Ethnographic Arms & Armour - View Single Post

Rick · 26th February 2010, 02:24 PM

Alan is away and offered this for me to pass on :
" most old blades have residual arsenic in the metal.

a soak in ordinary household vinegar usually reactivates this.

it will probably take longer than a day, I have soaked blades in vinegar with no ill effects for 10 days or more, but it is not as gentle as pineapple juice, so you need to monitor daily to ensure that it is not eating into the metal.

you will eventually get a result, but it may be faint, it depends on how much residual arsenic is in the blade, and on the strength of the vinegar, temperature also plays a role, it works better in warm weather.

that's ordinary old fashioned vinegar, not balsamic or any of the other fancy ones . "

26th February 2010, 02:24 PM	#23
Rick Vikingsword Staff Join Date: Nov 2004 Posts: 6,262	Alan is away and offered this for me to pass on : " most old blades have residual arsenic in the metal. a soak in ordinary household vinegar usually reactivates this. it will probably take longer than a day, I have soaked blades in vinegar with no ill effects for 10 days or more, but it is not as gentle as pineapple juice, so you need to monitor daily to ensure that it is not eating into the metal. you will eventually get a result, but it may be faint, it depends on how much residual arsenic is in the blade, and on the strength of the vinegar, temperature also plays a role, it works better in warm weather. that's ordinary old fashioned vinegar, not balsamic or any of the other fancy ones . "