3/4" J Drew and Son near wedge

[kcb5150]

Has a lead wedge and ivory scales that I very well may just let it keep as they are straight and the chips out of the one are not in a place to do any real harm. Kind of didn't want to throw this up here before I cleaned it up, but I am taking a few days off from working on metal. I've been selling so many DEs lately and trying to clean up my straights that I'm going to be walking into walls from absorbing polish, nickel, and steel soon if I don't space it out. No pitting, it really makes up for the Le Grelot that gave me a scare.

 

[kcb5150]

I will concede that I cleaned the active rust and anything tactile off the blade before I stepped away form it after I took these.

 

[Gamma]

Nice score!

 

[kcb5150]

They actually might be bone. The weight, high gloss smoothness and my complete blindness without help combined to fool me. Grain under a loupe doesn't indicate ivory methinks.

 

[pmaster]

I kinda like the way the bone/ivory scales are broken (if I see correctly). I think if you can make the other side symmetrical, it might actually turn out nicely. Maybe shave off a bit more bone off the second place where it is broken.

 

[kcb5150]

I don't mind it. I'm impressed the whole thing got to this age and maintained some semblance of sheen.

 

[kcb5150]

I might just clean all of this and tighten them up a touch very carefully.

 

[kcb5150]

Put on some rubber gloves.. Compared to that old Le Grelot, this steel seemed much easier to clean. The real surprise was after I got done getting it to a level I was satisfied with (I could care less about the random black spot), and gave it a test on my arm to see the state of it, it obliterated a runway of hair off my arm! Surprising.