Will,
Yeah there is a few ways to approach the project. What I did and I am not saying that it is totally correct but here goes.
After all welding and such was completed I than pickled. I mix 1 part sulphuric acid (battery acid) to 9 parts water in a spray bottle. Wearing rubber gloves, rubber apron, and face shield start at the bottom and work to the top spraying the pickle. Reason to start at the bottom is to prevent streaking. Keep spraying and spraying and keep the surface wet. The oxidation will just run off. If stubborn areas use a scotch brite pad. Once the oxidation is removed rinse with water. Flood the thing and go over and over with the water. No need to neutralize just dilute. Note when I did this outside on my concrete slab and the runoff was into the yard. Surprising it did not kill the grass.
Now since the piece is pickled let it dry. It probably be a little blotchy and the raw salmon color.
Next day I washed with a metal cleaner. It is a PPG product DX 579 who makes paint for cars and such. 10 to 1 ratio and using a nylon scrub brush, again starting from the bottom scrub the whole thing down. This gave a real uniform and clean surface. I let it dry and then did the liver of sulphur.
A trick on the liver of sulphur to get the highlites is to scotch brite off where ever, you will have the raw copper color, which I did not want, now apply a real diluted mixture of liver of sulphur to give a light brown.
I then applied two coats of lacquer from Nikolas http://www.finish1.com/
the outside lacquer. #11565 OD Lacquer RFU.
Then after that I used a mixture of Butcher Bowling Alley wax and paint thinner hot. What you do is take a gallon of paint thinner dump out about a quart or so. On low, heat up the paint thinner and then add the wax and melt the wax. While the wax mixture is still warm spray using a siphon type spray gun. You can get these from auto parts stores and they call them solvent sprayers. Flood the piece with the wax mixture, it will run and collect in crevices and such but okay. Before it dries blow out any globby areas.
I did this twice. Now once it is dried you can either leave it, which will leave a matted look or do like I did. Using a horse hair shoe polish brush go over the whole thing. Just buff enough to give a little luster. Now I was finally done and wore out.
Lots of Work
Will,
Yeah there is a few ways to approach the project. What I did and I am not saying that it is totally correct but here goes.
After all welding and such was completed I than pickled. I mix 1 part sulphuric acid (battery acid) to 9 parts water in a spray bottle. Wearing rubber gloves, rubber apron, and face shield start at the bottom and work to the top spraying the pickle. Reason to start at the bottom is to prevent streaking. Keep spraying and spraying and keep the surface wet. The oxidation will just run off. If stubborn areas use a scotch brite pad. Once the oxidation is removed rinse with water. Flood the thing and go over and over with the water. No need to neutralize just dilute. Note when I did this outside on my concrete slab and the runoff was into the yard. Surprising it did not kill the grass.
Now since the piece is pickled let it dry. It probably be a little blotchy and the raw salmon color.
Next day I washed with a metal cleaner. It is a PPG product DX 579 who makes paint for cars and such. 10 to 1 ratio and using a nylon scrub brush, again starting from the bottom scrub the whole thing down. This gave a real uniform and clean surface. I let it dry and then did the liver of sulphur.
A trick on the liver of sulphur to get the highlites is to scotch brite off where ever, you will have the raw copper color, which I did not want, now apply a real diluted mixture of liver of sulphur to give a light brown.
I then applied two coats of lacquer from Nikolas http://www.finish1.com/
the outside lacquer. #11565 OD Lacquer RFU.
Then after that I used a mixture of Butcher Bowling Alley wax and paint thinner hot. What you do is take a gallon of paint thinner dump out about a quart or so. On low, heat up the paint thinner and then add the wax and melt the wax. While the wax mixture is still warm spray using a siphon type spray gun. You can get these from auto parts stores and they call them solvent sprayers. Flood the piece with the wax mixture, it will run and collect in crevices and such but okay. Before it dries blow out any globby areas.
I did this twice. Now once it is dried you can either leave it, which will leave a matted look or do like I did. Using a horse hair shoe polish brush go over the whole thing. Just buff enough to give a little luster. Now I was finally done and wore out.
warren
http://www.metalrecipes.com