After seeing them first hand, they'll never look 'nice' again. They are quite translucent and the worm holes and damage are pretty extensive.

Personally, I'd either just oil soak them and sand them smooth and accept the cosmetic damage as the 'vintage' look. If you want it to look it's best, it's time to think about rescaling it. You could even make duplicates of the ones that are already on it to maintain the original look.

And personally, that blade would look awesome mirrored up.

Just my .02.

Oh yeah, I was at an antique store today in Moncton and found a Norton combination stone and a smooth natural for $15.

Of course, pics to follow. I'm curious about this natural!!! The Norton is a lower grit (400/1k) that I will be using for my hunting knives so that I can finally stop destroying my Naniwas.