Schrade Scrimshaw re-dye?

[rea1eye]

Recently won on eBay above knife ( has not arrived yet). The knife was not stored very good so the
scrimshaw looks to be very faint. Has anyone re-dyed the knife? If you could explain what dye you
used and the process I would appreciate it. I know the scrimshaw was put on using a heat process with
a ribbon dye. I was thinking if I cleaned up the scale well and just wiped some dye over it quickly it
could fill in.

(picture from eBay)

Thanks in advance,

Bob

[Beavertail]

I think the method you described would work.

[bladecollectorr]

The ivory-coloured delrin is easily stained. It is easy to turn the handles black from just polishing the bolsters. The delrin is "thirsty" and sucks up the black from polishing. Whenever I sand scratches out of the bolsters on delrin knives I do it under (soapy) water so that the black metal slurry doesn't stain the handles. I purge with WD-40 to get the water out when I'm done.

I tried doing scrimshaw on a Rough Rider trapper kit-knife. The ink stained the surrounding bone as much as the scratches I wanted to darken. It was a total disaster. I had to sand the whole handle down to try again.

To avoid this, the item has to be super-highly polished and/or waxed before making the scratches. The (usually bee's) wax will stop the ink from bleeding into the areas without scratches.

I think if an actual scrimshander were to re-do the pattern he/she would polish and wax the handle, re-scratch the lines (to make the delrin more "thirsty" in those areas) and then re-ink them. Some scrimshanders use a Sharpie marker rather than liquid India Ink or oil paint. I think a marker would be good to use so that the over-spill is as little as possible.

Bottom-line? It won't be easy but it is possible. Simply flooding white delrin with India Ink could be a recipe for disaster.

[ea42]

I doubt that it would work. I would imagine a good part of the reason for the missing dye is pocket wear and handling wear. The handles are probably worn down a bit making the cuts for the scrimshaw super shallow, which would pretty much make it impossible to fill in just by wiping dye across it. As bladecollector said you'd have just as much absorbed into the handles as you would the scrimshaw. Those were originally wood ducks with a lot of dye in their heads. The detail is all worn off:

Eric

[rea1eye]

Thanks for the input guys. The other pictures on eBay show the blades in rusty shape but
not used. The pile side does not show the scrimshaw to be in too bad shape. Who knows for
sure. Having the knife in hand will really show the scrimshaw predicament. Waxing or
putting a mineral oil lightly on the surface may help with the staining. Black sharpie is
a good idea. Never expected the knife to be mint when I am done with it. I enjoy
cleaning up a old knife to look as good as it can without over-buffing.

Any other ideas let me know.

Bob

[ea42]

Bob let us know how it turns out, sounds like an interesting project for sure!

Eric

[rea1eye]

Bob let us know how it turns out, sounds like an interesting project for sure!

Eric

I spent a little time cleaning up the knife. I spent a lot of time trying to get
the image darker and sharper. It is a very difficult task. The best result was
using a very fine tip Sharpie permanent ink. It is difficult to stain the imprint
but not the regular surfaces.

It is a old knife. Turned out OK. I never thought it would look new, but it
is now sharp and the image is slightly improved.

Bob

schrade.sc505.revised.jpg (65.2 KiB) Viewed 873 times

[Dan In MI]

Turned out OK.

Looks dang good to me. Nice work!

[kootenay joe]

I agree, it looks very good. You can be proud of your handiwork !
kj