Aging Metal

[Deerstalker]

Hey, Fellas. I'm a newbie to all this building, but I have parts to build a Southern Mountain/ Tennesee rifle, and I'm wondering what the best way to age the metal would be. I bought some Plum Brown, and have used it before, but I'm really liking the aged gray patina that some of you are putting on the guns of today ( built to tlook like the guns of yesterday, of course!). Would my rifle be more period correct browned, or can I get by with the much more attractive to me patina finish, and how can I best apply it?
Thanks in advance for the help,
Bryan :hmm:

 

[Packdog]

Deerstalker,
You can get the grey look several different ways. Depending on what look you are going for. 10 years all the way to 100 years old.
You can let the part rust brown and then polish it back to the level of gray you are looking for.
You can cold blue the part and then polish back.
You can cover with Navel Jelly and that will gray the part.
You can cold blue and then paint the part with clorox. This is a very aggressive way to age metal and not so hot on the lungs either. A part will become totally pitted in 15 to 20 minutes. Lots of rust real quick.
You can cover the metal with mustard and it will turn gray.

I hope that helps some on how to gray.

 

[Erzulis boat]

I just completed a pistol about 4 months ago that has the small Siler flintlock mehanism left in the white. It now has a grayish cast.
If you refer to the "Pistol" section of this forum you can see a completely natural gray cast under "Duelling Pistol Pictures" on a set of 1800's pistols.
I polished the Siler lock smooth (low shine), then degreased it with acetone, careful not to touch it with bare hands, then left it next to an open window for about a month.
It is not really a dull gray yet, but is definitely taking on a gray hue.
Basically what I am trying to say, is that a truly natural gray can be achieved in probably less than a year.
Cold blue tricks and the like may look pretty close..........but the real thing does not take too long on it's own.
That's just my opinion.

 

[CrackStock]

Browning is a bit easier and actually works a bit better it you do not polish the parts to a high finish. Bead blasting or other particle blasting can help facilitate the rusting which gives the brown look.

Gray looks best when you do finish the metal to a high polish and then get it to age over time or through the above listed methods.

I just polished the steel parts of a couple of guns and let them go gray naturally, although I was not too picky about cleaning the outer finish so that they did age. I was careful about the working parts and bore.

CS

 

[talbert]

I have used most of the tricks mentioned...
and a few others...just a word of caution if you try the more aggressive but very quick "cold blue/ clorox" method...once aged, be sure to nutralize with boiling water or the aged part tends to keep on rusting long after you wished it would quit.Thats been my experience anyway...

 

[Deerstalker]

Thanks for all the help,Guys! I guess the finish I'm really after is the aged metal look that I see on a lot of the nicer guns on this site, and others. The metal LOOKS at least 100 years old, like maybe it once had a finish, that has been worn off, and the metal has taken on a patina all its own. It has a brown/ gray overtone, really hard for me to describe it accurately. Does anyone know in detail how the cold blue/ clorox method works? I really wouldlike this rifle to look very old, although maintained as well. Am I asking for too much?
Thanks,
Bryan

 

[Deerstalker]

As a follow up to my earlier post, suggesting the color I want to achieve on this rifle, I have an original 1876 Winchester 45/75 that has the patina that I am looking for. The metal has gray steel showing thru, but has taken on a very nice brownish patina that I think dignifies this rifle's age very well. That is really what I am trying to achieve. A similar finish is on the pictures of the new leigh valley rifle that Preacher just bought, posted elsewhere on this site. I hope I'm not being a pain, guys, just want to try and make sure I get this rifle right when I do it.
Thanks for all the help,
Bryan :v

 

[Packdog]

Deerstalker,
I think the look you are after will best be achieved by rust browning and then rubbing/buffing/sanding it back toward a bare metal. Once you get your parts rusting then buff the rust off with some steel wool. Leaving the rust in the nooks and crannies. You may need to do this a couple of times to get a multi gray layered effect or I guess I should say a uneven effect. It will get darker each time where it is not buffed off. When you oil it down good it will turn almost black in the nooks and cannies. Think of it this way. The effect you are after is how metal would look if it had been abused several times over the course of it's life and then someone had tried to polish and fix it up. Then it happened again and again. Each time the edges and flats would get polished up but the areas where it is hard to get to would not get the same attention.
PD

 

[CrackStock]

Carding off the brown is one way as PackDog says. (He has put up some really pretty pics of guns that he has done!)

I like polishing to a high finish and then trying to brown. This is more labor intensive, but I think that the end result is better. You do not need it to actually get brown. Tended, but somewhat discolored is the goal as I see it. Maybe not a huindred years old, but surely a well used 5 or 10 works. It can age honestly after that.

CS

 

[Zonie]

If you have a piece of steel laying around, you might want to try lightly browning (rusting) it and then use some Navel Jelly on it.

The Navel Jelly will remove the browning rapidly but if you let it sit a while and then remove it, it will leave a soft steely gray surface very close to the old Winchesters I've seen at gun shows.

It may take a little experimenting with it to see how it reacts without pre browning too.

 

[Deerstalker]

:thumbsup: :bow:
Thanks guys!

 

[Bountyhunter]

If you use the Laurel Mountain Forge, and rust and scrub and rust and scrub, you get a very heavy rust brown. However, if you just rust brown it lightly and then put the part in a large pan of boiling water, it will give you a rust blue, almost instantly. The heat turns the brown rust to blue-black. In the lighter stages it will give you a nice gray as it wears and weathers. Some of that grey comes from pure old oxidation. Just sunlight and humidity, and hand sweat and, and, and.

 

[rabbit03]

If you like the finish on the Vincent Rifle I built (shown on the aqua fortis recipe post) let me know. I was after what you are talking about when I did it.

rabbit03

 

[Deerstalker]

Very similar, Rabbitt, maybe a little more on the brown side. What did you do to the metal on that gun?
Thanks,
Bryan

 

[rabbit03]

pretty simple really. The lock was polished and then a coat of the same aqua fortis I used on the stock was applied to the metal and left for a bit then carded off and then oiled. I think if you want a more brown tone then don't polish the metal as much as I did!

Good luck

rabbit03

 

[Mike Brooks]

Check this thread, I explained how i do it there.
>>>>>POKE

 

[Deerstalker]

:bow: That is exactly the look I am after, Mike! Thanks for the post. When you say, WAY too far, how too far are you going, maybe until the metal is very pitted? How long do you leave the solution on?
Thanks,
Bryan

 

[Mike Brooks]

:bow: That is exactly the look I am after, Mike! Thanks for the post. When you say, WAY too far, how too far are you going, maybe until the metal is very pitted? How long do you leave the solution on?
Thanks,
Bryan

3, 4 , 6 days, all depends how many pits you want. I usually aply the solution around three times. My results vary somewhat every time I do it.

 

[Birdman]

I havbe always wondered why people want to age their guns overnight. Why not strip any protective stuff you have on it(oil, grease etc) seal the barrel so the inside stays clean and put the gun outside in the weather for a month. Then give it a good cleaning and put it back outside again. Leaving it out in the weather for three or four months will let the rain, sun wind and anything else act on it just as if you were out living on the edge. By cleaning it good every month or so you will in affect stop the weathering process as if you had gotten back to civilization and had been able to protect it better. After several months out in the weather the gun will look well used without all the chemicals etc. Then use the heck out of it until it gains its own character. The guns got the look they have through use, not faking it. Just some thoughts YMHS Birdman

 

[Mike Brooks]

That would be great if I had four or six months to work with a rifle instead of the two or three weeks I actually have to get it to the customer.
Most all of my customers buy my guns because they have that used look , many folks have the money to pay for the old look, but no time to actually put it there thru actual use themselves.
If I used that crisp, new, just of the bench, never been fired look to my guns , I would have never been able to build and sell rifles full time for a living for the past ten years.
It's just as much an "artistic statement" as it is an intentional effort to show age. Well, for me anyway. :haha: