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Hi all just a Newbie here So Hope this is the right spot for this question.

I have several old USA Schrades that have been sitting in their boxes in a draw for sometime now (Years) The Carbon steel has had a light coating of oil all this time - lanolin I think - But have gained that typical Carbon Steel patina plus the bolsters have lost their luster.

I would like to tidy them up but I don't want to impact on any collectors value they could have, which is probably not a lot anyway. I am thinking a light clean and hand buffing the bolsters with some metal polish. Any suggestions on the right polish and/or cleaners to use and the right way to go about it would be appreciated. I don't want to use anything too harsh and in particular don't want to use anything or technique that will mar the surfaces especially the Blades and the Derin (?) scales. Thanks Derek

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I wouldn't clean em up just yet.

Wait untill some Schrade collectors chime in. But polishing em up CAN hurt collectors value. And since Schrade is pretty much defunct in the US (not talking about the Chinese production stuff) the value of those might be pretty good.

Thanks Alexander, and the reason for the question - because given two choices I'll probably/always pick the wrong one - I don't want to blunder in and stuff things up!

Alexander Noot said:

I wouldn't clean em up just yet.

Wait untill some Schrade collectors chime in. But polishing em up CAN hurt collectors value. And since Schrade is pretty much defunct in the US (not talking about the Chinese production stuff) the value of those might be pretty good.

http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2770426659?profile=original

Derek, I won't say whether you should or should not- Personally, I do, but I am usually right about as often as a stopped clock. LOL- I use Flitz  polish on all my knives. Safe, non-abrasive, and easy to use- Cleans and protects- Wipe on, wipe off, then buff with a dry cloth.Works on carbon and stainless steel, brass, copper, and nickel silver- I even use it on my handles. I've used it on Delrin,celluloid,bone,wood,stone and pearl with no problems. Might want to have a soft toothbrush handy it it is a textured surface, just to clean out any polish in a crevice-Comes in a liquid or a paste tube- I've used both- You can find it at Ace Hardware or online at Flitz or Amazon- Most any knife makers supply also carry it- Some people also like Simichrome polish for their knives, but I have not used the product myself.--- BTW, Flitz is not expensive, and a little goes a long way---

 

What I do for mine Schrades is dependent upon the severity of tarnish. If I can hand polish the bolsters to a mirror finish, I do. If not, I carefully use a buffing wheel using the red Jewelers rouge after taping off the handles. Blade patina is nice for a user knife, but for "just for show" blades I do a light Hand rubbed cleaning with Flitz metal polish and a light oil afterwards. Never machine buff the blades.


Thanks John - I have heard of Flitz but not sure if I can get it here in Australia - If I can't there will be something similar.
John McCain said:

Derek, I won't say whether you should or should not- Personally, I do, but I am usually right about as often as a stopped clock. LOL- I use Flitz  polish on all my knives. Safe, non-abrasive, and easy to use- Cleans and protects- Wipe on, wipe off, then buff with a dry cloth.Works on carbon and stainless steel, brass, copper, and nickel silver- I even use it on my handles. I've used it on Delrin,celluloid,bone,wood,stone and pearl with no problems. Might want to have a soft toothbrush handy it it is a textured surface, just to clean out any polish in a crevice-Comes in a liquid or a paste tube- I've used both- You can find it at Ace Hardware or online at Flitz or Amazon- Most any knife makers supply also carry it- Some people also like Simichrome polish for their knives, but I have not used the product myself.--- BTW, Flitz is not expensive, and a little goes a long way---

 

Thanks Brad - looks like this "Flitz" is the go-to all purpose Cleaner

Brad T. said:

What I do for mine Schrades is dependent upon the severity of tarnish. If I can hand polish the bolsters to a mirror finish, I do. If not, I carefully use a buffing wheel using the red Jewelers rouge after taping off the handles. Blade patina is nice for a user knife, but for "just for show" blades I do a light Hand rubbed cleaning with Flitz metal polish and a light oil afterwards. Never machine buff the blades.

Donnie and I use a similar product Derek

Thanks Jan, Next time I am in town (we have a small hobby farm 20 miles from town) I will have a search around the local stores for this Simichrome and/or Flitz. An on line search has indicated it is available in Australia But none of the big Retail Chain Stores, of which we have several in town, came up in the search. I have a couple of other similar (?) polishes here on hand. So I might 1. Read the labels carefully - something Blokes don't normally do .... Then 2. Experiment on a couple of my users before I do anything with the others. Thanks everyone for your input....Cheers Derek

Jan Carter said:

Donnie and I use a similar product Derek

Let us know what you find or if any of the ones you have are virtually the same?

Derek, I just had a thought-- I actually still have these once or twice a year !! LOL- You might try sending a friend request to my IKC friend, Jason Oncedisturbed Riley, He is an active member living in Perth, Aus. He would probably know what polishes are available in Australia and where they can be purchased. He might also know of some Australian products we are not aware of here in the USA~~~

Semichrome is good stuff!

Derek Wells said:

Thanks Jan, Next time I am in town (we have a small hobby farm 20 miles from town) I will have a search around the local stores for this Simichrome and/or Flitz. An on line search has indicated it is available in Australia But none of the big Retail Chain Stores, of which we have several in town, came up in the search. I have a couple of other similar (?) polishes here on hand. So I might 1. Read the labels carefully - something Blokes don't normally do .... Then 2. Experiment on a couple of my users before I do anything with the others. Thanks everyone for your input....Cheers Derek

Jan Carter said:

Donnie and I use a similar product Derek

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