Cleaning a dagger blade that has smudge,info needed

**Toecutter** · 10-19-2017, 03:09 AM

I see dealers listing daggers saying," blade has some smudge that may clean up".They know it wont,tried it before and the blade always looked worse than when I started.Once its there its there, from improper handling,storage whatever.I will never buy a dagger again that has "smudge",a better name for it is plating loss and rust ! Maybe if its a himmler ss,might be able to live with a little smudge.Anyone had any luck cleaning these dagger blades?Tried Fitz,semi chrome,and mothers on an army and gave up.Live and learn.

**Espenlaub Militaria** · 10-19-2017 03:09 AM

We also buy and trade your items and full collections!

**MAP** · 10-19-2017, 03:17 AM

I've never tried but I'm having Larry come up next month to clean all my blades (he doesn't know it yet however...he thinks he coming over to hang out)

But seriously (actually I was serious..LoL) Larry probably is the best to answer.

**rbminis** · 10-19-2017, 04:57 AM

The only way to get finger print stains, (smudges, let's call them what they are), off of a blade is to regrind it.
They can be reduced through some proper and gentle polishing, but, IMO, they will never be gone.
Ralph.

**Larry C** · 10-19-2017, 10:18 AM

Finger prints leave salt on the blade and left alone over time ..becomes ingrained into the blade...the damage is done and this type of tattoo can never be removed no matter what you try....grinding the blade as Ralph says is a quick fix..but with that..history is ruined and the blade corrupted. The type collector will see this right away ..and will not touch it.

I dagger blade with a smudge which some daggers do have stands a better chance in the market place than a total modern regrind. Simichrome is your last stop ...better to leave it alone from this point forward.

Periodic Edged Weapon Maintenance

Regards Larry

**FPerseghetti** · 10-19-2017, 11:01 AM

One noob question ... Does these smudge tend to spread through out the blade with the time ? Like rust ?

I don't have any dagger but it's nice to get to know these stuff before buying one ...

Thanks !

**rbminis** · 10-19-2017, 12:35 PM

by FPerseghetti

One noob question ... Does these smudge tend to spread through out the blade with the time ? Like rust ?

I don't have any dagger but it's nice to get to know these stuff before buying one ...

Thanks !

Don't be confused, these smudges are rust, at it's earliest stage. It will continue to spread if there is no preventative action taken.
Ralph.

**Gastvrijheid** · 10-19-2017, 02:54 PM

I know this will not help on polished blades, but a good cosmetic for a smudge on Damascus is application over the area with softest grade lead pencil, say a 4b. Does no harm as its lead, and has worked well for me.

**Toecutter** · 10-20-2017, 12:31 AM

Thanks guys for the info!

**gerrit** · 10-20-2017, 07:37 AM

by Gastvrijheid

I know this will not help on polished blades, but a good cosmetic for a smudge on Damascus is application over the area with softest grade lead pencil, say a 4b. Does no harm as its lead, and has worked well for me.

Thanky you, that's a nice suggestion!
Although to be honest very less will have a Damascus blade to try..

On polished blades WD40 or balistol can help.
I spray the blade and wait till the end of the day, then take a toothbrush ( which i cut of half of the brush, so it get realy stiff) and brush it along with the crossgrain, so not along the blade but cross on the blade, after doing the entire blade spray it again with WD40.
Do that for 3 to 5 weeks, every day and i can assure you the blade will be improved without harming it.

Ger

**Larry C** · 10-20-2017, 10:23 AM

I agree with Ger and Gast ...as " if caught in time "....the process is reversible.

Yet what lies beneath these blades dormant for years until the wrong exposure will draw out any inpurities that happened during the blade forge.
as what happened to my WKC blade in the photo below, which was a Rohm blade at one time, sent to WKC for regrinding and then their logo applied on it.

those are pock mark holes seen in the blaade and if you look close enough ..trails are seen where some of the cancer ate into the blade...a combination of rust and impurities in the steel.

Cleaning a dagger blade that has smudge,info needed

What happened to this blade happened in 1 months time..I have a thread seen here > and was quite a beauty the very same dagger featured with cancer in the Periodic Edged Weapons Maintenance thread.
Sometimes no matter what we do..we can not control what has happened during the forge process.

Early SA WKC Dienstdolch

Not all blades are fixable....no matter what we use ..and these home remedies are helpful also for those blades that the damage isnt too deep.

Regards Larry