Rust in the stamp

I finally got a vintage hand-me-down -- my uncle's (by marriage) grandfather's straight. It's a Maleham and Yeoman's and was covered in rust and a little pittng. Managed to clean it up pretty well with wet & dry, and there's hardly any hone wear. However, the rust got into the stamp on the tang and I just can't get it out by hand. Any tips for getting the rust out without the use of a dremel?

Also, any further info (dates etc.) on Maleham and Yeoman's would be gratefully received. It looks like Ilija got a hold of one a couple of years ago, but very little info in general. I'm particularly interested in the scales material. Smells like leather, but looks like some sort of compressed material. :confused:

Cheers
M.

I would suggest some 000 steel wool with a lubricant like thin oil of WD 40.

Nice, especially with the history! Getting it out will be fiddly. How would boot polish over it do? It would seal it till you can come up with a better solution. I know it's not ideal long term.

What does compressed horn smell like? Maybe it is just compressed leather?

Thanks guys. Have tried some steel wool but not very effective. I have brass brush somewhere so that might be worth a go.

ben -- it's definitely not horn. It's like some sort of material which has fibre in it, but it smells a little like leather. It's not hard -- you can see where the edge of the scales are flaking a little, but otherwise it's in absolute tiptop shape. Whatever it is, it lasts!

Two ways that I use that work pretty well, the brass brush is my first method of attack and if that doesn't work I use a dental pick....

Here ius what I have! Hope this helps

I think the scales ARE leather. They look the same as the other leather scales I've seen. I don't particularly like them– they can start to look wrinkled a little, but they do exist.

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Originally Posted by JMS

Here ius what I have! Hope this helps

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Mark, thanks. That's exactly it. Those markings are identical so perhaps we can date this at 1850? (Although I have to say I thought it was much more recent from its condition, was expecting 1900-1930 range.)

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Originally Posted by Philadelph

I think the scales ARE leather. They look the same as the other leather scales I've seen. I don't particularly like them– they can start to look wrinkled a little, but they do exist.

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They certainly smell of leather, but they must have gone through some sort of treatment and hardening because they're not flexible and there's almost zero degradation. Probably a very cheap material with which to make scales in the day.

Hi Mark,

I think that the scales are leather which has undergone a process called "Cuir Bouilli" or something very similar. Basically, leaher is soaked, macerated, formed into sheets or moulds, then baked, waxed and hammered.

Regards,
Neil.