Birchwood Casey Brass Black miserable failure !!!

[Ohio Rusty]

So I have a couple of these nice brass clipped edge buckles for shooting bag buckles. I wanted to make one black for the next bag project. The shiney buckle on the left I soaked it is alcohol and put it under a wire brush to remove any varnish that may maker may have coated the buckle with. After prepping the buckle and then soaking the buckle in Birchwood Casey brass black for 2 days, it is a miserable failure !! Not only is the brass not black, it is splotchy, nasty, and ended up a copper color, not brass black as the product is supposed to make brass black. I'm really disappointed with their product and I would have been better off spray painting the buckle with a dull black metal paint like rustoleum. This brass black product is trash. Don't waste your money.
Ohio Rusty ><>

 

[Buff1958]

i have never tried that brand. I use JAX black. I have had a few thinks come out like that on the first try.
I rubbed them back and heated the parts with a heat gun. a little heat helps a lot

 

[Omahkapi'si]

Works good if you want your buckle to look like it's 200 years old and dug up in your yard....

 

[RiverRat]

A dirty patch from wiping you ml barrel after shooting real bp, always worked for me to antique brass.

 

[Commodore Swab]

Looks like it wasn't clean enough. I've used the brass black many times. It's difficult with new coated/polished brass. I've had fair luck with new brass tumbling a day with dish soap before coating. For a more labor intensive method sand paper. When it will dull by looking sideways at it its ready.

 

[wiscoaster]

....After prepping the buckle and then soaking the buckle in Birchwood Casey brass black for 2 days, it is a miserable failure !!.....

WHAT?!?!? The directions say to soak it for one minute and then neutralize with cold water. Then repeat to get a darker color. Don't blame the product when you don't follow the directions. Sheesh.

 

[APG]

Could it be that your buckle is brass plated and not solid brass? And leaving it in the solution for an extended time it ate the brass plating off. Maybe?

 

[barracudadave67]

Try the magnet trick on your buckles.

Dave

 

[Nor Cal Mikie]

Anybody try Blue Wonder Gun Black? Don't know what it does on brass but, it's Killer on barrel steel. You want BLACK, this stuff does exactly that!!

 

[andy52]

If you just want it to take on a patina, take a mason jar and put a little white vinegar in the bottom, suspend the buckle from a string not touching inside the jar with the lid on and not in the liquid, and leave it for a couple of days.

 

[Greenjoytj]

Just expose you brass to sulphur that will turn the brass black real quick.
When I was a child I did copper foil embossing. Part of the process to add the shadow effect to the art piece was to wipe the copper foil with water that had a chemical yellow tablet dissolved in the water.
A wad of cotton batten dipped in this chemical mix that reeked of sulphur would instantly turn the copper black.
Buffing the copper foil to restore the copper shine on the high spots and leave the black in the depressed areas made the shadow effect and the 3D look really popped.

Don't know what the special chemical tablet was but the internet art store types might know.

 

[fubar22]

I use brass on knife guards and pins and sometimes use Birchwood Casey Brass Black. I have had mixed results with this product even when the instructions on the bottle were followed to the letter. As frequently mentioned in other replies in this thread, proper surface prep (including removal of any surface coatings like varnish or lacquer) and degreasing (with denatured alcohol or brake cleaner) is very important. Some brass objects take the blacking compound better than others, probably due to differing copper content and (on plated items) differing coating thicknesses. If the brass black doesn't take, I just polish it off with Flitz.

 

[B P Arn]

WHAT?!?!? The directions say to soak it for one minute and then neutralize with cold water. Then repeat to get a darker color. Don't blame the product when you don't follow the directions. Sheesh.

When all else fails, blame the manufacturer for making a lousy product. Then read the directions and try again...

 

[BillinOregon]

I always thought we were supposed to take these outside and just pee on them for a few days.
Rusty, did you try rubbing this back with bronze wool to see if you can find a sweet spot?

 

[kyron4]

Rough it up with a green scratch pad , clean with alcohol and apply per directions. I've had good success browning/blacking brass with BC Super blue.

 

[Philip Chua]

1. What makes you think the buckle is solid bronze/brass? You dissolved the plating.
2. This is an etching compound. Copper and zinc sulfates, phosphoric and selenous acids. You left whatever metal alloy that is in an etching compound for 2 days. It removed the plating and whatever that is - is the metal underneath.
Your results reflect your preparation for the job.

 

[Ohio Rusty]

The buckle is non-magnetic. These buckles have some varnish coat to keep them shiney. I cleaned the buckle with both water and alcohol after several attempts to make the brass black turn it black. None of the bottle directions did work well to what I was wanting the finish to look like.. Maybe I should have soaked it in moonshine ?? Not sure what is next .... I'll come up with a solution .....
Ohio Rusty ><>

 

[Philip Chua]

The buckle is non-magnetic. These buckles have some varnish coat to keep them shiney. I cleaned the buckle with both water and alcohol after several attempts to make the brass black turn it black. None of the bottle directions did work well to what I was wanting the finish to look like.. Maybe I should have soaked it in moonshine ?? Not sure what is next .... I'll come up with a solution .....
Ohio Rusty ><>

The surface is highly polished as well. Blackening is the same process as bluing/browning. So you’re taking your metal and applying an oxide to the finish. In addition to removing and surface treatment like wax/lacquer etc (alcohol then acetone) you can use fine sandpaper to give a fresh surface. I’d do this before the alcohol/acetone. The “pickle” in acid. I use citric acid solution but really boiling in white vinegar would probably work fine. Then dry it, heat it back up and apply the blackening solution (immerse this in a small amount). Check it often to see how it’s going. Then remove and boil it for 20min or so. Some folks “neutralize” when this is done with washing soda/baking soda solutions but I’m not certain that’s necessary. Rinsing with water should work. Mind you - my tech is mainly for bluing but the principle is the same. See a link below for similar tech.


https://modelshipworld.com/topic/21710-blackening-revisited/#comment-651453

 

[Hermit Tim]

I've used it once. I was building a custom junkyard Hawken and didn't want shiny brass. But I didn't want black either. So I followed the directions. It said if you wanted darker just repeat the process until you reach your desired finish. I cleaned all the brass pieces and applied the brass black. Then rinsed in cold water, dried, and did it again the next day. Don't remember if I did it 2 or 3 times but it did give me the antique finish I was looking for.

 

[Eterry]

I've never aged any brass, but I don't polish it either. So after a few years I have a lovely patina.
I've heard good things about human urine and brass. But don't bite your fingernails.