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Post by g2knee on Feb 4, 2013 5:23:36 GMT
Hey, new guy here. I just bought a used tinker longsword off the classified section of this forum. It seems to be a great sword, but it came in a bit rougher shape than I anticipated. I'm hoping to clean it up a bit and make it as close to new again as I can without having to buy new parts or any skill-intensive labor if possible. I'll put the issues below and hopefully you guys can give me a few pointers! 1. The blade and cross guard are just a bit scratched up. I'm thinking I can just sand this out, but what grit sandpaper will I need? Both the blade and the hilt fittings are shiny but short of a mirror finish. I'm sure some of you are familiar with the sword. 2. The scabbard throat scrapes on the flat if the blade on one side when it is drawn and sheathed. I just grind out the offending metal parts of the throat with a dremel? 3. The grip has a slight split on the seam. (2 pics). imgur.com/cJaVtTD.jpgimgur.com/iD2ikA4.jpgI don't know if I'm up for re-wrapping the whole grip because I don't know how and don't have materials. It's not loose or anything, but I don't want it to get damaged more. My first thought is to apply super glue in the split area...do you think it would secure it, or is that a bad idea? 4. The blade rattles around a lot in the scabbard. It's pretty loose in there and I don't know if its even possible to take the scabbard apart. Any suggestions? Thanks guys! I've been a lurker on the forums for a while and I appreciate the knowledge shared here.
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Uhlan
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Post by Uhlan on Feb 4, 2013 11:46:17 GMT
Hi. Welcome to the Forum. Depending on the depth of the scratches you could start with 350 (deep) or 600 ( light) or anything in between. Fold a piece of the paper over a wood block, dimensions like a sanding block. This will follow the lines of the blade better than cork blocks. Those are too soft and dull any crisp lines on the blade. Sand from the guard to the tip so you remove steel evenly. Use some mineral oil if you want, just a touch. Work from say 600 up to 1000 or more depending on the polish you want. Do not be tempted to sand in small patches. This will give you a finish with high and low parts in the blade. You do not want that I am sure. This stuff is all about patience and a lot of work. Belt sanding is an option too, but you need to know how or what. It is a lot faster but needs training. Dremel is oke I think. Try lower speed first and do not slip. Take care no metal scraps gets into the scabbard! Leather: From what I can see in the pictures the leather is just rolled from use. First make sure the woodcore is not cracked. If the wood is intact, just peel the leather back ( carefully ) and glue it in place again with leather glue. I recommend bookbinders glue. It sets in 30 minutes, stays flexible and is water soluble so glue stains are easely removed. Rattle: You could try to shim with mahogany fineer ( very thin ). Start with two strips, one on either side, but first check where the play occures and depending on that get shimming. Have the edges play, use thin pieces of wood to glue on either side. Is it the broad sides of the blades, shim with the fineer. It is thin enough to follow the contours inside the scabbard. Use non acidic woodglue, so there will not be any staines on your freshly polished blade later on. Use little pieces of wood to press the shims and hold them in place while the glue dries. File when you have to, with small and very fine files. I had good results once too with thin strips of uncoloured leather. That worked really well. Coloured leather will leave stains on the blade since the oil on the blade interacts with the colour. Hope you can fix the sword and that the above helps you in any way. Cheers, Ulahn.
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Post by Lobster Hunter on Feb 4, 2013 15:25:57 GMT
The above advice for sanding the blade sounds good. The scabbard core is made of fiberglass so it might be a little tricky to shim using wood. The handle wrap material is also synthetic. Gluing or stitching that stuff will be a temporary fix at best, I believe. You have basically an excellent sword with some rather cheap bits here and there. I suggest getting that thing wrapped with proper leather. Here's chrisperoni's post about customizing: forum.sword-buyers-guide.com/viewtopic.php?f=18&t=14221
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Uhlan
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Post by Uhlan on Feb 4, 2013 18:08:54 GMT
You still could follow my advise. Just use epoxy based glue for the shims and good contact glue for the ,,leather''. But making a good job of the grip, the above link will be worth you awhile for sure. Thank you Lobster Hunter. I forgot about that one. Cheers, Ulahn.
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Post by g2knee on Feb 5, 2013 14:09:02 GMT
This sounds great! Thanks you guys. Just what I needed. The one follow-up question I have is about the shims. First, where do I get something like that? Secondly, how/where do I put them in the scabbard? It is a fiberglass scabbard, with wood for the first 3 or 4 inches. The sword rattles "side-to-side" meaning the blade moves in such a way that the edges bump the inside of the scabbard, probably dulling the blade. Do I just reinforce the wooden part of the scabbard, shimming it so its tighter near the throat? Or will I be trying to get shims all the way down inside? I'm new at all this, but I'm willing to learn. Thanks.
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Uhlan
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Posts: 3,121
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Post by Uhlan on Feb 5, 2013 19:27:51 GMT
Shims you have to cut yourself from some good wood, like Poplar, Beech, Ash, any wood that is easy to work with. Shims are placed at the beginning of the scabbard mouth and need not to be longer than 1" and in this case will look like big splinters. First try to figure out how much play the blade has by holding the scabbard with the blade inside in you left hand at eye level, really close up and than lift the blade a little out of the scabbard and wiggle it a bit, so you see the excess space you have to fill in with your shims. Say you see an open space of 2 mm when you press the blade to one side. This gives two shims of 1mm for either side. You see, the whole trick is to lock in that last 1" of the blade so the rest of the blade, deep inside the scabbard, where you can not reach, will not move. That last 1" of the blade, right under the guard, is not the sharpest part of the blade, so, when you use a wood that is not a semprini to work with, but not to soft either, the shims will function for quite a while. As with all these reparations, however good the repair, the blade will start to rattle again, but it can take years before you have to do it all over again, depending on what you do ofcourse. If you like to draw your sword say 20 times a day, all year round, the shims wont last long, thats obvious. In the context you described I advise a good acid free woodglue you will find in any Home Depot and such. Procedure: Get some small left over pieces of wood somewhere. Have an old chair? Old table leg. Piece of an old cupboard, bed? With a knife, those breakoff blades, how do you call em?, cut, watch fingers!,two small pieces of the right length and somewhat in the shape you need. At this stage the right fit against the scabbard wall, right snug in the corners is what you are after. Get a set of rat tail files, small files used for locksmithing, they come in a small box, flat, round, triangle. it will all be in there and they are not very expensive. File or sand to fit into the corners of the scabbard and make sure they are not too thick, this saves some filework later. Clean the scabbard corners a bit with a Qtip and acetone to remove blade crud and oil. Remove Qtip fluff. With a pencil or Qtip put some glue in there, not to much, be careful. Let it sit for a while, say 10 minutes and than apply glue again. Now put in the shims and press and hold them in place with Qtips with the fluff removed, from shim to shim. Be carefull not to shift the shims, it is a tricky part, so do some dry runs first. Let the scabbard sit for 24 hours. Carefully try to get the blade in. Wont work. Now get filing with the rat tails, use the file with the right profile. Be careful, you have to file away the same amount of wood on either side, so, this is a slow, intense part of the job and you have to try to fit the blade constantly, in out, file, in out, you get the picture, untill it locks in place. Better have a friction fit for a while, cause the wood needs to set, so todays friction fit is tomorrows ,,just right''. Be very careful, slow, give it a rest. It takes time and effort but when done it is a very rewarding experience. Good luck, Ulahn.
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Post by g2knee on Feb 5, 2013 22:43:23 GMT
Ulahn, you're awesome. What was first a borderline disappointing purchase(due to the condition) is now a fun project to look forward to. Thanks a ton!
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Uhlan
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Posts: 3,121
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Post by Uhlan on Feb 6, 2013 7:29:52 GMT
Hi. Thank you for the compliments. Just remember to go slow with the filing. The first time I did this on a katana I lost my cool and had to it 3 times to get it ,,just so''. I learned about being slow and careful alright! In the end it was very rewarding and a sort of bonding experience with the sword. Cheers, Ulahn.
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