What would this horadric cube recipe exactly do?

I am in act 2 of Diablo 2 (nightmare) and am getting better runes every now and then, around Amn, Sheal etc

I have an amazon companion with a bow I found that is good. It is rare with +100% or so damage and +50 poison damage and some to attack rating.

Now I saw this recipe in arreat summit:

1 Ort Rune + 1 Amn Rune + 1 Perfect Sapphire + Normal (Basic) Rare Weapon = Exceptional Rare Weapon

The item type is upgraded.

Before perhaps ruining my hireling's bow, I would like to know, does this recipe reroll the properties of her bow?

If not, does it affect them in any way, for example make the properties stronger as well as the weapon base itself?

Solution 1:

According to the Diablo 2 Wiki, only the item type changes, and not its properties (however, this may affect the stats/level required to use it):

1 Ort Rune + 1 Amn Rune + 1 Perfect Sapphire + Normal (Basic) Rare Weapon --> Exceptional Rare Weapon

• v1.10 and later only.
• This recipe upgrades the item type of the weapon without changing the stats, and is useful to increase the weapon's damage.
• Ethereal items, as well as socketed items can be upgraded without changing their nature.
• Level requirements, as well as strength and dexterity requirements, may increase corresponding to the exceptional version of the item.