What do you consider "Cleaning and polishing" and will it diminish a vintage or antique knife

[Augie]

I see so many old knives where a Dremel has been run down the blade, horrifying

Jack, they sure seemed to like sharpening knives with grinding wheels back in the day, I have several old ones with grind marks detracting from an otherwise fine vintage knife.

 

[Augie]

I am extra careful. I would not use any steel wool, even 0000. Only a microfiber towel and your choice of oil.

Pretty much what I do Mark, have been using Balistol as it is mineral oil based with some solvents.

 

[Misplaced Hillbilly]

Jack, they sure seemed to like sharpening knives with grinding wheels back in the day, I have several old ones with grind marks detracting from an otherwise fine vintage knife.

For sure! The Queen hawkbill I picked up recently had about the last 2/3 of the edge on a grinding wheel. The 1/3 near the tang looked pristine, I have no idea why anyone would put a knife on a bench grinder. Luckily it wasn't bad and I could fix the edge pretty good with a diamond stone. I won't even go into all the grinding I found on an old Remington moose, they even ground the kicks completely away

 

[kvaughn]

I think as far as grinding wheels, the oldtimers figured if it was good for an axe or hatchet it was good for a knife. Just another tool to be sharpened. Luckily, most of the wheels back then were human powered and didn't heat the metal as much as an electric wheel. Thus saving the temper of the blade.
It does make me cringe though to open up an otherwise nice looking knife and find it ground beyond recovery.--KV

 

[Buzzbait]

[QUOT

I think as far as grinding wheels, the oldtimers figured if it was good for an axe or hatchet it was good for a knife. Just another tool to be sharpened. Luckily, most of the wheels back then were human powered and didn't heat the metal as much as an electric wheel. Thus saving the temper of the blade.
It does make me cringe though to open up an otherwise nice looking knife and find it ground beyond recovery.--KV

I had a conversation with my barber a few weeks ago, about grinding. Back in the day, there used to be a man who traveled from shop to shop, sharpening barber's scissors on some sort of portable electric sharpener. Guy (my Barber's name) said he'd get maybe two sharpenings before he had to replace the scissors. It was a con of sorts. The real money was in selling new scissors to the barber shop, not in the sharpening service. Eventually Guy caught on, and started sharpening his own scissors. He now has scissors over 15 years old, used daily, that don't yet need to be replaced.

 

[Hickory n steel]

Take away just the rust and the gunk that's inside it, and if theres verdigris on the bolsters and or liners you can carefully remove that too.
Beyond that I hate seeing anything old shined up, especially when abrasives are involved.

 

[Jack Black]

I bought a second-hand Dremel on the market the other week - just to take it out of circulation!

Jack, they sure seemed to like sharpening knives with grinding wheels back in the day, I have several old ones with grind marks detracting from an otherwise fine vintage knife.

Yes, unfortunately, there were a lot more grinding wheels about once, than folks who knew how to use them. When I was a kid, until I learned better, if you wanted a knife sharpening, you gave it to your dad, granddad, uncle, or next door neighbour, and he'd take it into work with him, and either sharpen it himself, or ask someone else to. At least my dad worked in a cutlery works! There were also the fellers who travelled round on bicycles, with the bikes supplying power to a small grindstone, and then some folks sharpened their knives on the edge of the causeway! A good job those folks didn't have Dremels!

 

[Jack Black]

Look what some moron with a grinder/Dremel did to this Schrade-Wostenholm Stockman!

 

[Shurke]

Polishing is a big problem in the world of antique straight razors. It seems there are a lot of people who want 100+ year old razors but want them to look like they were made yesterday. I'll never understand it.

Gentle cleaning (oil, maybe a liquid non-abrasive dish detergent) is fine. Killing rust is fine. But beyond that, I say don't alter those old knives and razors!

(Caveat: if you have something that's in really bad shape and not of much historical value, well.... that's a gray are to me).

 

[dsutton24]

Interesting turn this thread has taken.

The OP asked about cleaning and polishing old knives. Somehow that devolved into pictures of old knives with grinder marks, and a lot of harrumphing over an obvious joke about using a Dremel. I sincerely doubt that the OP would do such a thing to an old knife. But, if he does, that's okay too.

Here's something to remember: Knives are often bought by people who use knives, today, yesterday, and beyond. Many of those guys aren't really concerned about stone marks or missing tips. The original owners don't give a hang about what some collector thinks of their knives after they're dead or after he's traded it off. Many times I've bought knives that were well used, and even sometimes knives that were abused. Those things were carried every day, the stories that surround that knife must be interesting as all get-out.

There are plenty of people who think forcing a patina on a new blade is ridiculous. Others think nothing of reprofiling blades.

To each his own. As far as I'm concerned, it's your stuff, do what you like with it. If I don't approve, I'll simply not buy.

Just for the heck of it, here's one of my favorite knives, I've owned it for thirty years or so. I'd never try to make it anything it's not. I love the fact that this thing was used a lot, and don't care that the previous owner didn't take pains to keep it in mint condition. You folks who don't want to look at knives that have lived an honest life might want to turn the channel:

 

[Lapedog]

Any restoration will diminish the value of an antique as antique.

Will restoring it raise it’s value? That depends on how good a job you do and still a gamble.

 

[Augie]

Here is an example of what I find acceptable, found an unused Case Tested Barlow a few years ago, had a layer of fine rust on it which Could not leave on the knife, using mineral oil, a fine toothbrush, 0000 steel wool and a microfiber towel it came out pretty nice but still shows its age. No mechanical devices were used, it was all done by hand.

 

[Elgatodeacero]

Instead of steel wool for rust removal, you might try bronze wool as it is much less abrasive.

 

[Campbellclanman]

To those who don’t know the difference between Steel Wool and 0000 Steel Wool. - the difference is like Black and White. 0000 is so extremely fine it doesn’t shine Steel - unless of course you use it blatantly. 0000 in conjunction with Mineral Oil will just the Job that Augie has shown- by removing the fine red rust only and totally leaving all Patina as is.

 

[urbantrapper]

Interesting turn this thread has taken.

The OP asked about cleaning and polishing old knives. Somehow that devolved into pictures of old knives with grinder marks, and a lot of harrumphing over an obvious joke about using a Dremel. I sincerely doubt that the OP would do such a thing to an old knife. But, if he does, that's okay too.

Here's something to remember: Knives are often bought by people who use knives, today, yesterday, and beyond. Many of those guys aren't really concerned about stone marks or missing tips. The original owners don't give a hang about what some collector thinks of their knives after they're dead or after he's traded it off. Many times I've bought knives that were well used, and even sometimes knives that were abused. Those things were carried every day, the stories that surround that knife must be interesting as all get-out.

There are plenty of people who think forcing a patina on a new blade is ridiculous. Others think nothing of reprofiling blades.

To each his own. As far as I'm concerned, it's your stuff, do what you like with it. If I don't approve, I'll simply not buy.

Just for the heck of it, here's one of my favorite knives, I've owned it for thirty years or so. I'd never try to make it anything it's not. I love the fact that this thing was used a lot, and don't care that the previous owner didn't take pains to keep it in mint condition. You folks who don't want to look at knives that have lived an honest life might want to turn the channel:

"Harrumph"? "Give a hang"? I like the cut of your jib. We should hang out. Nice Barlow