polished blades

[camillus]

question how does a polished blade affect the value of a military knife such as the RH36 or 225Q i have seen several on ebay that look polished and scratched like they were cleaned with steel wool. The shine could be from flash thanks Mike

[sactroop]

It's generally thought that the earliest RH36's delivered to the military were likely brightly finished. As far as I'm aware all of the 225Q knives were bright finished. In general any knife that appears to have an other than original finish will likely be devalued to varying degree's. In many cases determining if a knife's finish looks original or altered really depends on acquiring experience as much as anything.

[camillus]

thanks I was wondering, I have seen a number on ebay that looks like they were polished with steel wool to remove all signs of age. My opinion is that a knife that went through a war should not look like it came out of the factory unless it spent its war in a supply room. But thats me

[sactroop]

It kind of boils down to individual taste. Some collectors are only interested it examples that are as close to factory new as can be found. Others want an item that has that look of having been carried and used, (been there done that), as some say. Considering the premiums that are normally attached to that NIB condition one wouldn't want to pay that for a blade that was in fact (reconditioned).

[bayonetman]

Most collectors do not like to see an obviously used knife polished to a high gloss, and it will usually affect the value in a negative way.

 

If some polishing is in order due to some light rust, it is surprising what toothpaste on a paper towel will do. It also has the advantage of not leaving any scratch marks and it usually will not "overpolish" the finish.