WW2 Combat Knife Restore

Submitted to Community Chat

Recently I decided to restore my grandfathers old service knife from WW2. I realize the purists out there will probably take issue with my decision, claiming I ruined the collectors value.  This may be a valid point,  but I have no intention of ever selling this, and it holds far more value to me than it would anyone else, regardless of condition.  In any case, the original leather handle had rotted all the way through, and the tang beneath it was rusting.  I removed the pommel by drilling out the pin. I removed the original handle, removed the guard, and cleaned them both.  I decided on walnut and stacked leather handles.  I’ve never worked leather before, I found it to be quite difficult.  After two attempts, I got the leather burnished to my satisfaction.  I finished both width beeswax and buffed to a shine.  Reattached the pommel with a steel pin and filed smooth.  Finally, I stoned, stropped, and polished the blade. Above are before and after photos.