Replace Rusty or Damaged
Knife Blades
Replacing knife blades in sterling handles
Replacing the knives in sterling handles is a dangerous and messy process. You can see this in the photo above. This is not a D.I.Y. activity. The pitch is messy, dirty, flammable, and burns your skin if a drop of pitch lands on your hand, or you touch a burning hot handle.) In a photo, you are missing the smoke and pungent smell. This photo also demonstrates why I must polish the sterling handles after I am finished.
12 knives with new stainless steel blades
The finished knives (above) look amazing. This set of 12 knives is fully restored. Future maintenance is an occasional polish of the handles. Do not put your sterling handled knives in the dishwasher.
Side by side comparison of old rusty steel knives with new stainless steel blades.
These silver knife handles were a beautiful pattern but the old silver plated knife blades were discolored and rusty. Replacing the blades with new stainless steel is an extraordinary improvement in their appearance.
Restore sterling silver knives
Compare this new stainless steel blade (top knife blade) to the old silver plated steel knife blade (bottom knife blade.)
In the photo below, you can see several stages in removing the old knife blades. This is a very messy, dangerous process. It all has to be done one knife at a time.
The old silver plated steel knife blades can not be replated. They must be removed, and replaced with new stainless steel blades. The photo above demonstrates the steps in taking out the old knife blades.
Two different styles of stainless steel knife blade replacements
There are currently two different styles of knife blades (shown above) for replacing knives in sterling silver handles. Each style is available as both a dinner knife and a luncheon knife. The luncheon knife is slightly smaller.
Contact me about having your old knife blades replaced in your sterling handles.
Broken steel knife blades can be replaced
It the photos (above left,) the broken steel knife blades have been removed from the sterling silver knife handles. In the photo (right,) new stainless steel knife blades have been set into the sterling handles restoring the appearance and utility of these knives.
REPLACING A RUSTY STEEL KNIFE BLADE
This child's knife with sterling silver handle was a family heirloom but the knife was rusty and looked terrible. In the (top) photo you can see the original knife blade in the sterling handle with the replacement knife above.
The rusty steel knife blade was replaced with stainless steel. The restored knife is shown in the lower photo. The selection of new stainless steel knife blades is limited. The sterling handle was also polished carefully to preserve the intricate detail and hand engraved initial.
Removing old knives in sterling silver handles
In the above photo you can see the old rusty knife blade being removed from the sterling handle. This is always a very dirty and messy process. The first step is to take out the old knife blades by heating the pitch in the handles. The pitch, flame and smoke makes the handles very dirty. The sterling silver handles and knife blades are cleaned and prepared to insert the new knife blades. Below you can see the same knives with the handles cleaned up and polished.
sterling silver handles with new stainless steel blades
All of these knives had old steel blades that had rusted and discolored over the years. The old knives were removed and replaced with new stainless steel knife blades. Did you notice that there are only eleven knives? The customer sent one knife first to see the result, and then had all 11 knife blades replaced.
I do take the extra time to solder the knife blade to the handle. This takes more time but the knife is more secure, and the transition between the knife and handle is more attractive.
New stainless steel blades and professional polishing restore your knives
New stainless steel blades restore the appearance of your sterling silver flatware. After the new knife blades are set, the sterling silver handles are professionally polished.
Reset or replace the knife blades
In this example, I reset two knives that had pushed out of the handles, and replaced one broken knife blade. There is a very slight difference in the appearance, but most people won’t notice.
Specialty Sterling Silver Handle and Steel Knife Blade Shapes
These sterling silver handles are a Georgian “pistol grip” shape. With the old steel blades rusted and useless, the customer sought out unique, scimitar-shaped blades to complement the style of these handles.