Refinished Military Knives on eBay

[ibele-finley]

Is it just me, or has anyone else noticed this. Recently I've seen what might be called an epidemic of refinished military knives on eBay. I'm not gonna name sellers, one, there have been many and, two, I can't verify first hand that what I'm seeing is refinishing (I ain't gonna buy just to check). But, I've seen several tell-tale clues. (1) all the metal parts appear to be in perfect mint condition while the handles, usually leather, show moderate to considerable use. (2) The accompanying sheaths are usually a bit torn and frayed. I know it's easy to switch sheaths around, but it's still another clue to me. (3) Usually even near mint knives show some minimal wear just from being taken in and out of a sheath over the years. Many of these knives do not show a single mark what-so-ever. (4) I've even seen a couple where the the new finish material shows on the leather parts. (5) the color of the finish (ie. refinish) is never quite what it should be. That could be a photo issue, but I've seen it enough by different sellers to make me think it's not just a photo thing.
I think I've only seen one ad that actually stated that the knife had been refinished. Aside from the obvious deception being thrust (pun intended) upon unsuspecting buyers, my personal feeling, as a collector and history buff, is that these military knives are historical artifacts and it ticks me off to no end to see them desecrated in this manner.
Observations? Opinions? Comments?

[ibele-finley]

I have to admit, I'm surprised none of you guys have replied to this. Should I take your silence as a statement that I'm way off base? Or should this have gone in the fake knives forum?

[Owd Wullie]

Not off base at all.

It seems to me that the trend lately has been that "cleaned/refinished/refurbished" sell for more money than an original knife with some "neighborhood" and use. Doesn't make any sense to me.

I used to buy and sell a LOT of guns. Re-blued and re-finished guns were looked down upon and usually brought less money than a well taken care of gun with some honest wear. I'm out of the loop in that business nowadays as I haven't bought a gun in over ten years, new or used.

Personally, unless I intend to use a knife and can get it cheap enough to warrant it, I will pass on any knife that has been pimped out and tarted up to make it look pretty. I've got a few in my stash that have been "cleaned" in my stuff, BUT I didn't buy them knowingly or because they had been messed with (cleaned).

I've rescued a few old beaters from the rust pile and have no problem with anyone that does that. IF you have an old knife that is being eaten up with rust, then HELL YES, get it back to usable condition. Taking one in that condition and grinding the blades to remove all the pits and then representing it as something else in order to profit, is, in my opinion, just wrong.