cleaning up a wootz tulwar
 

Dear VIking sword forum,

I recently purchased a tulwar for £43, once i had it in my hands i noticed a pattern throughout the length of the blade, crystaline wootz?
i am currently cleaning it up with wd40 and fine wire wool...

some bits are very stubborn and will not come off the blade, can some suggest what else I can use to clean the blade up , and if i do use various grits of wet
and dry sandpaper how can I etch the pattern back?
here are some images of the tulwar attached

I used wd40 and fine wire wool to clean the blade, this is the result, what does everyone think?

Welcome to the forum.
What you could try is, to take some kitched issue spray it with WD40 and wrap it around the blade, then add some plastic foil, and leave it foe a day or two.
Next time you photograph, please use a neutral background.
Good luck.

Hi
Welcome to the forum
I find diesel v good at penetrating rust, leave soak for a while and then clean
Here is a thread I posted a while back on etching, if you use the search forum you will find loads more information

http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showth...hlight=Etching

Your sword looks v good and I hope the cleaned sword looks even better
Regards
Ken

More information at the link below:

http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showthread.php?t=21732

Dear all
Thank you for your input.
I have cleaned the tulwar as much as I could have with the use of fine wire wool then 1200_2500 wet and dry paper. Etched using Ferric chloride.
Please tell me what you think of the end result.

I think the result have cocme out fine.
I know the question, when cleaning and etching is an issue the question pops up, should I stop, or should I go further, but only the one who owns the weapons can answer that question.

Thank you for ypur reply sir...I am happy with the results. Though there is some blCk pitting on the bladr I just can't get rid off

Hello,

I believe that in order to get rid of all the pitting you would have to polish off half of the blade. So leave the pitting as it is since is not very detracting and it also serves as an indication to the age of the blade.

You did a good job cleaning and etching the blade. :)

Thank you sir

Dear sir,

What do you mean by plastic foil? I've never heard of this before. Do you mean cling film?

Also I am selling a few swords on the swap forum!

Yes, cling film, but have a look at it from timer to time.
Be caraful how you treat the blade after it is all done. Make sure it is well sealed.