[SEL] Parkerizing, bluing, blacking, & browning iron

[Richard Strobel]

Thanks very much for taking the time to explain, Rich!!!  I will probably 
have to wait until warmer weather as it's around zero now.

  I wouldn't have a clue as where to look for ammonium nitrate...sounds 
scary.  Also it looks like the parts have to be immersed, other than cold 
bluing.  Will this in anyway affect the precison surfaces on the lathe and 
associated parts?  I would completely disassemble the tail stock and any 
other assemblies.

Here's a webshots album with pictures of the lathe and the accessories...and 
then of course the batteries in the camera gave up the ghost.  Don't have a 
clue why the bed and ways are green in the picture.

http://community.webshots.com/album/240686847gnCbuk

Thanks again!  Happy New Year everyone!!

RickinMt.


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Richard Allen" <linstrum55 at yahoo.com>
To: "Stationary Engine List" <sel at lists.stationary-engine.com>
Sent: Thursday, December 30, 2004 11:09 AM
Subject: [SEL] Parkerizing, bluing, blacking, & browning iron


> Parkerizing, bluing, blacking, and browning of iron and steel use
> chemical solutions that react with the iron of the steel alloy to form
> extremely hard (on Moh's scale they are around 7, which = quartz and is
> considered suitable for gems) darkly colored insoluble iron compounds
> that remain tenaciously attached to the surface. Plain old regular rust
> is in this category and forms the actual brown finish originally used
> on guns and other tools until around 1850 when developments in modern
> chemistry made bluing easy. Parkerizing forms the hard and insoluble
> black phosphate of iron, while the others form the various oxides and
> hydroxides of iron that are diversely colored black, blue, brown, dark
> olive green, deep red, and yellow. Another kind of bluing is from a
> class of iron compounds called "iron Werner coordination complex ions"
> and these are a very beautiful deep blue color chemically identical to
> Prussian blue.
>
> My favorite finish is the nearly black metallic graphite luster color
> and is the easiest to do. It also forms the hardest surface and resists
> minor scratching and abrasion quite well. It is made from 5 pounds of
> lye, 2.5 pounds of ammonium nitrate, and a gallon of water. You don't
> need to make up such a large amount if you don't need to, just use the
> same proportions. A United States gallon of water weighs exactly 8-1/3
> pounds if you want to make up the solution strictly by using weight.
> Although not poisonous in its final form, it is VERY dangerous to mix
> and MUST be done using gloves outside while wearing goggles to protect
> your eyes. SLOWLY add the ammonium nitrate into the water, stir, and
> then SLOWLY add in the lye about ¼ cup at a time while continuing the
> stirring. It will get very hot and if the lye is added too fast it will
> explode from the steam that forms. Lots of ammonia gas will be
> produced, too. After it is cool you can boil your iron parts in the
> solution. It acts very fast to make the black finish but the longer it
> is in the solution the thicker it will be. After boiling for ten
> minutes up to perhaps an hour wash the parts off in cold water.
>
> The standard Parkerizing solution is made from 365 grains of commercial
> phosphoric acid "syrup" (also called orthophosphoric acid syrup), 22
> grains of manganese dioxide, and a quart of distilled water. The parts
> are boiled in the solution for 4 hours and then rinsed in warm water
> for a few minutes followed by soaking in baking soda solution for a few
> minutes to kill any remaining solution. Distilled water can be added
> during the boiling to keep up the level if it loses more than a third
> of its volume. A Jerry-rigged Parkerizing solution can be made from 2
> tablespoons of phosphoric acid, a tablespoon of iron filings, and the
> black pasty contents of one new "D" or "C" size zinc-carbon (not an
> alkaline!)  flashlight battery mixed in a quart of water. The
> phosphoric acid can be obtained from a paint supply store and is used
> for treating steel before painting. The commercial acid is called Metal
> Etch, but that stuff is usually pretty dilute. Parkerizing makes a flat
> black or very dull dark gray color.
>
> The brown color can be made by keeping the steel parts in clay-type cat
> litter damped with weak salt or ammonium nitrate solution. This is just
> plain old rust, so don't get the idea that this is something fancy!
> Every few days the parts need to be removed and then wire brushed or
> rubbed down with steel wool to keep the surface from getting grainy.
> When done the parts have to be rinsed off with lots of warm water and
> after drying the metal can be protected with car wax, linseed oil,
> floor wax, etc.
>
> The deep blue color can be made by keeping the steel parts in a damp
> pasty gruel made from pulverized oak leaves for a few weeks. I don't
> know if dead dry or fresh green leaves work better. A paste made from
> green avocado tree leaves will also work. Like for making the brown
> finish, every few days the parts need to be removed and then wire
> brushed or rubbed down with steel wool to keep the surface from getting
> grainy. When done the parts have to be rinsed off with lots of warm
> water and after drying the metal can be protected with car wax, linseed
> oil, floor wax, etc. Boiling in a stew of oak leaves and galls will
> also work but I don't have any specific instructions on how that is
> done.
>
> The commercial cold bluing solutions contain selenium salts and are
> downright deadly if mishandled and selenium poisoning has no antidote!
> The ingredients to make solutions for the other colors are all pretty
> hard to get and are dangerous as well, and consequently I leave that
> stuff alone.
>
> Work and play safely (thanks, Rick!),
>
> Richard Allen
>
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