My grandfather was a butcher, he recently gave me one of his old knives, it is a big heavy cleaver, I don't have a knife like it, and still pretty sharp.
It has some significant corrosion on it, not rust so much as like a black carbon. The wood grip (full tang, 2 pins) is in poor condition tool.
I would like to restore it. The reason he gave me the knife is because he is getting on in years and is starting to give away his possessions. We just smile and say thank you but obviously we know he is thinking about his own mortality. I think it'd be nice if I could refinish the knife and show it to him so that he'll know that I will keep it for a long time.
I am a bit lost, I've never done this before, and I probably don't even have the best tools for it (no grinder, no belt sander, no planer, I don't even own a vise).
Firstly, how do I clean up the blade? I have tried some metal polishes and abrasives I have, and they've gotten off the minor surface damage, but the big black spots (I'll post a picture tommorow) it isn't really making a dent on. I was going to try sanding it with my oscillating sander unless someone tells me that is a really bad idea.
Then, the grip, how do I remove it? Any trick or just kind of chisel it off?
I want to use african blackwood for the grip. It is extremely dense so should resist staining (I do plan to use the knife in the kitchen) and very (very) heavy, so should help balance the huge weight of the blade. I know I can buy some online.
What I guess I was thinking to do was cut it to the right thickness on my table saw, use my jig saw I guess to cut the shape of the grip out (I wish I had a bandsaw... so much), router the edges to round them off, drill two holes for the pins, and sand (wish I had a belt sander - one day when I have more room I'll have a full workshop).
I'm not sure what the pins are. Do I make them from a rod or dowel of some sort? Are they a special part you buy from like a knife maker supply store? Any tricks to getting a secure fit?
Then I guess epoxy and clamps because I don't have a vise, right?
Then... I cut the excess of the pins off and sand it to make it smooth. What is the best tool for that... especially to avoid marring the wood grip while you do it?