How do you restore a RK you screwed up?

[Stephen Stout]

I cleaned my postwar S&L '935' RK and I ***ed up majorly, any suggestions because everytime I see this cross to be honest I get angry at myself. I don't care about repainting it cause I screwed it up already beyond natural repair.

[Stephen Stout]

Please note the paint shade difference around the swastika and the rest of the cross and note the chips on the 1939 and swastika.

[Stephen Stout]

The rear, paint difference and the 1813 is chipped. And how can I make the silver darker or look new again?

[Stephen Stout]

here is a good before pic, before I basterized this cross. And yes you can call me a f**8ing dummy .

[Stephen Stout]

I'm seriously thinking about repainting the cross and seeing if someone can tell or help me how to darken or make the silver look new. But if anyone would like to borrow the cross to see if they can restore it I'm open.

[emilitaria_usmc]

do not repaint it just yet

I used to be in the jewelry business.
I don't think you screwed it up as bad as you think.
The silver will naturally retone.
The dark tarnish on the silver frame was silver sulfide.
That usually comes from contact with paper or wood.
I am curious. How much did this cross cost?

Can you find out what kind of paint was used by this or any other maker?
You might be able to get some - and you might be able to retouch it under magnification with a super fine brush.
don't panic - do some research.

[Stephen Stout]

The cross cost me $600, and I have seen ones like this go up to $3,000 from Detlev. The maker is S&L of the cross, the silver is 93.5%. But in the art department the only class I failed in my life was art, so I would rather see if someone could restore it for me and I would be willing to pay some money for a good restoration.

[Bob Hritz]

Don't screw it up worse by trying to fix the damage you have done. Let a few decades of it sitting undo your handiwork. Everything you do will just make it worse. Or, just sell it to me as I don't have a post-war 935 marked type.

Bob Hritz

[MIKE12550]

The cross cost me $600, and I have seen ones like this go up to $3,000 from Detlev. The maker is S&L of the cross, the silver is 93.5%. But in the art department the only class I failed in my life was art, so I would rather see if someone could restore it for me and I would be willing to pay some money for a good restoration.

Hello Stephen,
I don't think you will ever be happy with a restoration. As Bob said, just put the cross away and let time do it's job. The cross is still nice!
Mike

[Nico C]

My thoughts also.

Just leave it alone, since you doid enough wroong already.

Re-painting the cross will make it ready for the junk box.

[Adrian Stevenson]

Do not repaint! As the guys have stated before, the silver will darken in time.

Cheers, Ade.

[Stephen Stout]

Is there a way I can make the paint darker without repainting it?

[Adrian]

Do not repaint! As the guys have stated before, the silver will darken in time.

Cheers, Ade.

Take the above advice and the advice of everyone here who has said to leave it alone.
If you are thinking about repainting it, you may find a posse on your doorstep armed with a straightjacket to remove the temptation!

[Nico C]

I agree. Leave the silver alone as well.

If you can't stand the look it has, just send it to me.
I will keep it for 30 years and when the silver has aged again, I will send it back

[militaria.no]

(...) if someone can tell or help me how to darken or make the silver look new.

Hello Maj. Konig!

Once I did the same mistake and cleaned a silver medal. I were frustrated by the result but got a good tip on how to darken the silver and try to regain its natural finish. I don’t know if the other Gentlemen in here agree, but it might be worth a try:

Collect some rainwater (not tap) in a glass on a rainy day/clean melted snow. As my item is pure silver I put it in the glass every day for a couple of seconds. I then lay it out to air dry on the balcony for a couple of hours. After 1-2 weeks the silver had regained lot of its darkness/oxidation. I think it had to do with the ph-value in the water. As we all know rainwater is not 100% clean – and in one way or another it accelerated the oxidation of the silver. Just imagine how many hours of rain, snow and sun in 1940-45 that contributed to the finish that we appreciate on our medals today

If you choose to try I don’t think it is smart to put the entire cross in water. But perhaps apply some rainwater on the silver using a Q-tip with cotton end.

But as Adrian writes the silver will darken in time. And as Smeagol says it in The Lord of the Rings: “Patience, my love!”