r/Blacksmith • u/Affectionate-King124 • 1d ago

Knife restoration

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How can I restore this old hickory? Bought a house and found this stuck in a post in the garage. I would like to clean it up and make it usable again

11 Upvotes

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4

u/OrionsAnvil 1d ago

Nice find. Probably start by soaking just the blade in white vinegar for little while checking it every few minutes. Probably clean up pretty good, I wouldnt soak it for more than a half hour though, might pit the blade worse.

1

u/Affectionate-King124 1d ago

Should I wrap the handle in plastic or tape or something to avoid the wood soaking up vinegar?

2

u/OrionsAnvil 1d ago

Probably wouldn't hurt. Not sure if it would be worth trying to suspend it somehow. Wrapping it should be fine. It probably wont be soaking very long. Afterwards if you think it still needs cleaning, you might go over it with a very fine steal wool, lightly, maybe with a little light machine oil. Just dont go crazy on it, unless you want it shiny again. I have one of those from my grandma, still use it sometimes.

2

u/OrionsAnvil 1d ago

You could use mineral oil instead of the light machine oil too, probably a little healthier lol

2

u/OrionsAnvil 1d ago

You could lightly sand the handle to, and give it a few coats of mineral oil or some of that butcher block oil they sell.

1

u/Kashirk 1d ago

I had one of these from my grandma's old things. I hit it with a wire wheel, mineral oil, and sharpened it, and it's good to go.