Help with damaged sabre

[Mike Dwyer]

I have a good friend, from Galveston, Texas, who was presented a US Army sabre when he retired from the Army Reserve. The sabre spent 3 days submerged in salt walter after hurricane Ike when his entire house was flooded. Is there any place around that might be able to repair the saltwater damage?

[peter monahan]

I have a good friend, from Galveston, Texas, who was presented a US Army sabre when he retired from the Army Reserve. The sabre spent 3 days submerged in salt walter after hurricane Ike when his entire house was flooded. Is there any place around that might be able to repair the saltwater damage?

Mike

The first thing to do, oddly enough, is to wash it, thoroughly in freshwater, to get all the salt out of it. I would then use WD40 ("water displacer 40")sprayed thoroughly into every crack and crevice then wiped, soaked up again with clean clothes and replaced by a very light coat of gun oil or sewing machine oil. If at all feasible to do any 'take-down' such as dismounting the handgrips, pommel, etc. do that first and re-assemble again after the final oily-rag wipedown.

Hope this helps.

Peter

[Mike Dwyer]

Mike

The first thing to do, oddly enough, is to wash it, thoroughly in freshwater, to get all the salt out of it. I would then use WD40 ("water displacer 40")sprayed thoroughly into every crack and crevice then wiped, soaked up again with clean clothes and replaced by a very light coat of gun oil or sewing machine oil. If at all feasible to do any 'take-down' such as dismounting the handgrips, pommel, etc. do that first and re-assemble again after the final oily-rag wipedown.

Hope this helps.

Peter

Thanks, Peter, I'll pass that on to him.

[Guest Rick Research]

What are the grips made out of?

If modern/recent, might be plastic but

that means it's also peened permanently together so it can't be disassembled.

The extra peril here is that MORE water in and under the grips will eventually cause swelling which will expand and burst them. The grips can then never be replaced on a permanently peened together sword.

[SasaYU]

A photo of a sabre's condition could help.