To replace the scales or not to replace the scales....

austin83 · **on:** July 19, 2012, 11:33:30 PM

I bought a Scientist the other day, and it finally came in the mail today. It is used, and the scales have very light pocket wear, but they are plus scales without the pin hole. I understand this helps narrow down the date of the knife, and that these scales are not really rare, but not common. Is it better to refinish these scales and leave it as is, or are the scales really not that big of deal? Also, is there anything that can be done for a couple of dark corrossion spots on the aluminum liner? Thanks in advance.

GigaHz · **Reply #1 on:** July 20, 2012, 12:04:50 AM

Any major dents or cracks? If not just polish them.

austin83 · **Reply #2 on:** July 20, 2012, 12:34:36 AM

Just pocket wear, keys, change, etc.

austin83 · **Reply #3 on:** July 20, 2012, 03:38:15 AM

Turned out pretty nice, especially for an edc. It isn't perfect, but neither is any cellidor scale after it hits the pocket.

GigaHz · **Reply #4 on:** July 20, 2012, 03:39:25 AM

Nice work.

T.J. Hooker · **Reply #5 on:** July 20, 2012, 09:33:09 AM

May I ask what polish you used and how you polished it?

austin83 · **Reply #6 on:** July 20, 2012, 01:48:21 PM

Quote from: T.J. Hooker on July 20, 2012, 09:33:09 AM

May I ask what polish you used and how you polished it?

Well, I wet sanded with 800, 1000, 1500, and 2000 grit sand paper. Then I used some Turtle Wax rubbing compound, and I used some Zaino car polish. Zaino is great polish for a car, but i think I can find better for my knife. The gloss is not quite up to where it should be. I might try some Brasso or plastic scratch remover/ polish to see if I can get the shiny gloss. This was my first attempt at restoring old scales so any advice is appreciated.

austin83 · **Reply #7 on:** July 20, 2012, 07:32:07 PM

Meguiars PlastX had the best results.

T.J. Hooker · **Reply #8 on:** July 21, 2012, 05:10:36 AM

What do you use to apply the PlastX? A cloth?

austin83 · **Reply #9 on:** July 21, 2012, 05:19:38 AM

Quote from: T.J. Hooker on July 21, 2012, 05:10:36 AM

What do you use to apply the PlastX? A cloth?

Yep, cotton cloth. Look for 100% cotton, and avoid the edges of the towel or cloth because usually the edges are abrasive.

T.J. Hooker · **Reply #10 on:** July 21, 2012, 03:02:27 PM

Quote from: austin83 on July 21, 2012, 05:19:38 AM

Yep, cotton cloth. Look for 100% cotton, and avoid the edges of the towel or cloth because usually the edges are abrasive.

Is there a reason why I should use a 100% cotton?

I was going to use a bit of rag I had lying around.

austin83 · **Reply #11 on:** July 21, 2012, 03:46:01 PM

100% cotton is the best when it comes to preventing new scratches. 100% cotton made in America must pass certain QC standards before being sold as 100% cotton. 100% cotton towels made in other countries may not really be 100% cotton. Also the tags and borders usually contain some synthetic fibers. It is now almost impossible to find 100% American cotton towels. I learned all of this when researching ways to prevent clearcoat scratches on vehicles. You can get really serious if you take washing, laundry detergent, and drying into consideration.

T.J. Hooker · **Reply #12 on:** July 22, 2012, 04:01:48 AM

Never knew that.

Thanks for the info.

lowtech · **Reply #13 on:** July 22, 2012, 09:11:04 PM

In my expeieence, old cotton t-shirts that are well worn in (i.e: The Misses forces you to get a new one ) will work best for polishing work. Don´t use seams and edges or printed areas.

sergemaster · **Reply #14 on:** July 22, 2012, 10:30:51 PM

Amici,
Personally, I'd just pop the old scales off and replace them with new ones. Especially since they're more than affordable and better yet available in a slew of colors. Just the other day, I pt an nasty ding in the black scales of my vintage Champion and all I did was pop them off, and replace them with a pair of nice white plus scales. Now good as new. There's no reason to beat oneself up about polishing existing scales, especially when you can pop and replace..

Cheers,
Serge

PTRSAK · **Reply #15 on:** July 23, 2012, 04:52:42 AM

Quote from: sergemaster on July 22, 2012, 10:30:51 PM

Amici,
Personally, I'd just pop the old scales off and replace them with new ones. Especially since they're more than affordable and better yet available in a slew of colors. Just the other day, I pt an nasty ding in the black scales of my vintage Champion and all I did was pop them off, and replace them with a pair of nice white plus scales. Now good as new. There's no reason to beat oneself up about polishing existing scales, especially when you can pop and replace..

Cheers,
Serge

... and when your dog gets sick, you can just get another one.
Personally I like doing a bit of a refurbish on pocket worn EDC SAKs. May not get them back to Factory, but remove the worst of the marks. If I want an ornament to put on a shelf I won't put it in my pocket with keys, change, flashlight etc.
I find Micro-Mesh cushioned abrasives do a really nice job. I have a kit like this one
http://micro-surface.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=272_2_46_50&products_id=111
Then after the 6000 cloth a rub with Brasso and then AutoGlym Super Resin Polish brings the shine up.
http://www.autoglym.com/enau/product-proddetail.asp?v06VQ=JHM&Range=1
In the past I have used toothpaste, but can't get the particular brand I used now.. must try a few and see what works best these days.