Did a secret express preservation methodology die with the inventor of WD-40?

[Au_Dreamers]

So I was just yelling out, "that's SO COOL...WOW... I never knew that! I just love research, you never know what you're going to find!!" to my wife.

Now others may know this and I may have forgotten about it (I've forgotten more about history than I probably remember) or as I believe, just discovered it for myself.

While researching I accidentally found something else very interesting...

Restoration of Galleon is Readied...

Spokane Daily Chronicle - Google News Archive Search

US Company will restore Spanish Treasure Galleon...with a couple pictures.

The Milwaukee Journal - Google News Archive Search

My eyes settled on this part of the article, "In three days' time," he said, "we can remove all coral, rust and sea shells from a 2,000-pound cannon, without rubbing the cannon or scraping it. It is entirely a chemical action."

Other pieces, such as swords, flintlock guns and items of similar size, can be restored in less than a day, Larsen said.

I'm thinking, WHAT?!!? WOW that is amazing!!

I read the rest of the article and it's about restoring the 1733 San Jose and assembling the wreckage as a landmark for a luxury resort facility now being built in West Palm Beach, FL!!

I'm thinking WOW that's is so cool....hmm I don't know of anything like that going on...

An additional point of interest in the article is, "The Surcon preservative has interested Florida officials who have a warehouse full of deteriorating artifacts."
Hmmm WOW.

It ends with information about commitments to restore Greek and Roman wrecks taken from the Mediterranean and that they have enough commitments to keep busy for the next 10 years.

As I was reading it I thought it was a current story that maybe had slipped passed me because of my lack of following "the news".

Surely such a breakthrough such as this would be all over…
Now recovering cannonballs wouldn’t be such a hassle, haha!!!

I then looked at the actual web page hosting the newspaper article and see that the story is from 1968!!!!

Now I'm really confused how I don't know/recall this story. Surely I would know/have known if there was some preservation method to restore a cannon in 3 weeks and other shipwreck artifacts in days and it was invented 46 years ago!!! Why aren’t “WE” using it?

So I search some more trying to find out more about this Surcon company and the chief chemist/owner Norman Larsen.

I didn't find a huge amount of info but one of the first things I saw was an obituary for him in 1970!!!

So then I start thinking that maybe this fellow died 2 years into the project/trial and it went kaput when he died.

The next thing I find is Wikipedia and the man was the inventor of WD-40!!!!

"and created metal and wood preservation techniques for treasure hunter Mel Fisher"

Norm Larsen - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The article is both inspiring and sad....

"his love of history inspired him to seek techniques to preserve antiquities, saving many treasures."

"A self-taught chemist with a background in the paint business, Larsen was just a high school graduate - everything he knew he learned by reading books."

Hmmm no college, no Masters, no PhD !??!

"Much of his collection of antique chemistry books from the 18th and 19th centuries still survives today. When he died he had over a thousand books in his personal library."

Sounds like a bunch of people I know!!

He sold out WD-40 with no royalties Nor residuals for a mere $20,000!!!

It states he believed he would always invent something bigger/better AND HE DID!!!!

BUT....
"a few years after his death the company went out of business, and the formula was lost!!!"

So maybe that's what also happened with the preservation chemical(s) technique

Such a sad loss to go too soon...

So now a different kind of treasure hunt is on to find the chemical(s) technique he had invented and to put it to practical use in expedient artifacts preservation!

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

Diving for Pleasure and Treasure - Grab it through Amazon!

[SADS 669]

Just look in the CEO's safe at WD40 headquarters, the secret is safe there I bet.

I would imagine his improvement was better and cheaper to make than our friend WD40.

 

[Jolly Mon]

Very cool research.

I wouldn't be surprised if the mystery formula is very similar to WD-40. As a matter of fact, it might be interesting to try using straight WD-40 on an unimportant artifact to see how it performs...I have a few candidates lying around, LOL.

The irony is that, even in the Wikipedia article, WD-40 is described as a penetrating lubricant, when it really is not a lubricant at all.

It is very good at preventing rust and it is great at cleaning certain things...and interestingly its widespread use at freeing stuck nuts and bolts probably comes from its ability to dissolve corrosion...even though true penetrating lubricants like PB-Blaster and Marvel Mystery Oil are far superior.

I haven't bought WD-40 in years, but I may pick up a gallon...thanks for an interesting post...

 

[Salvor6]

Very cool research.

I wouldn't be surprised if the mystery formula is very similar to WD-40. As a matter of fact, it might be interesting to try using straight WD-40 on an unimportant artifact to see how it performs...I have a few candidates lying around, LOL.

The irony is that, even in the Wikipedia article, WD-40 is described as a penetrating lubricant, when it really is not a lubricant at all.

It is very good at preventing rust and it is great at cleaning certain things...and interestingly its widespread use at freeing stuck nuts and bolts probably comes from its ability to dissolve corrosion...even though true penetrating lubricants like PB-Blaster and Marvel Mystery Oil are far superior.

I haven't bought WD-40 in years, but I may pick up a gallon...thanks for an interesting post...

It IS a lubricant. It is 10 weight oil. I use it for lubricating small bearings. I will also reveal here one use for WD-40 that no one knows. I use it for cutting oil on aluminum. It breaks the bond between cutting tool and aluminum preventing "chip welding."

 

[Jon Phillips]

It will remove old stickers, price tags, tape, tape residue, etc., from any item that won't be damadged from getting temporarily wet with it.

Just spray it on, and let it soak in, then scrape the price sticker or whatever off with your fingernail, paper, residue, and all.

We use it to clean and preserve old, rusty tools as well...brings them right back to life.

If you have and older car with a distributor, and water gets under the cap, you can spray it in there and start the car= "Water Displacement formula # 40"

It's mostly lightweight oil and graphite dust...

I wonder if the secret method had something to do with heating the object up in a vat of WD 40...The heat would expand the metal, and the WD 40 would leach in between the metal and the rust and encrustation, and maybe could be knocked off with a hammer?

The metal would, at least, temporarily be preserved...

 

[AUVnav]

WD-40, or water displacement, has been analyzed over the years...(ie, you could save yourself the spray can and use baby oil with the same results)

What's Inside WD-40? Superlube's Secret Sauce

While it is great to reduce moisture, and lubricate, it is short term. ie as a mineral oil, or petroleum distillate, it evaporates, leaving little protection, much more as a moisture replacement and cleaner, than a protector...just spray some on a hard surface, come back and in a short time, little will be left.

 

[Gold Maven]

WD-40, or water displacement, has been analyzed over the years...(ie, you could save yourself the spray can and use baby oil with the same results)

What's Inside WD-40? Superlube's Secret Sauce


While it is great to reduce moisture, and lubricate, it is short term. ie as a mineral oil, or petroleum distillate, it evaporates, leaving little protection, much more as a moisture replacement and cleaner, than a protector...just spray some on a hard surface, come back and in a short time, little will be left.

Water Displacement, 40th attempt, that's cool.

 

[Au_Dreamers]

Mostly why it's safe to use near seals and rubber...PB blaster isn't because it's a true penetrator.

Maybe some of the hype of WD-40 is false hype... maybe it's not that they never got a patent to not have to disclose the ingredients, but they can't get a patent because they just put some other product in a can?

As a younger person I remember my Dad was nuts about WD-40. We used to have a joke not to fart in the shop because Dad would spray your crack with WD-40. He just looked for an excuse to use it!! I remember we made so many jokes about his WD-40 addiction. If anyone talked about anything not working properly even to human ailments we would say well just spray it with WD-40!!! Then lo and behold a few years down the road there's an article in the news about how WD-40 can alleviate arthritis symptoms!!!!

 

[sabre15]

Its actually made of oils from fish scales.