Colored Brass

[croue]

Made some colored brass. Recipe said red. But I didn't measure the temp precisely, and the color seems to change with time and temp. But definitely noticeably colored! Some red, some more bluish black, the top one is not colored for comparison.

I love chemistry!

[IntoForever]

The bottom look like hippie brass, tie dye.

[croue]

Still had some water spots on it.
There is some variation for sure though.
I think I need to make a larger batch and use a bigger container so I can stir it better. Than use a strainer to remove the brass and get it into the rinse quicker to get more even coloring.

But mission accomplished, I will definitely be able to pick out my brass. Looks a bit too much like the steel case stuff though. May need a magnet to make sure I get all the steel case out.

I think I'll try the green next time.

[CSACANNONEER]

The top one is a neat color. Care to share the recipe for that color?

[croue]

The top one is a neat color. Care to share the recipe for that color?

Ah, That would be an ancient chinese secret!

[Ubermcoupe]

Made some colored brass. Recipe said red. But I didn't measure the temp precisely, and the color seems to change with time and temp. But definitely noticeably colored! Some red, some more bluish black, the top one is not colored for comparison.

I love chemistry!

Interesting...

[LexLuther]

Ah, That would be an ancient chinese secret!

wEAK

[SonofWWIIDI]

I like the blue/black one.

[croue]

Funny thing, I know at least one nickel plated case went in there. I figured it would stay silver. But now I can't find it.

[bigbossman]

It would be interesting to know how the color wears through the reloading/tumbling process.

[croue]

I already resized a few - no damage, held up great.
I'm going to load them up. But I'll throw a few in the next tumbling run I do and see how they hold up. Probably later this week.
Pretty simple process, but just a little stinky I must admit. Faint sulfur smell in the garage this morning from the buckets.

[croue]

Before and after tumbling for 1 hour with ss media, splash of thumlers tumbler solution and about 1 tablespoon of lemishine.

And nickel plated brass with patina.

[3RDGEARGRNDRR]

No secret. Been around for a while
coloring cases

refer again to the reference section below.


TIFFANY GREEN:
Copper Sulfate................. 8 ounces
Ammonium Chloride......... .....4 ounces
Sodium Chloride........... .....4 ounces
Zinc Chloride............. .....l ounce
Acetic Acid............... .....2 ounces
Water..................... .....l gallon

VERDE:
Copper Nitrate................. 16 ounces
Ammonium Chloride.............. 4 ounces
Acetic Acid.................... l quart
Water.......................... l gallon

GREEN:
Iron ( ferric) Nitrate......... 2 ounces ( Fe(III)(No3)3)
Sodium Hyposulphite............ 8 ounces
Water.......................... 1 gallon
(use at boiling temperature, brass can be immersed
or the solution may be "painted" on)

HARDWARE GREEN:
Iron (ferric) Nitrate.......... l ounce (Fe(III)(No3)3)
Sodium Thiosulfate............. 6 ounces
Water.......................... l gallon
(use at 160F)

RED:
Iron (ferric) Nitrate.......... 6 ounces (Fe(III)(No3)3)
Sodium hyposulphite............ 6 ounces
Water
(use at 170F will speed up this reaction)

BLUE:
Sodium Hyposulphite............ 8 ounces
Lead Acetate................... 4 ounces
Water.......................... l gallon
(use at boiling temperature)
or
Lead Acetate................... 2 to 4 ounces
Sodium Thiosulfate............. 8 ounces
Acetic Acid.................... 4 ounces
Water.......................... l gallon
(use at 180F. This color will change if
not lacquered [Do NoT LACQUER FIREARM CARTRIDGES]
Take your chances with the color change.)

BLUE BLACK:
Copper Carbonate............... 1 pound
Ammonium Hydroxide............. l quart
Water.......................... 3 quarts
(Add the water after the carbonate and hydroxide
have been mixed. There must be excess Copper
Carbonate. Use at 175F. This color can be fixed
(made more permanent) by quickly dipping in a 2.5%
Sodium Hydroxide solution.)

BLACK:
Ammonium Hydrosulfide........... 2.25 ounces
Potassium sulfide............... 1 ounce
Water........................... 1 gallon
(use at room temperature or COOLER for best results)


BROWN:
Potassium Chlorate.............. 5.5 ounces
Nickel Sulfate.................. 2.75 ounces
Copper Sulfate.................. 24 ounces
Water........................... 1 gallon
(use at boiling temperature)



SAFETY:
1. NEVER taste any of these chemicals.
2. Keep very far out of the reach of children.
3. Most Nitrates are good oxidizing agents and
should not be stored with anything flammable.
4. Acetic Acid has a VERY strong pungent odor.
Use in well ventilated areas. This acid can
be airborne in vapor form. If you feel that
you have breathed enough of it to feel
uncomfortable, leave the area and drink a
carbonated soft drink. "Have a Coke" Do not
underestimate this chemical.
5. Many of these chemicals may stain your skin or
clothing. Wear rubber gloves and protective
clothing including glasses of some sort.
6. Steam can cause serious burns. Solutions of salts
can actually exceed the boiling point of water.
The steam from these solutions can be very dangerous.
BE CAREFUL WITH STEAM AND BoILING SoLUTIoNS.
7. Feel free to change concentrations for experimentation
purposes but do not change the ingredients in any
one recipe.
8. Always be fully awake and alert around chemicals.

CONVERSIONS AND INTERPRETATIONS:
Ounces are assumably troy ounces, even when dealing
with liquids or solutions. Do not use fluid ounces.
1 ounce = 31.103 grams = 480 grains
1 quart = 0.25 gallon = 946.4 mL
1 gallon = 3.78S L

REFERENCES:

Meyer, Walter R. title: Plating and Finishing Guidebook
ninth edition - 1940 pp.72-75 (cited)

Metal Finishing Guidebook-twenty-eighth edition - 1960
article by Hall, Nathaniel
Title: Coloring of Metals pp. 477-479 (cited)

Krause, Hugo title: Metal Coloring and Finishing

Hiorns, A. H. title: Metal Coloring

Field, S and Bonney, S.R.
title: Chemical Coloring of Metals (not cited)

[croue]

Absolutely no secret. Never claimed it was. I used the 'red' recipe with Ferric Nitrate and Sodium Thiosulfate. But I'd never seen the results and wasn't sure myself what the patina would look like or how it would wear. Definitely a more intense and durable color than I was expecting. Thought others may like to see what the result looks like before trying if they were interested.

The brass went through a reddish phase, but I left them in another few minutes and got the more blackish color that I kind of like. Seems to start slow and accelerate as the color builds up. Using hotter water can make it go really fast.

C

[croue]

wEAK

Uh, if this is made you think I was claiming it was a secret - it was in reference to how to get the natural cleaned and tumbled brass color in the first photo. Obviuosly the color of choice for most folks!

C