ferric chloride on wood??

SDS

SDS

Joined
Oct 22, 2007
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Can anyone tell me what ferric chloride does to wood? Specifically walnut.

I was just wondering what would happen to a wood handle if you placed a completed knife in a FC solution to etch the steel but did not remove the handles scales first.

Just curious,
Thanks,
SDS
 
Depending on the concentration it might not do anything, what would worry me the most is making sure I removed all the crap that soaked into the wood, you don't want acids trapped against the steel tang which will eat through the knife eventually, and you don't want it leaching out into your hands. I think I would try soaking the knife in alcohol or something after to remove the FC solution from the wood, but get feedback from a knowledgeable wood user.
 
I would not imerse the handle in f.c. you will ruin it unless it is stabilized material and then you can never be sure that you will have it cleaned out completely.
If you just want to etch the steel to make it the same as the blade you can paint the scales with clear finger nail polish brush on f.c. to the tang. Ounce you have the desired effect clean well with windex then use acetone to clean the finger nail polish off the scales.
Bob
 
It'd be like tying an acid filled sponge to the tang of a knife. Probably not good in the long run.

Mecuric acid (if I remember correctly) is sometimes used with heat on maple to bring out the wood grain.
 
FWIW - FC is one of the components of Wahkon Bay Aquafortis (a mix of Ferric Nitrate and Ferric Chloride) which is used widely for "staining" mainly maple by almost every master muzzleloading gun builder I know - on walnut it can darken it to almost black.

After applying the AF you hit it with a heat gun, this speeds the "gasing off" of any residual acid. You then neutralize with baking soda and water, TSP, or lye. The same method will work fine with FC to netralize as well.

The effects on maple are dramatic and IMO it's the BEST stain for maple, but it can also be used with other woods as well to bring out the grain:
1) On maple
cr-20-iw-006.jpg


2) On Walnut
el-cuchillo-3.jpg


3) On Osage Orange
cr-26-27-iw-007.jpg


Will - I think you might be thinking of Chromium Trioxide - one brand beinga Magic Maple Stain which can also be used to bring out the grain, but two problems
1) It's extremely toxic
2) It got used by a bunch of muzzleloder builders back in the 1970's & 80's - problem over time it has turned green in 99% of the case....
 
You guys bring up some good points that I had not considered. I like the idea of painting the handle with fingernail polish and painting on the FC.

Wild Rose, that osage orange handle and maple are pretty dramatic stained that way. Can you point me to a recipe for that aquafortis?

Thank you guys,
SDS
 
How about puttino your FC in a narrow jar and suspend the blade only in the fc. Don't create a lot of work refinishing the handle.
Take care
TJ
 
FC will patina the wood. It will make it darker looking on the surface. Be sure to rinse it off and neutralize it real good afterwards.
 
SDS said:
Wild Rose, that osage orange handle and maple are pretty dramatic stained that way. Can you point me to a recipe for that aquafortis? SDS
Click to expand...

I'd just buy it - making it from scratch is VERY nasty and by the time you pay for the hazmat fee for the nitric acid it's cheaper too.........a bottle will go a long ways......
 
The effect on the wood will vary according to the type of wood and whether it's heart or sapwood. Personally I would remove the handle first. My main concern would be any residual that crept down the steel tang - FeCl3 is a salt = electrolytic corrosion - that's why it's used as an etching agent - will also attack baser metals like brass/copper.
 
I still haven't quite decided what I'm going to do on this one. If I do end up doing something I will be very careful to keep the solution off of the wood. It makes plenty of sense that having the solution under the wood is a very bad thing.

Wild Rose, I have looked high and low and am coming up empty on sources for the aquafortis. Do you know of anywhere that sells it that would be willing to ship?

Thanks everyone.
SDS
 
Sorry meant to add this to my earlier post...
WAHKON BAY AQUAFORTIS
MICHAEL LEA AND DAUGHTER
2109 Summit Street
Columbus OH 43201.
Telephone 614-291-4757,
email oldguns2109@sbcglobal.net

I believe that Track of the Wolf also sells it, but Mike is the guy who makes it so I figure go to the source - once you get it experiment some on scrap and if you have any questions drop me a line......
 
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