Chromium Trioxide Stain Tips?

[Erzulis boat]

I have never tried chromium trioxide stain, and would appreciate any tips on the proper application techniques.
Is it merely a colorant, or does it chemically effect the wood as does aqua fortis.
I just bought the jar from Dixie. Thanks.

 

[Flintandsteel]

Chromium Trioxide is I believe an acid stain of sorts. It does very nice job and will give varying degrees of brown in maple.
HOWEVER, used by itself.... it will turn the purtiest shade of green from sunlight exposure.
I'll never use it again, have restained/refinished two guns because of it.
Just not worth it.
:imo:

 

[LSU TIGER]

Not to mention the fact that it's a deadly poison.

 

[Griz]

Chromium is really nasty stuff. You WILL need to wear chemical resistant rubber gloves and MUST NOT get it on your skin, especially if you have any dry crack or open wounds. Here is what it does on horns (picture shown). When you get it there will only be a couple little flakes in the bottle, just add warm water and stir it till they are all dissolved. for application, I use a cotton ball and let it on the horn till it is darker than I want and then I wipe it off with water on a paper towel. Let it dry and then I buff it to seal it. I use it on the end plugs, but it turns the wood almost black, really fast in hot weather. it will work fast when heat is applied.

:results: :m2c:

 

[Erzulis boat]

Thanks for the information, all. I will definitely test the heck out of it now, and wait a while for it to do it's thing.

The powderhorn depicted is incredible, the butt plug takes the cake. I am building my first powderhorn as a side project with my newest pistol, and now have reconfirmed the fact that I will end up making alot of them. (powderhorns) What I have now looks positively ill compared to the one in the picture.

I already have some new ideas for another one, namely that sculpted butt plug. :thanks:

 

[Griz]

Thank you for the compliment. I actually finished this one to take to a show and someone else saw it before the show and bought it on the spot. Go figure.

 

In general makers today stay away from CrO3 stain because of (1) dangerous stuff and (2) it tends to turn green after a while. There may be a way to stabilize it, below is a pic of a rifle made in 1974 using CrO3 stain and it is still brown:
I don't know why this rifle has not turned green--I even inadvertently let it bake in 100 degree sun for a couple hours recently...?

Hmmm....not sure why that did web page not work?

 

[MikeChapin]

I used to use Chromium Trioxide occasionally. It actually does a pretty good job but it also tries to turn green after a while. What I used to do is put a red stain over the top of it. At the time I used the old BC Colonial Red that I don't see around any more. Laurel Mountain Maple should work the same.

What happens is that as the Triox turns green, the color combines with the red and turns to a nice mellow brown. Without the red coat you get an ugly greenish brown.

 

[CrackStock]

I saw a gun at an antique gun shop in New Orleans that had been done this way. It was an awful green color. I had a long talk with them and they finally owned up to the fact that this was a screwed up gun. They finally managed to sell it, but at a reduced rate.

The many risks and the many good options with good results and very few risks make me avoid this stain method.

CS