I bought a WB of da Bay. I was disappointed when it arrived. The blade was loose around the pin. I had the idea I would fix it up. I found a post saying a pop rivet would fill the pivot hole. It does so nicely.
The scales were warped so I poured hot water to soften them up. That's where things went awry. They turned chalky and smelled like pine tar. I thought I'd clamp them up and see if I could polish them later.
They straightened some. The wedge it too thin, imo, for the thick blade. I ordered a blond horn scales and some Dovo pins today. I thought I'd give pinning a go while I waited. I'm torn now. It it had arrived like this, I'd have sharpened it up and had a shave.
A bit of Maas and some mineral oil. Most of the chalky residue came off.
Now I'm wondering if a soak in mineral oil would allow it to be straightened.
Another question? Should I rescale.