What is your Experience Restoring SAKs?

[NorCalJim]

I have enjoyed a number of hobbies and have a strong preference for those items that I can restore and service myself rather than send them in for repair or servicing.  I was especially happy to discover that Cellidor Swiss Army Knives definitely fall into the category of something I can service and repair myself.  There are plenty of YouTube videos that show how to clean, service and restore SAKs.  Some of the restoration videos focus on sanding and polishing tools and scales.  Here is one that shows a polishing stage in restoring a blade:



I finally dipped my toe in the waters of experience this morning.  One of the two Grand Prix SAKs that I recently purchased had a scratched and blemished main blade that didn't show up in the rather poor auction pictures.  I only spent around 30 minutes this morning sanding and polishing the blade with my dremel to get a vastly improved blade (sorry I don't have before and after photos).  Although not perfect, I am very pleased with the results.  Ideally, I should have started with a coarser grit (600).  I did get a mirror finish (courtesy of Simichrome and dremel polishing).  My coarsest grit (other than sandpaper used on walls prior to painting) is 800 grit.

Tackling a blade restoration project this morning and enjoying some success, has inspired me to want to work on Cellidor scales.  I am pretty excited about future possibilities and would like to hear from others about their experience with restoration efforts.

[NorCalJim]

I was so zeroed in on fixing my scratched and blemished blade that I neglected to convey a wider range of restoration such as cleaning, lubricating, sharpening, scale restoration or replacement and tool restoration.

Some of the tools available for auction look like they can be reclaimed with a thorough cleaning and some sanding/polishing.

I'm really curious what other others are doing.

 

[The Lone Wanderer]

Nice job Jim!

[Aloha]

Its sure satisfying to get a neglected SAK up to snuff and back to work. 

[NorCalJim]

Blade Cleaning Tip: Victorinox "Food Friendly" Oil works well not only for lubrication but for keeping the blade clean.

Back story:
For years, I used a small utility knife to open boxes shipped to our address.  Watching a YouTube unboxing video in which the fellow used an impressive Spyderco knife to open the box had me wondering why I didn't do the same.  I ordered a few knives for various purposes including a Spyderco for breaking down cardboard, and some Kershaws for opening smaller packages plus a gentleman's folding knife for envelopes.  Fellow forum members may notice my not-to-subtle way of acquiring multiple knives when one would do the job.   Shortly thereafter, I acquired a Tinker that I used for everything except breaking down cardboard.  These days SAKs dominate my routine cutting tasks.  It didn't take long to notice that some packaging tape would really gum up my knife blade.  After researching various remedies including a suggestion to use cooking oil, I tried a couple of drops of the Victorinox oil and wiped the blade with a ribbed microfiber cloth and my blades stay clean and shiny.

[NorCalJim]

Its sure satisfying to get a neglected SAK up to snuff and back to work.

Absolutely!

[NorCalJim]

I was astounded by the before and after difference in recovering a Grand Prix's main blade from a badly scratched and blemished condition to a mirror finish (albeit with some scratches evident as I rotated the blade to catch the light).  It was obvious that I should have started with a coarser sandpaper (I started with 800 grit).  With a trip to Home Depot, I found 400 grit and with a trip to Lowes, I purchased 600 grit (all 3M Wet/Dry).

This afternoon, I was able to remove the deeper scratches starting with 400 and then going to 600, 800, 1000, 1500 & 2000.  Finally, I used a Dremel soft polishing wheel and Simichrome to achieve a mirror finish.  Now I wished that I wasn't so impatient to get started and had taken the time to get some "Before" photos.

I still remember the disappointment I experienced when I opened the package from the e-bay seller and discovered a badly scratched and blemished blade.  Thankfully, I had recently browsed another Grand Prix in excellent condition and ended up purchasing the second Gran Prix that showed up in excellent condition as described.  Since I had seen some YouTube videos on sanding and restoring Swiss Army Knife blades, I held a faint hope that I might be able to do the same.

I am extremely pleased with the results of this afternoon's work on the Grand Prix blade!  It's one thing to watch a YouTube demo and quite another to experience this restoration project myself!

 

[Aloha]

I've reshaped a few blades and polished up a couple SAKs.  I find the whole process once all materials are assembled very relaxing.

[NorCalJim]

I've reshaped a few blades and polished up a couple SAKs.  I find the whole process once all materials are assembled very relaxing.

How did you go about reshaping the blade? 

[Aloha]

I've reshaped a few blades and polished up a couple SAKs.  I find the whole process once all materials are assembled very relaxing.

How did you go about reshaping the blade?

Pretty easy.  I bought a SAK at the flea market and the tip of the main blade was broken off.  I used my dremil with sanding  barrel which worked great.  I took material from the top of the blade not the cutting edge.  I then went over the sanded area with progressively finer sand paper.  Plenty of water to cool the blade which amounted to a dunk or two just to be safe.