Hi Nelson

The only things I use are ferric nitrate for a variable brown finish and copper sulphate to produce a coppery look. I usually appy them to hot, fresh steel so that it just sizzles a little. Alternating the 2 sprays gives a beautiful mottled effect. It needs to be sealed immediately the metal has cooled.

Both are relatively safe, but obviously should be used in a well ventilated area, with gloves.

I used to use ammonium sulphate for a "normal" rapid rust, but I am now using old hydrochloric acid mix that will no longer etch steel. It makes things rust at a huge rate even if applied cold....and it saves having to discard a possibly environmentally damaging waste product.

You can olso use oil based paints, but I havnt experimented with that yet.

Peter

You could polish it and heat to whichever colour you like, you could use the different colour finishes you can get from gun shops, or there again you could copper plate it and give it all the different bronze patinas?

Just quick thoughts.

for a simple rust finish I have found, sand blast the steel then apply 50/50 bleach and vinegar, then rinse with water. you can apply to none sand blasted but it takes a bit. I would suggest you make a few samples. time is of the esseance. also keep in mind if you inteand to clear coat the pieces, the colors change. again always make samples when trying something new. oh ya and brush or spray or cloth or ... all get difforant results.
Matt

one way to deepen the oxidation so that you don't have to worry too much about finishes is to cook the rusted surfaces.
We found this worked best over an open fire and yeilded some great orange to purple variations. These surfaces appear to be tough enough to resist average rain conditions and remain stable for years .... it was the nearest I could get to a wrought iron appearance.
Nowedays I do the same with stainless and can acheive an extremely tough rusted surface that does not stain surroundings.

I tried a few things, and didn't like nasty chemicals. I've been using a 10:1 mix of water and Modern Masters Metal Effects green patina aging solution, it dosn't have nasty fumes and dosn't burn when you get it on your skin. It pits the metal some and ranges alot of colors from orange to reds to blacks, I'll try to send a picture.
I spry it cold and cover it with heavy plastic and forget about it until the next day, after 2-3 days I've got on heck of a cool patina. I clean it carefully with a hot water bath to remove loose stuff and then seal it with many coats of lacquer. I just need to remember to tell the customers that periodicall they will need to oil the piece with mineral oil or my personal favorite pledge clean and shine, which has kept many of my pieces looking good and rust free while sitting out in rain and sleet at art shows.

Good Luck!
Ben
Rust Patina on Mild steel

Hi all,
Please excuse me for taking so long to answer, I usually don`t take longer than a day to get back. Unfortunately, I had some serious problem with a 3 months work, once all was hang up, the client played smart at pay time... well, I good lesson I learned: business is business regardless of relationship with client. At this point, I remember something an old friend who died recently used to tell me, just kidding: "Nelson, gotta screw a friend `cause strangers won`t let ya..." LOL. Wasn`t a laughing matter at the time. Anyhow, I thank you all for your interesting input about patination. Some recipies are known to me, some unknown, some odd and interesting, but all appreciated.If anybody else comes across some more interesting patinas, specially those applied on hot steel, please post them as many other people may benefit too. Again, thanks all for your input. nelson.

Hows bout salt water and vinigar? 4-5 days and you have a good quality rust. This is the method I have been using does anyone know of a problem with this mix? It seems too easy to me.