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Aqua Fortis?
- Thread starter sooter76
- Start date
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If you ordered from track of the wolf there will be a sheet in the bag with directions or go to their website they have it posted. I use a heat gun for the heat source, and you do not want to use old Aqua fortis. The hardest part is getting the heat just right you will need to practice on some scrapes to get the hang of it. You want it to flash then stop the heat, a little more heat and you run the risk of scorching the wood....which is not the end of the world. You will see on your test pieces.
Pretty easy;
Wipe it on, wet the stock completely and let it dry;
Heat the stock with your heat gun, keep the gun moving. The stock will be green at first but will turn a light muddy brown with heat.
Brown;
Same gun as show above. The magic happens when you apply the finish.
Wipe it on, wet the stock completely and let it dry;
Heat the stock with your heat gun, keep the gun moving. The stock will be green at first but will turn a light muddy brown with heat.
Brown;
Same gun as show above. The magic happens when you apply the finish.
So the aquality fortis arrived and looks like it leaked in the package a bit. Is this something I should be concerned about in terms of it going bad and being unusable?
Also, in terms of applying heat to bring out the curl, could I get away with using my wife's blow dryer 9r do I have to use a heat gun?
Also, in terms of applying heat to bring out the curl, could I get away with using my wife's blow dryer 9r do I have to use a heat gun?
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sooter, I'd bite the bullet and get an "El-Cheap-O" brand heat gun (Harbor Freight has one for about fifteen bucks
http://www.harborfreight.com/1500-watt-dual-temperature-heat-gun-5721112-62340.html
you can often find a coupon or somesuch and get it even cheaper...
I suppose you could use a hair dryer, but it would take a very long time.
Also, be sure that you test it on a bit of scrap, and if you have any inlays of wood (i.e. ebony, etc.) you should test it on a bit of scrap of the transition from one wood to the other: aqua fortis may make some woods run or get all streaky and wonky, thus spoiling a nice stock and wasting the time you took doing the inlay as well - double bummer!
good luck with your project, and send in pictures when you're done... we love pictures!!
http://www.harborfreight.com/1500-watt-dual-temperature-heat-gun-5721112-62340.html
you can often find a coupon or somesuch and get it even cheaper...
I suppose you could use a hair dryer, but it would take a very long time.
Also, be sure that you test it on a bit of scrap, and if you have any inlays of wood (i.e. ebony, etc.) you should test it on a bit of scrap of the transition from one wood to the other: aqua fortis may make some woods run or get all streaky and wonky, thus spoiling a nice stock and wasting the time you took doing the inlay as well - double bummer!
good luck with your project, and send in pictures when you're done... we love pictures!!
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don hepler
58 Cal.
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- Nov 19, 2010
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You have been given excellent description, especially with the pictures. The stock turns grayish, then greenish, then a brown to reddish color. Then you can use red maple, or brown stain to make the color pop. A combination of red and brown is what I use. However, the color could be anything from light to dark. I usually wipe the stock with a baking soda and warm water mixture, following the use of the Aqua-Fortis, just to neutralize the acid. If you don't do this, the stock might continue to darken with age. I have one rifle, that was not neutralized and it is now as black as an old church organ. I think, it looks good but it is black, and I mean black.
Regarding the leakage, if the solution in the bottle wasn't contaminated it should be fine. Nitric acid is a bit of an oxidizing agent, even in the low concentration that you have, so it could react and cause a fire or fume if it happens to come in contact with the wrong substances. Also, if it gets on your skin it could turn it yellow. I am interested on how it turns out.
Pete G
76 Cal.
I much prefer to use ammonia to neutralize. Baking soda solutions can leave white powder in some hard to reach places.
In regards to heat, the paint stripping heat gun is best but if you are really in a pinch you can use a camp stove, or if you have a real understanding wife, the kitchen range. :hmm:
In regards to heat, the paint stripping heat gun is best but if you are really in a pinch you can use a camp stove, or if you have a real understanding wife, the kitchen range. :hmm:
don hepler
58 Cal.
- Joined
- Nov 19, 2010
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Look's like LMF nut brown, but I'll let him answer that. The thing to remember, is that you can always start light and then go darker. If it's too dark, you'll have to sand it back down and that's not the way to go. If you wipe the staining rag almost dry on a piece of clean cardboard, you can control how much that your are putting on the wood, but if the rag is too saturated, you stand the chance of going too dark. First thing is to get the AF to that reddish color. You're not going to hurt anything. Just make sure to keep heating after you see the greenish color, keep going till you see the reddish color. Simple. Add stain and Wow!!!
