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Help to protect and remove some rusting from a few CASE CLASSICS i have.

Hi, I collect a number of eras of Case knives. I have about 30 Case classics and a few of them have begun rusting. I keep them in a humidity controlled chest and they are carefully coated with RENNAISANCE wax when I put them up.

I would like to remove the rust and do my best to preserve and protect them.

Any suggestions?

Thanks so much in advance for your time and help.

Alec

2 members like this

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Mike Latham on January 30, 2010 at 14:49

Do you have pictures of them? Are they all natural handles (bone, stag, pearl, etc.)?

Mike Latham
CollectorKnives.Net

Permalink Reply by Roger Cunningham on January 30, 2010 at 15:42

If they are celluloid and they are rusting,there`s not much you can do.They are gassing out they they won`t stop.Seperate them from the others.It was my experience that the candy stripe,abalone swirl,and waterfall were the worst.If they are natural handles,it may be possible with semichrome and elbow grease to clean them if it is just a couple of specks of tarnish.If you have spiders they will need to be cleaned by someone who knows what they are doing.They will take the steel down below the rust and remove it.Rust is decomposing steel.And to stop it,it needs to be removed,it will only get worse.I`ve had spiders removed on some classic congresses and you couldn`t tell where the rust was,and they didn`t rust anymore.The classics take work to keep mint.I had a couple hundred at one time,and checked them often.

Permalink Reply by AlecsKnives on January 30, 2010 at 20:14

Hi Mike,
Thanks for taking the time to write. I do not have pics of them. If I get time I will take some.
Any suggestions?
Alec

Permalink Reply by AlecsKnives on January 30, 2010 at 20:16

Hi,
Thanks for writing. The blades have an even coating of thin rust.
I will look, but I do think they are celluloid.
At least some of them.
It will be a few days before I can get time t work on em, but I will write then.
Do you know any pros that do reconditioning?
Thanks for your help.
Alec

Permalink Reply by Roger Cunningham on January 31, 2010 at 17:58

Seperate the celluloids away from the others,if they are gassing it could ruin them also.If they are gassing it may not do any good to clean them.

Permalink Reply by AlecsKnives on January 31, 2010 at 18:56

Hi Roger,
How do you know if celluloid is gassing?
Would putting them in a vacuum do anything?
Do I just let them rot?
I hate it cause they are nice knives I think one is even a "000" and one is a prototype.
THanks for takin the time to write me.
ALec

Permalink Reply by Roger Cunningham on February 1, 2010 at 13:01

If the handle material has shrunk or pulled away from the bolsters is a sign,also if the bolsters and/or sheild are badly tarnished.Celluloid is a fammable substance made from cellulose nitrate and camphor.It`s a relative of dynamite.It`s recommended to store celluloids seperately in a cool,dry area with knives opened up. Some classic plasics are other than celluloid.
Classics are well known for lots of protos.knives marked,0,00,000,0000.In alot of cases it means little.

Permalink Reply by Frank Plant on February 24, 2010 at 1:00

Soaking rusted blades in oil for a few days will remove most rust. I'm soaking about 20 rusted knives in diesel fuel...They were in a large collection, and the celluloid handles on some of the knives have completely disintegrated. Most of these knives will wind up in the trash.
frankp

Permalink Reply by Dustin Robinson on October 29, 2010 at 5:57

If you buy a new Case with celluloid handles, the paper work in the box tells you to store celluloid knives seperately. If you are ever on YouTube check out chopperguy801, he has a video talking about the breaking down of celluloid handles. Hope your able to save your classics!

AlecsKnives said:

Hi Roger,
How do you know if celluloid is gassing?
Would putting them in a vacuum do anything?
Do I just let them rot?
I hate it cause they are nice knives I think one is even a "000" and one is a prototype.
THanks for takin the time to write me.
ALec

Permalink Reply by tom white on November 10, 2011 at 16:27

if any of them have celluliod handles,puy the away from other knives,try a number 2 pencil then oil down..

Permalink Reply by Jim Lucier on November 26, 2011 at 21:52

Back to the original question. I have had good results with paint remover disolving rust. Wear rubber gloves and gently wipe the paint remover over the rusted surface. rinse quickly with plenty of water then follow up with a few coats of Renaissance wax. A light lithium grease instead of wax works as a quick protection. The idea is to keep the surface isolated from the oxygen component of air that promoted the formation of iron oxide (rust) after cleaning the surface.

Jim Lucier

Permalink Reply by Kim R on December 15, 2012 at 6:40

This reply maybe too late for the OP but it may help others. I just finished up with about 50 celluloids in varying condition. Some were sent to a professional cleaner but I was severely disappointed with the results so a co-worker and I worked on the others. My end product was much better.

To remove most of the rust, we used a soft toothbrush. Then very, very gently, we took a tad of Bar Keeper's Friend and our fingers to remove the finer stuff. We used Mother's polish to get rid of the rest. After that, it was Simichrome polish for a nice bright finish. 3 in 1 oil was recommended to keep the blades from further damage.

Hope this helps someone.