>> About cleaning up those old clasp knives; collectors say you shouldn’t do it, you’ll destroy the knife’s resale value <<

The rust is worth a lot huh? <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

I dunno. I don't really "get" collectors. Some tools are simply too good to use, and they are that way by design. They're made to be put away, I understand that. But other tools, like the knives shown, were intended to be simple and effective and useful. It would be sort of like collecting ... I was going to say bottles, but people collect those too. Actually I can't think of anything that people don't collect. Blah.

Anyway my feeling is that a usable tool should either be used or at a minimum kept in a state where it could be used. If you're going to keep it in a drawer for the next fifty years, polish it up and put it away with some desiccant to keep it clean.

Sometimes it's funny to walk into old tool shops because the owners will either be users or collectors. We're looking for old tools that can be cleaned up and put to use. Most antique tools are far better quality than consumer level stuff today, and can be had for a lot less money than a brand new top of the line model. So we'll pick up a chisel and check the socket, check the blade to see if it's been beat on with a hammer, look for a lamination line... In short we're looking at the useful life left in the tool. We really don't care who it was made by. Some shop owners give us a horrified look when we talk about attacking it with steel wool, lapping, sharpening, turning a new handle... and others give us a discount because they like the fact that we're putting it back to work.

Seeing rust bothers me, and others pay a premium for it because it looks older. Takes all kinds, I guess.