DON'T wreck Relics!

I received an email from a visitor wanting to know how to remove the top nut on a second pattern relic. His idea was to "restore it!" I suggested he leave it alone or sell it to me. His decision was to sell it to me. I paid him a fair price, which was a lot more than he had invested, just to keep it from being destroyed. This is not the first time I have been in this position. Please think about what you are doing before messing up an un-restorable knife. Before he emailed me, he had already used pliers or some tool to badly chew up the top nut. I am just glad he didn't snap the blade off trying to take it apart. These nuts are screwed down tight and the end of the tang is peened over to prevent them from coming loose. So, you cannot remove the nut without destroying it, or the tang, or both. 

Does this knife look like a candidate for restoration? Seriously folks. Before you do something stupid like this, just buy a new J. Nowill F-S knife or one by H.G. Long and preserve the historical value of a relic like this. The knife had obviously lain in mud or clay or something for a very long time to corrode to this extent. My only regret is that I don't have any provenance for it. Was it found in the USA or overseas? It would be nice to know. 

I am working on the third volume of my books on F-S which is focused primarily on Second and Third Pattern knives. I will illustrate this knife along with a couple other relics I have acquired in the past. For example, this is another knife the owner tried to grind the blade to improve it!

Here is one that was found on the beach at Dieppe, 50 years after the battle. Again the owner tried to remove the top nut, unsuccessfully of course. Please, Please just leave them alone and do what you can to conserve or preserve them, not butcher them. Contact me and I may make you an offer for your relic knife.