal Dhankuta is developing the same sort of glow and it's set on its shelf for a tad over two years now.
It looks good with the bone handle.:p ;)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top