OT: 'patina-ing' bronze and silver

beoram · Feb 7, 2002

not that this has anything to do with khukuries (I'm not planning on tarnishing any of the brass or silver on my khuks

) - actually has to do with some antiquities - but does anyone know a good method for tarnishing silver? and for putting a patina onto bronze?

cheers, B.

Federico · Feb 7, 2002

Well do you want the quick and easy way, the cheap way, or the professional way?

You can go to a jeweler or silversmithing supply and they can sell you alot of nice stuff for creating patinas.

You can just leave alone and unsealed as silver tarnishes pretty quick.

Or you could try tannic acid, extra strong tea, etc...

beoram · Feb 7, 2002

Originally posted by Federico
Well do you want the quick and easy way, the cheap way, or the professional way?

You can go to a jeweler or silversmithing supply and they can sell you alot of nice stuff for creating patinas.

You can just leave alone and unsealed as silver tarnishes pretty quick.

Or you could try tannic acid, extra strong tea, etc...

thanks federico - do you think the tannic acid/extra-strong tea method would work on bronze too? is metallic oxidation all basically the same process?

cheers, B.

Bill Martino · Feb 7, 2002

I like the easy way -- do nothing. It takes care of itself.

Federico · Feb 7, 2002

To be honest Im not too fond of the tea bag treatment. Ive tried it with lack-luster results, though right now I think I realize what the problem was. However, alota people insist that its great, and Ive just been to lazy to experiment with it some more. You could try Casey's Plumb Brown. Ive seen decent results come from that. There are a whole list of different patinas that can be created with different chemicals. A good silver-smithing supply can help you out greatly. There is another option of oxidizing with a torch (I actually like this way the best), but that heats the metal up alot, and there's a whole its real easy to damage stuff. Also books on silversmithing have a good run-down on methodology as well as chemicals. Then again, when it comes to silver, brass or copper I figure let the dust bunnies do the work if Im not making it.

Bill Martino · Feb 7, 2002

Let the dust bunnies do it.

CoalBlack · Feb 7, 2002

I got curious and did a search using "antiquing metal" as the search words. I came across this webpage;

http:www.metalfinishing.com/metfinish/26/43/25/72/article.html

Hope it helps.

beoram · Feb 7, 2002

Originally posted by CoalBlack
I got curious and did a search using "antiquing metal" as the search words. I came across this webpage;

http:www.metalfinishing.com/metfinish/26/43/25/72/article.html

Hope it helps.

Thanks all. The link looks interesting CoalBlack - ta.

B.

Yvsa · Feb 7, 2002

Originally posted by beoram

Thanks all. The link looks interesting CoalBlack - ta.

B.

Ben, et al:
Here's a couple of more links you might find interesting as well.

http://www.tms.org/pubs/journals/JOM/9809/Verhoeven-9809.html

http://www.vikingsword.com/ethforum//messages/482.html

The top link has to do with the impurities in damascus steel and the bottom a link to color, age steel.
I thought that I had lost all of my attached messages I sent over from WebTV as my e-mail server put a new e-mail virus sensor in effect.
( It has saved me from getting 3 viruses so far so I'm gonna keep it for $10.00 a year!!!! )However after loking a little more closely I discovered them in the mail's properites and they're recoverable.

beoram · Feb 8, 2002

thanks yvsa - actually read (or at least skimmed

) the 1st one before. Tannic acid seems a good way to go in general

cheers, B.

Bill Martino · Feb 8, 2002

The dust bunnies are going to revolt. You're putting them in the unemployment lines.