Which Of These Traditionals Safe To Restore/Advice On Restoring

W

Wallbright

Joined
Jan 1, 2012
Messages
197
Like the title says I just bought some cheap traditionals and am looking to restore/clean them up into EDCs. I thought I would ask first to see if any are worth more un-restored just to be safe. I can take more pictures if needed.

P1020206.jpg


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From top to bottom:

Left Row:
Hammer Brand USA
Only marking is USA and then a ton of numbers on the smaller blade
Imperial Ireland
I removed the old timer after the first picture as it does not need restoring. I had it sitting there by mistake.
Imperial Diamond Edge 852DE
Gerber Portland OR 97223 USA
Sharp 200

Right Row:
Shapleigh St. Louis USA
Colonial Prov USA
Queen Steel #24? (It is very worn in the blade where someone grinded it)
Hammer
Colonial Prov. RI Pat. Pend. [Fish Knife on scale] [I just realized this one and the above are switched in the second picture)
Only Markings is Made in Germany and the scales say Fish Knife


I also was wondering how to best clean them up? All lock well and all but two have no play in the blades. I think think the majority of them just need to have the grime and rust removed from the joint etc. to be great users again. There are also some loose scales that I might either glue down or replace (on the larger knives).

I did some reading on here in these threads:

http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/909606-Little-Restoration-Project?
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/914588-Restoring-Old-Timer?

What I noted is some things to try: warm water and dish soap, mineral oil and 0000 steel wool very carefully on any rust spots/pits, cloth and a wooden shim in the joint, 3-in-one oil in the joint to get a nice smooth action (Can also use mineral oil?), don't try to take it apart and stay away from using WD40 as a lubricant.

What else do you fellas recommend? Can I use Flitz on the old Gerber and Sharp knives to polish up the handles? What can I do about the knife with the blades uneven from someone using a grinder?

Also, is mineral oil the same kind people use for digestive issues or is there a different type that is preferred for knives?

I hope I didn't ask too many questions and thank you for the help.
 
I don't think those knives will be hurt (in collectible value) by some gentle cleaning up. Generally speaking, the cleaning tips you've mentioned are sound (warm water & dish soap, fine steel wool to remove surface rust, WD-40 in the joints). Don't worry about the WD-40 as a light lubricant for typical light EDC use. It's a mix of light solvent and mineral oil; the solvent flushes out moisture, grease, dirt, etc., and the mineral oil remains after the solvent evaporates. It works fine in that capacity, so long as you're not abusing the knives in muddy/wet conditions. It's all I've ever used in mine (20+ years). No issues there. So far as lubes go, most anything can work well enough, IF the knife is kept clean and the oil applied sparingly. Problems only arise if there's too much oil, which will attract dirt and gum up the joints.

Most any metal polish will do fine for polishing the nickel/brass handles. Flitz and Simichrome especially so; they also work well for polishing the steel blades, AND as stropping compounds.

The mineral oil most-often sold as a laxative ('USP' grade) is very popular as a food-safe lube/protectant for knives.

The knife with the grinder damage to the blades can likely still be sharpened up by whatever method you choose (avoid the grinder though). Might take some time, but it's well-spent if done carefully. If the steel hasn't been dis-colored by overheating on the grinder, chances are the heat-treat wasn't adversely affected.

You have a nice collection there. That 4-blade Shapleigh is intriguing, in particular (maybe a punch stockman/whittler; looks like the clip blade might've been re-ground to a spear?). You might post some pics in the Traditional forum also, to get some input as to age & other history on these.
 
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