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First restore

The*Cincinnati*Kid

Well-Known Member
Gentlemen, its been a while since I've posted, but I finally got around to getting my first restore under way on a ebay special I got dirt cheap a while back. The blade is a R. Sutcliffe Sheffield wedge, that had a decent amount of active rust and deep pitting on the blade, and a nice amount of patina on the rest. The scales looked like they were used for BB gun target practice, so I'm building new ones out of a dark exotic wood, can't remember the name. I'm now wishing I would have taken before pics! I like the look of patina so I decided to tape up the tang to preserve it. I then went through progression or grits 60, 80, 100, 220, 400, 600, 800, & I'm planing on taking it up to 2,000 or as far as I think it needs to go. I also left patina on the spine and the wedge end. I personaly like the results I have ended up with( left some slight pitting on the blade to tie it in with the tang) but to each his own. I know I havn't seen it before thats for sure. I got the scales grinded down to 1/8" planks and ground them into rough shape. Now I just need to drill the pin holes, separate them & flip them, re-tape them, and give them a rounded finish sanding & some coats of CA glue.Pretty proud of my first attempt.:blush: Oh, the scales are inside out, the grain pattern looks ten times better on the sides that will be facing outward (taped together in the pic)on the finished product!
I have a question though, should my scales be very very close to their finished shape before I do a CA/Gorilla glue finish? Also do I add the glue like one would stain a similarly sized peice of wood? ( rub in with rag, let dry, sand, repeat several times) Do I sand the last coat/finish?
Thanks in advance for any sugestions.
sutcl.jpg

sutclif.jpg

sutcliffe.jpg

sutclife.jpg

sutcli.jpg


Regards
Louis.
 
Looks like you are doing great, I personally would further work on the blade to remove most of the marks, and buff it to a light sheen, but we all like what we like, nothing wrong with that :thumbup:

The scales need to be totally finished before you apply the CA coating, there is a very useful article by our own Ray here:
http://www.coticule.be/rescaling.html

Best wishes and have a great time
Ralfson (Dr)
 
I like the idea of patina as aesthetic feature. You have picked the right wood to go with that look, in my opinion.
I would keep the finish on the satin side, but that's me.

:thumbup:
Bart.
 
Nice start! You may want to make a sleeve in the pivot hole of the blade. That will allow better control of the opening and closing of the blade.
I have found that soaking the blade in a solution of 1Gallon/3.7L cider vinegar and ¼cup/200cc of plain salt will remove the worst of the surface rust. It also gets down into the pits and removes the remaining promoters of future rust. Leave in the solution for about two hours and wire brush it with a small brass brush and a detergent. Repeat as necessary.

That solution does not remove any of the nice age darkening nor add to it.
Respectfully
~Richard
 
Louis, looks very interesting! Very best with the project.


Toff said:
... soaking the blade in a solution of 1Gallon/3.7L cider vinegar and ...

Richard, it seems it is the acid in the cider that does the work - would regular vinegar at some (?) dilution + salt work, do you know?
 
Thank you for the suggestions Richard. Well I'm not done yet but I finished sanding them, put together with some micro fasteners and took some pics. I still need to CA them & finish the wedge that I'm making out of deer hoof/paw, I think it will match up nice. Does anyone know if there is a way to give the decorative washers I have a patina look to them, to tie them in more?

Bart, Sorry for making this thread pic heavy,:blush:

sut7.jpg

sut1.jpg

sut2.jpg

sut3.jpg

sut4.jpg

sut5.jpg


Regards
Louis.
 
I made the whole pictures show up hope you don't mind.
nice scales by the way, I'm affraid they look a lot better than the ones I'm working on :blush:

kind regards
Stijn
 
The*Cincinnati*Kid said:
Thank you for doing that Stijn, I couldn't figure it out, still can't.:confused:


Louis.
it's actually quit simple
normally you do it like this:
Code:
[img]"url of the picture"[/img]
when a picture is to wide you do it like this:
Code:
[img=850]"url of the picture"[/img]

kind regards
Stijn
 
#1 Louis you have done a nice job. congratulations.:thumbup:

vgeorge said:
Louis, looks very interesting! Very best with the project.
Toff said:
... soaking the blade in a solution of 1Gallon/3.7L cider vinegar and ...
Richard, it seems it is the acid in the cider that does the work - would regular vinegar at some (?) dilution + salt work, do you know?

Hello George,
I tend to think that there are two acids produced..I may be very wrong.
Acetic acid from the vinegar and Hydrochloric from the salt changing in the solution.
That is just a guess and I would suggest trying different vinegars and the same dilution, 1/4 cup to 1 gallon..
I do like the easy action of the solution. I have gone as long as overnight with no bad effects, but I normally check, wash and rinse the blade every two hours.
Respectfully
~Richard
 
Louis, I do like the scales!
A possible method to patinate the pin washers. I would suggest experimenting on some that are not on the scales.
A short term Method of patinating the washers would be to give them a wash/paint, from the craft store, of a dark color of the metal you would wish. Another method to try would be to wire brush the original surface treatment from the beads and then let them age. I would guess that those washers are a form of pewter or zinc; diecast, which has been electroplated.
Respectfully
~Richard
 
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