110/112 Brass Patina

[TAH]

Is there a way to speed up deep patina on brass bolsters? I haven't polished my 110 and 112 (both 1970s models) for close to a year and they're just not getting much of a deep patina - mostly just surface tarnishing that tends to rub off with normal handling or going in and out of sheaths. Here are a couple of examples of what I mean by deep patina...

 

[bertl]

I don't know if it will give a deep patina, but vinegar will start it.

Bert

 

[TAH]

Do you think it would harm the ebony scales if the entire knife was soaked in vinegar until the patina formed? Not sure how long that would be. Perhaps 15-30 minutes?

 

[bertl]

I would put the knife on some small stickers, toothpicks or wooden matchsticks (heads off), in a small plastic bag, along with a small bit of rag saturated with vinegar. All you need are the vinegar fumes. Twenty to thirty minutes should do it. I do this when I am having trouble seeing the butt rivets on a 110.

Bert

 

[TAH]

Thanks Bert. I'll give it a try.

 

[NMpops]

Personally, I'd polish it up with Brasso! IMHO patina in brass just makes it look neglected.

 

[DocT]

I prefer the polished, cared for look, personally. However, I have found it can be hard to keep ahead of the tarnish where I live, currently.

 

[DeSotoSky]

Personally, I'd polish it up with Brasso! IMHO patina in brass just makes it look neglected.

:thumbup: Second that. I'm for polished. This is always sitting on my desk with 3" soft cotton gun patches. I do it sitting at my desk watching TV. It's relaxing.

 

[afishhunter]

I don't know if it will give a deep patina, but vinegar will start it.

Bert

Vinegar CLEANS brass (and copper) it WILL NOT start a patina on brass (or copper).
Vinegar or any other acid will REMOVE the patina from brass (and copper).

Back in the day when automotive radiators had copper cores and brass tanks, the radiator shops used heated muratic acid (yes, the same acid you put in your swimming pool) to clean them.
I have used vinegar to clean corroded electrical connections and plugs. It works great. Better than Coke a Cola.

 

[Darkera]

I like the look of an old patina on a knife, it tells a story.

I bought an Opinel recently just to play around with forcing a patina on a carbon steel blade. I saw a few threads on this and couldn't resist trying, and after a few yellow mustard applications over the course of two hours I was really happy with the results.

 

[TAH]

Personally, I'd polish it up with Brasso! IMHO patina in brass just makes it look neglected.

I prefer the polished, cared for look...

:thumbup: Second that. I'm for polished.

Patina haters!

Vinegar CLEANS brass (and copper) it WILL NOT start a patina on brass (or copper).
Vinegar or any other acid will REMOVE the patina from brass (and copper).

I haven't tried vinegar yet. I have also read that the sulfur in hard boiled egg yokes crumbled and sealed in a zip lock bag works.

 

[bertl]

afishhunter,

Enter "brass patina vinegar" in a Google search and see what you find.

Bert

 

[afishhunter]

I only know that I've used regular cooking vinegar from the grocer to clean brass, and that it worked quite well.

 

[Christiantrevor]

I like the look of an old patina on a knife, it tells a story.

I bought an Opinel recently just to play around with forcing a patina on a carbon steel blade. I saw a few threads on this and couldn't resist trying, and after a few yellow mustard applications over the course of two hours I was really happy with the results.

I've never heard of yellow mustard applied patina. Would it be possible to replicate this with the current Buck 5160 steel? I'm curious, does your Opinel look the same today as your pictures? Wondering if you stoped the patina process or if the steel continued darken.

 

[Darkera]

I've never heard of yellow mustard applied patina. Would it be possible to replicate this with the current Buck 5160 steel? I'm curious, does your Opinel look the same today as your pictures? Wondering if you stoped the patina process or if the steel continued darken.

Mustard is basically a vinegar paste, so it allows for more precise application. Google or search BladeForums for "forced patina" and you'll find some good examples.

I've only done this with my Opinel, but it should work with other high carbon steels like 5160... that's just my opinion though.

I did this 2 months ago and it basically looks the same, although I must admit I haven't used it often. I'll use it as an apple knife for a bit and see what happens, I expect it'll darken but probably retain the pattern.

Buy an Opinel and play around! I applied random blobs with a q-tip, wiped it off after 20-30 min, then applied more mustard blobs. I did this about 4-6 times.