Sword conservation

A. G. Maisey · 6th December 2016, 02:16 AM

On three occasions I have attempted to remove heavy corrosion from ferric material.

The first was some sort of fitting from an 19th century sailing ship. I wanted it back to clean iron to use as a part of the material for a knife blade --- forge weld with 01 and maybe a little bit of mild steel. I started with something that looked like half a loaf of bread, I finished with something that looked like a knitting needle.

The second and third tries were with ancient Javanese tools that had been found in a rice field. Again I lost about 95% of the object and what I had left after cleaning had completely lost its original form.

If this sword belonged to me I think I'd be taking the professionals' advice and leaving as is.

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6th December 2016, 02:16 AM	#2
A. G. Maisey Member Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 7,082	On three occasions I have attempted to remove heavy corrosion from ferric material. The first was some sort of fitting from an 19th century sailing ship. I wanted it back to clean iron to use as a part of the material for a knife blade --- forge weld with 01 and maybe a little bit of mild steel. I started with something that looked like half a loaf of bread, I finished with something that looked like a knitting needle. The second and third tries were with ancient Javanese tools that had been found in a rice field. Again I lost about 95% of the object and what I had left after cleaning had completely lost its original form. If this sword belonged to me I think I'd be taking the professionals' advice and leaving as is.