Taking care of your SS dagger?

[Dark Knight]

Hi all!

As you might have noticed I am a newbie to the SS dagger business and to this excellent forum. I just recently bought my first SS dagger and after having fondled it a little I began to think about how to take care of my new "baby" so my handling of it won't deteriorate it's condition.

I read in one post that touching the blade with your fingers is a big no-no, is that they way most of you see it? Should one wear thin gloves when dealing with it perhaps?

Would you treat the blade with some kind of oil or similair product?

Storage, temperature, humidity etc?

I mean, we are really dealing with one of a kind historical artifact here, you wouldn't want to mess it up due to poor knowledge…

Thanks and sorry for my many newbie questions!

Martin

[Rakkasan187]

Martin,

Some great questions and congratulations on the purchase of your SS dagger. There will be much advise and suggestion given to you from the field of individuals but I will tell you this..

I am a museum curator at a US Army Museum. We have been educated on the dangers of mishandling artifacts and the long term affects of that mishandling so I will suggest to you that although you may enjoy your new found treasure.. do it with care and caution.

First: I always wear cotton gloves (museum thing) or nitrile gloves to protect the blade and other metal parts. Your body has oils and dirt and these can transfer to the blades and other metal parts without you even noticing. Even after careful washing of your hands the soaps and detergents have chemicals in them, even hand moisturizers and creams have oils,, so always wear gloves.. (I do this even with me private collection of daggers...

Second: Some will tell you otherwise but keep the dagger out of the scabbard and stored. The scabbard and blade are mostly tight fitting and in many cases there is lubricant in the scabbard to ease in removal and placing back into the scabbard. This is also oil based and can cause damage to the blades after long term storage.. Look at some of the posts and you will see some of the blade conditions with pitting and other degradation...

Third: Temperature and humidity and dry climates and wet climates are something we all have to deal with, based on where you live you may want to invest in dehumidifiers to take moisture out of the air or a humidified t o place moisture into it.. It all depends on where you live, but given those suggestions you will also want to periodically inspect your items to see if there is any rust or zinc pest or anything developing on your artifacts. There are some great topics on this throughout the forums,, you just have to search them out...

There are storage bags for daggers made from fine cotton cloth and you can store your daggers in these bags specifically designed to house your blades.. You will have to see what reputable dealers have them and also you can get some advice from others here..

Last I will say, treat these artifacts with great interest and respect but also enjoy them.. If mishandled and mistreated then you may have issues but if you understand how to properly handle the artifacts and how to store them, they will be around long after you and I are gone and they will continue to tell their stories..

I am actually meeting this week with the US Army's chief Conservator of Artifacts and she is a remarkable woman with a wealth of knowledge and expertise and I will gain much knowledge and information from her that I will pass on to all of you...

Smitty

[maximus71]

Smitty has my dream job lol

[Robin Lumsden]

Good expert advice from Smitty !

On a personal level, all I can say is that my SS daggers and swords were dismantled, given a clean with proprietary household wood/metal polish and a toothbrush, given a light wax with car polish, buffed up with a soft cloth and then hung on a wall in the Scottish climate over 30 years ago.

They're as good now as they were then.

Clean them up to get the dirt off and then leave them forever …………… that's my experience. They'll grow their own rich patina over time.

These things were made to take a little punishment, so I've never worn kid gloves ………….

[Dark Knight]

Thank you so much Smitty for your professional and well motivated advice! I will certainly get a pair of fine cotton gloves for the purpose.

It also makes sense to store the dagger outside it's scabbard on the reasons you put forward, although isn't the scabbard also protecting the blade from oxidizing when coming in contact with the outside air?

Since I already fingered my blade, what would be the best way of cleaning it and get rid of my fatty finger prints, with some alcohol or common detergent?

Thanks all, I climbed a couple of more steps on the learning curve (does it have steps by the way?)!

[Dark Knight]

Wow, that's a nice collection you've got there! A M36 Type I a can see, but what is it in the other categorizing system, A-C?

The M33, I would guess it is an RZM with plated crossguards and scabbard fittning, or have you just polished the crossguards of an mm dagger to perfection?

I didn't know the SS also made candle holders? Not really in line with the organisation' sinister profile...

[Larry C]

I didn't know the SS also made candle holders? Not really in line with the organisation' sinister profile...

The Juleuchter was in line with such a sinister organization...not only was the SS a political organization to protect Hitler and State..but they were a Cult. See this link > Julleuchter - Wikipedia

[Dark Knight]

Wow, that's a nice collection you've got there! A M36 Type I a can see, but what is it in the other categorizing system, A-C?

The M33, I would guess it is an RZM with plated crossguards and scabbard fittning, or have you just polished the crossguards of an mm dagger to perfection?

I didn't know the SS also made candle holders? Not really in line with the organisation' sinister profile...

Ok, after studying the A-C system I guess it's a C? Is it correct that Type I always equals C and Type II could be either of A, B1 or B2?

[Dark Knight]

I had no idea that the Julleuchter had a Swedish origin. I should have known...

[JRMeda]

A,B,C's