want to see a pretty Confederate 10" mortar ball?

[divedigger]

dug out of the mud in saltwater,spent 2 years in electrolysis

[civilman1]

That's Sweet DD..Do you have a before Pic of it?I've got a couple 12# Borman's,but am afraid to put them under,why so long?Beautiful piece.....

[Cannonman17]

Outstanding job with the restoration.

[tac512ltd]

Wow - Beautiful !!

[Leon]

Wow!, what a beut,,, Fantastic job on the restoration, WTG!!!
Continued Good luck, & Happy hunting~

[divedigger]

Civilman,this is a picture of another shell that is exactly how the mortar ball looked when it came out of the mud.The electrolysis is for removing salt from the shell.It is low voltage,low amperage and takes a long time.I cleaned it with a ballpeen hammer.I have had some for 5 years that have had no problem so the electrolysis works.Thanks for looking,David

[cavers5]

That looks like a professional restoration job!

Would you mind posting exactly how you did that as far as equipment, etc.? I experiment with electrolysis with an older battery charger.

I sure would appreciate it!

Cavers5

[divedigger]

very simple,clean off all rust,put in a tub of water,I use rainwater or distilled water at the end,hook a 1 amp battery charger,negative to shell,positive to anodes which are steel or stainless plates,keep shell off the bottom with a brick,add small amount of sodium hydroxide(lye),put charger on 6 volts.Change water monthly,when the water stays clear,cook another month,take out and boil in a turkey cooker 3-or more times,quenching with cold DI or rainwater each time,if possible a chloride test at this time would be good,just let water sit overnight to allow shell and water to attain an equilibrium and test,after last boil,pour off water and do not quench,the heat of the shell will aid in drying,or you can soak in acetone after it cools to remove moisture,let dry a few days to make sure it doesn't weep or have problems,light rust is normal,clean with scotchbrite,apply 2 light coats of gloss polyurethane then 2 coats of satin polyurethane,let dry and take it in the house and enjoy, David

[tymcmurray]

That is quite a transformation!!!
Great cleaning.

[cavers5]

Thanks!

A few more questions: First, what do you use to clean the rust off initially? Second, how in the world are you able to attach the negative to the cannon ball? Third, Where do you get the stainless steel plates?

I sure do appreciate this. I've got a few large items that I've been wanting to clean and have been trying to figure out what would be the best way!

Cavers5

[divedigger]

initially I tap the rust off with a hammer,it comes off in large clumps,but don't beat the crap out of it or it will pit,on this ball the fuse hole is smooth so I just cleaned off rust to bare metal and put a bare wire in the fuse hole and tightly wedged in a lead ingot I had laying around,the stainless came from a scrap bin,a beer keg will work or mild steel works fine as well,try to keep a roughly 3 inch space between the shell and the anode.Other shells I have drilled and tapped holes and attached the ground wire with ring fasteners.Check the hookup with a meter to make sure of good hookup.Put the meter on the shell and the anode,not the wires.

[cavers5]

Great info! Thanks again!

Cavers5

[divedigger]

this is what it looks like to start

[cavers5]

Thanks for posting that pic. It sure does show the setup!

You should seriously think about doing a how-to booklet! I've done electrolysis on a small scale for years and have yet to get to the professional level that you've already surpassed! You're better than any of the "experts" that I've talked to.

Cavers5

[divedigger]

thank you,but it was the experts who showed me how.Texas A&M has a nice set of files to read from as well as ECU.And if you call a professional,they usually want to help.Bottom line is we all want to preserve the artifact.I took a step by step series of photos once and posted them on another forum but nobody was interested.That last picture was part of the group.

[cavers5]

Good grief! Feel free to post them here! Or email them to me!

I'm interested! That's an excellent job on your cannonball! No one could have done it any better! A lot of time-consuming work....

Thanks again for the info.

Cavers5

[divedigger]

Caver I posted it in the cleaning and preservation forum,hope it helps

[cavers5]

Thank you for taking the time and trouble during the hectic holidays!!

Cavers5

[johnreb1980]

You did a very good job on the mortar. I do a pretty good bit of electroylisis work and was wondering if the being in the salt water or just water period preserves the shell and fragments better than just coming out of the ground? All of the shells and fragments that I have done for me and my buddies never turned out that smooth that is why I am wondering. Thanks Jonathon

[divedigger]

I think that being underwater causes the rust to come quicker and developes a cacoon that protects the shell.Land shells rust much slower and are exposed to oxygen which I think causes the surface to corrode and pit