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#1 |
Member
Join Date: Apr 2015
Posts: 143
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Hi,
had some luck today and bought this VOC hanger with the A for Amsterdam. Unfortunately it had a rough life. I think that the grip is not original. Should I try to clean it (and take the risk that it won't get better and maybe even worse) or leave it as it is? Thanks |
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#2 |
Arms Historian
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: Route 66
Posts: 9,885
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My personal opinion, as everyone here knows, is do not overclean, simply stabilize with something light like WD40 which will clean and show the wonderful patina.
As a historian, this is well earned over time and I feel it should remain. a weapon garishly cleaned into shiny awfulness to me is bad. The grip is indeed not very good, but it is something, otherwise this would simply be a 'relic'. As many of these as were in service, its amazing how hard they are to find. Always tried to find anything with VOC markings but never did. These blades were produced in either Solingen or German shops in Netherlands, I forget the names of the cities. They were not issued, as VOC was private company so were sold to the individuals, as I have understood. |
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#3 |
Vikingsword Staff
Join Date: Nov 2004
Posts: 6,286
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The stampings seem so crisp compared to the surface condition...
Agree w/Jim, leave it as it is. |
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#4 |
Member
Join Date: Mar 2009
Posts: 1,057
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I would only treat it with crystalline wax, if you remove the patina it doesn't get any better. I would recommend to remove the wooden grip, this is a recent addition of the wrong model, it looks weird.
it should have a thin spiral grip on it. fe see attached example of a 1790 VOC Rotterdam cutlass and for others please see the thread: http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showthread.php?t=22313 best, Last edited by cornelistromp; 15th November 2021 at 08:59 AM. |
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#5 |
Member
Join Date: Apr 2015
Posts: 143
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Thank you all for the advice! I'll just leave it as it is. I will also leave the grip alone for now.
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#6 |
Member
Join Date: Apr 2005
Posts: 3,252
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I'm with Rick - compared to the corroded surfaces, the stamping seems exceptionally crisp. This may suggest a later (though also apparently not recent) addition.
If it's done later, it's a pretty good attempt. It does look more like a VOO (rather than VOC) though! Since these stamps were never standardized, maybe the C was just missing from the tool set and they had to use the O twice... Regards, Kai |
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