Reconditioning of older knives
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If you have older knives and want them to look and act like new, then you have come to the right place. Sometimes, you will know from using them if they have good steel. This usually will give you the impetus to want the knife reconditioned.
The process to have your knife (knives) reconditioned begins by contacting me. Ideally, you will have some photos taken of the knives flat on and on edge, showing me the top and bottom view of the handles. One can also xerox copy them or scan them. I’ll accept sharpened jpegs or gifs, ideally shrunk/optomized down to a size that makes sense when e-mailed.
Some knives do not have a full tang and can sometimes present a problem in reconstruction, and should generally be avoided when purchasing. Any knives sent must be insured for replacement value with the shipper. I can copy almost any knife, also. Any and all rust can be removed by me. The question is if there will be enough steel left to work with after the rust is ground off.
This mainly comes into play when handle wood is removed. My object to to remove all the rust, before gluing on a new handle. This is sometimes a balancing act - trying to remove the rust while trying to leave as much of the original steel as possible. A passive way that does not remove a lot of stock is to use something like Kroil, Liquid Wrench and/or Wintergreen oil. If it is possible to put on a bolster, I will, otherwise I will just use a wood handle.
Bolsters really protect the end grain from moisture, if installed properly. Prices for reconditioning will vary to the point that I will usually (but not always) have to have the pieces in front of me to give an estimate and then send an invoice. You get back a wonderful knife that has nostalgic value for you, ready for years and years of use.
