[Sca-cooks] cleaning bone handled utensils

[Phlip]

Ene bichizh ogsen baina shuu...

> > I have some antique bone handled dessert knives and forks and the bone
> > handles are really dirty. Do you know of any reference works or tips
> > on cleaning them without destroying them?
> >
> > Thanks
> > Russ Bilowich

Discussed it with Rob, who carves bone, and his suggestions were as follows-
note, there's no easy way to do this- most chemicals will simply dissolve
the bone.

Get a toothbrush and dishwashing liquid, and scrup it down. If that doesn't
quite do enough, you can use the Comet type abrasives with the toothbrush,
but don't use the colored ones since they stain- you need white. Also, Pearl
Drops will work.

Once you get them cleaned up, he suggests you seal the bone so it dpesn't
happen again. Good sealant would be either varnish, which works OK, but
tends to be soft, or better, a straight polyurethane. Bone is very porous,
so if you want it to maintain its color, you must seal it.

I'll also fwd this over to the Knife List, see what other suggestions those
guys have.

Saint Phlip,
CoD

"When in doubt, heat it up and hit it with a hammer."
 Blacksmith's credo.

 If it walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, it is probably not a
cat.

Never a horse that cain't be rode,
And never a rider who cain't be throwed....



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