Thread: Two more ready to use

I just got these two finished, adding to my little but growing collection, I experimented with various aspects of these, the one on the right was mirror finished (or as near as was good enough for me) but I just dont like buffed finishes and I didnt think it suited this old blade so I took it back to flat grey with ferric chloride, I had to take the etching out in order to remove some deep scratches in the blade sadly.

The other just needed a quick cleanup and is rescaled in stag antler dyed with potassium permanganate, after spending a good while cutting the scales I put it together and found the lead spacer Id used was too heavy and I ruined the finish on the wedge end so it came apart again and I made a new wedge out of leather, better now! One blade left to do.

Before



and after

Nice work Jason01. I like the patina on the blades & the dyed stag.

Leather wedges are a novel idea. Do you reinforce the leather at all ? Older Japanese swords often had lacquered leather tsuba
(swordguards)

Originally Posted by onimaru55

Nice work Jason01. I like the patina on the blades & the dyed stag.

Leather wedges are a novel idea. Do you reinforce the leather at all ? Older Japanese swords often had lacquered leather tsuba
(swordguards)

Thanks mate, Im glad somebody likes them . I needed a light wedge to match the light weight blade on the antler scaled razor, I had some leather handy and its easy to work, I use vegetable tanned leather which is infinately preferable to chrome tanned, I made sure the wedge was riveted nice and tight then I dipped it in linseed oil which will tend to swell the leather and harden it over time, the sanded edge of the leather will buff up with bees wax like a piece of wood. Same principle as a stacked leather knife handle, no real need to harden it because its under compression. It will also take a cyanocrylate finish if desired instead of oil and wax but Ive found cyanocrylate finishes tend to be quite fragile and I prefer something that wears more naturally.

Very informative. Thanx.
How soon does the leather expand & do you have to re-trim it ?

Originally Posted by onimaru55

Very informative. Thanx.
How soon does the leather expand & do you have to re-trim it ?

Oz, you can soak the leather for a few minutes or a few hours in the oil, the linseed oil will dry very slowly but you dont have to wait to finish it and it doesnt stay wet to the touch, I just buffed the edge after it had had a quick soak. I had all the materials to hand and it was simple to do, so I thought Id give it a try

Wow I love the quality of your craftmansip .Looking at the way those blades where before you restored them is giving me an itch to try my own hand at restoration. Paul