Potassium Permagnate (sp?)

F

Frank Eaton

Joined
Sep 10, 2004
Messages
362
Got some advice on finishing antler handles...dyeing with PP. I ordered some it came in powder form. I am guessing that you can just mix it with water? Correct? Frank
 
yeah it only takes a little bit. a pinch of the stuff will do an ounce or two of water. the stonger you mix it faster it darkens the handle material. as far as i know :rolleyes:
 
Yes, and it doesn't take much at all. Try mixing in a few grains at a time till it reaches the level of darkness you want.

After you stain the antler, let it dry completely(gonna be several days), then buff with a shoe/boot brush to take the excess off. When you are finishing the stuff, buff(on a buffer) the high spots carefully, that will lighten them a bit, and give you good contrast with the darker valleys.

You can seal them also if you desire. Watco works well for me, used as directed(I use neutral) . Finish with a coat of carnauba wax.

Others have different methods of doing this, and maybe they'll chime in here.
 
Army Ranger said:
So Mike, your saying dye the whole handle, then go back and buff/sand of what you don't want?
Click to expand...

If it was mine, I'd stain the scales/round first, buff with the brush, then install, buffing on a machine would be the last step before sharpening the blade.

I don't know if you're making a full tang, or stick tang knife, but if it's full tang, take as much off the inside of the scales as you can, to get close to tang size/thickness you want, saving the textured surface as much as possible.

You will still have to take some off the sides, but that's normal, and will provide a nice contrast to the darker top.

If it's a round, for a stick tang, buff with a brush, assemble the knife, and if you have to take any off, it's usually near the guard area, and again the contrast won't be bad looking.
Maybe others have better suggestions?
 
Bear in mind that Pot. permanganate is a very strong oxidizer. It will dye your skin, and it can burn you if used improperly. Wear gloves. It will dye the material purple-ish to begin with, then oxidize the antler to a brown with time. Experiment with a scrap piece off the knife first, would be my advice, so you understand how it works firsthand.

It is sold as a pool supply. If I remember correctly it was also used very dilute as a topical disenfectant.
 
Here is one that I used P. Permanganate on. It is elk antler from Minnesota, and it was completely white when I started. I left it in the P.P. solution for about 2 days. I noticed someone else on here recently said not to do that, but I haven't had a problem with it. After that, I treated it like any other antler. I sanded and then buffed it, then rubbed a little rennaissance wax on it.
 
I once commissioned a bladesmith to make me a really nice camp knife. I provided a killer piece of amberish colored stag for the handle. The kind of stag you only dream of nowadays. A year later, the knife was almost done, and the maker had ruined the stag by using this Potassium Permanganate. He said he wanted to give it an aged look. :mad: What was supposed to be amberish red colored stag with white areas blended in the guard area, ended up looking like dirt. If I wanted an aged look to my knives, I'd leave them laying in friggin ditch somewhere! :mad:
 
over sea's
I believe they still use it as an antiseptic..

you can get it on the shelf at Sears in crystal form,,, a little goes a long way

you can just paint it on with a dauber,,
you really don't need it soaking up on the inside and
ends,, I like the stuff,

of course you can do over kill with it too.
I use it before cutting the bone/antler and touch up after in the newly cut/sanded arias :)

more here on Permanganate :)
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/search.php?searchid=197288
 
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