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ThisOldCabinNJ
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# Posted: 18 Jan 2024 11:05am
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Hello My Fellow Cabin Junkies! 
TL/DR: has anyone blackened bare steel with either a chemical etchant or heat blackening process to achieve a rich black antique patina? Do you have any tips/tricks/etc ?
So, several weeks ago I posted about using square head bolts for a certain aesthetic to bolt two beams together (if anyone remembers/saw the post). Well, that time has come: I got the square head bolts, the 'warshers' and some 3/16" steel plates to bolt the beams together. To recap, i'm going to sandwich these plates to a 2x8 beam (that is split in the center) and bolt them together.
I originally had planned to just paint them with some black Rust-Oleum however after careful thought, the color and sheen just won't look right for what I want. The design concept is to make the plates and bolts look like something that was built centuries ago: as in I want the plate to look like a hand-forged wrought iron plate. I got the square head bolts to add an additional detail of the yesteryear. The other thing I don't like about the paint idea is that it will just scratch off when I slip with the wrench while tightening the bolts. I'm sure I'm overthinking it (if there's one thing in the life I excel beyond anything, its overthinking and not being able to make a decision...) but I know what I'd like to see there and kinda how to get there.
So has anyone blackened steel before? I have tried using Super Blue gun blueing solution and the results were just 'eh' - however I didn't clean the steel to the Nth degree, I did however clean it with BrakeKleen which should be adequate. I've seen some do a Muriatic Acid dip first then apply Bluing Solution. So I did a bit more YouTubing and Googling. In conclusion my options are to either hot blue the steel with used motor oil where you heat the steel and dip it in the used motor oil (then wash/rinse/repeat until you get the desired color/look), soak the plates in a rusting-solution of salt & hydrogen peroxide then boil them in water which is suppose to blacken them, or I can buy a black oxide solution kit. The Black Oxide is a little on the pricier side so I think I'm going to attempt to hot blue with used motor oil.
If anyone has experience with this I'd love to hear what you did. I have plenty of used motor oil and a torch, I just need to find a metal tray large enough to "dip" the plates in.
Thanks
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Steve_S
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# Posted: 18 Jan 2024 02:20pm
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The only thing I can think of you already have, Bluing Creams, some are quite blue but I know there is a black as well... Long ago I had a friend who "blacked" several rifles but I can't remember a brand. It wasn't hard to do but we had to really clean the steel and wear gloves as we rubbed the cream in etc... That was like 40 years ago or so... I'm sure similar still exists.
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FishHog
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# Posted: 18 Jan 2024 04:57pm
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hot dip into oil is fast and easy and I've had good luck with it. Especially if your just doing the head. Heat it red and drop it in the oil. One dip has made mine as black as needed.
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gcrank1
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# Posted: 18 Jan 2024 07:29pm
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Not galvanized or cad plated? If you need to burn those coatings off DO NOT breath it!
Even if bare metal you need to burn the surface to get anything to take. The 'red' hot into oil works and the historical blacksmiths around here coat their work with beeswax.
Might consider burning 'em off and coating with 'stove-black' too?
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ThisOldCabinNJ
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# Posted: 19 Jan 2024 07:26am
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awesome. thanks everyone. this is exactly why i like to ask ya'll here.
I did see a creamed blueing solution in my 'research'.
The plates are bare steel, possibly coated in some kind of vanishing oil to protect it during shipping. I still need to sand or file off the burrs but good call on that: i should probably de-grease them before I sand to help the sandpaper work better - the plate was laser etched so there's a slight lip around the perimeter.
I found a deep galvanized bin at Wall*Mart yesterday so I think the oil method might be the most efficient way to start. Besides I have a several gallons of used 0w40 motor oil. I wish I saved some of that sweet black diesel motor oil from my truck...the extra soot might have added to the effect. LOL. The next issue to solve is which torch to use. I have a long reach propane torch (the kind for burning weeds out of the lawn) at the cabin - with my luck that's probably won't get it hot enough...otherwise I have to venture over to mom and dad's to dig my ole' Oxy-Acetylene out of the shed, I might even stick around for some dinner
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gcrank1
Member
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# Posted: 19 Jan 2024 11:37am
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LP torch will be enough, you arent getting anywhere close to 'cutting hot'. Ive done small parts ofer our LP cook stove burner.
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Fanman
Member
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# Posted: 19 Jan 2024 08:24pm
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I've done black oxide before, it was a kit they had at work. It came out good, a flat black finish just like you see on Bondhus allen wrenches. I don't remember the details, it was some 20 years ago.
I gotta try the motor oil thing though, my wife wants some homemade black iron fixtures.
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