Your ferric nitrate seems very weak compared to what I've seen in my testing and use. Did you wipe it down before heating it? Or was it just very thin?
The solution I made is a light brown color
Vinegar and steel wool stain
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The solution I made is a light brown color
64Springer
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Everything I've read about vinegar and steel wool says to let it sit in a lidded glass jar for at least a month so it can marinate and break down the degreased 0000 steel wool.
I have some that's been sitting for a few months. It looks like a rusted out sewer pipe.
I have some that's been sitting for a few months. It looks like a rusted out sewer pipe.
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I have used it on veggie tanned leather. The hunting pouch lost all strength in a couple of years. It is now useless. I never saw much use for it on wood, or leather for that matter.
longcruise
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I only heated the butt of the beechwood stock. The ferric on the maple is as it was wiped on. I'll add that the wood and both solutions were very cold . Probably 40*.
The vinegaroon is nearly a year old. I buy a jug of 6% and pour the brake shavings into the jug. When it stops building pressure in the bottle it has completed the process. When a jug is ready to use I start another. Always have a supply that way.
I have leather projects that are many years old and they are holding up just fine. Maybe it was an issue with the leather or something that you treated the finished project with.
Completely agree about the wood. I've never seen a result on wood that I liked.
Vinegaroon reacts with the Tannin in the wood. It brings out the curl . Woods such as Beech have very little to no curl so Vinegaroon or Aqua Fortis for that matter, won't have much of an effect on Beech. I have had very good results with Vinegaroon, I prefer it over Aqua Fortis. I make my Vinegaroon out of rusty barbed wire, rusty nails also works well. I tried steel wool, it was too weak.Rusty wire or nails is the best, the more rusty the better. I use household cleaning white vinegar, it seems to have a little more kick to it. It takes a minimum of thirty days to make good Vinegaroon. I have some that is a couple of years old, it does not go bad it just gets better Don't bother to heat Vinegaroon, it is not necessary. I do two coats, saturate it good and let it dry in between coats. Rub it back lightly with steel wool. I than make a wash of three parts alcohol an one part alcohol base Cherry stain, one light coat is usually all that's necessary. Let dry good and apply your sealer finish, I like satin tung oil. Your results
are going to depend on the quality of the wood. This is a hawk handle I did with Vinegaroon.
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As Tallpine just stated; steel wool/Vinager reacts with the Tannin in the wood - some wood reacts better then other and even within the same batch of wood.Heard about people using a vinegar & steel wool stain for rifles but couldnt find any pictures of it online. Put 000 wool and vinegar in a cup for a week, occasionally stirring it. After the vinegar turned a reddish brown color like tea it was ready. I used a coffee filter to filter out the remaining bits of metal. I used a piece of semi curly maple to test the stain out. The top part is regular aquafortis. The bottom is the vinegar solution. I did dilute it a small amount before applying the stain. Overall, I wasn't really impressed. I was expecting something like a light brownish color but got a grey stain with a hint of brown.
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The research I recently did for aging wood for a wall rack, I was told to:
First pr-treat the wood with a Tea Bath. Let that FULLY dry before applying the dye.
The tea coating helps to add tannin to the wood.
Oh, as you probably know by now but others might not:
DO NOT TIGHTEN THE LID WHILE SOAKING STEEL WOOL &VINEGAR!!
I missed that part and learned the hard way....wife was Not pleased!
DO NOT TIGHTEN THE LID WHILE SOAKING STEEL WOOL &VINEGAR!!
I missed that part and learned the hard way....wife was Not pleased!
DuncNZ
54 Cal.
Acids remove the tannin from tea , make a cup of strong black tea and add some lemon juice , the tea changes color as the tannin is removed .
What is the reason for removing the tannin?
DuncNZ
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I have no idea , people have been putting lemon juice into tea for as long as they have been drinking tea. I can only suppose as it reduces the tannin it smooths out the taste .
Oh, so just for drinking, not for staining then....mayhaps they should try lime juice and prevent the Scurvy!
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Japanning is a method of black enameling on metal and wood. It is not a stain.
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That is true and it does help, particularly on wood with vague figure. Here is a sampling of sugar maple with just ferric nitrate stain and then later the same section of wood shaped and stained with with both tea and ferric nitrate.
dave
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You were not wrong, you were simply mistaken due to time lapse. The grip on the Musso Bowie knife is believed to have been ebonized oak, but the exact wood has not been scientifically identified. Studying on the Musso knife years back was my first encounter with the term "ebonized". Oak is known to have a high degree of tannins.
I used to soak my new TRAPS in water and Black Walnut husks.After a week they were SO black you wouldn't even scratch them while setting. They stayed black too. I wonder what that concoction would look like as a light coat on wood? Has anyone tried it? Be Safe>>>>>Wally
I have stained pine with black walnut, not intentionally but it was the wood I used for stirring when dying my frock coat and some buckskin a few years ago. It turned pretty dark and got darker with each use.
Just remember that such dyes work differently on different woods, and even different on each piece within a given lot so Always Test on some scrap first to determine if it needs pre treated and how much, how long etc to get the look you want.
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