Next question: How horrible would it be for me to disassemble, restore and make a new blade? Of course I would never try to pass it off as the original blade. But I enjoy restoring old tools and equipment. Thank you again.
I'd be very much inclined to clean it and leave it at that. IMO if you replace the blade it will lose a lot of its authenticity/genuineness, I'd rather see it in it's hard used condition (a good clean-up is fine). Once you replace components it is no longer 100% the original tool, which would be a pity for something that old. I'm assuming you aren't intending to use it regularly as an EDC. But it's your tool, so do whatever you feel is appropriate.