Antique Soldering Iron Restoration

In this restoration video, I am restoring an antique soldering iron. I was not able to place an exact date on it, but from similar items, it appears to be from the mid to late 1800's. I found this restoration project in an antique store in southern New Mexico, along with several other future projects. I paid $5 for this soldering iron.

I haven't worked with copper much and did not know where to begin. I wanted to avoid grinding away material, but after some research, I determined with the equipment I have filing and sanding was the best option. It took many hours of sanding on the main block to get the finish shown. The shaft straightened out easily and cleaned up well, and the copper handle guard came out very nicely. I was tentative to sand any more on that piece as I did not want to thin it out too much. I have limited woodworking equipment and I am pleased with how the handle turned out. The grain pattern is absolutely beautiful. I finished the restoration with boiled linseed oil to protect the wood and metal.

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I hope you enjoyed the video and thank you for watching.