Iron relics brought back to life! Thanks to Buckleboys method

[mangum]

Iron relics brought back to life! Thanks to Buckleboy's method

Hello all & happy Friday! I've been meaning to post this for a while but have just been busy. I had some iron relics that really needed to be preserved & after researching, trial & error this is by far the best method. Please check out Buckleboy's post on this.

1) Soak the relic in apple cider vinegar, (I used Tupperware) Take out & brush with a steel wire brush as needed to get the rust off. I used a cheap grill brush from Dollar General. Different sized relics will take different amounts of time. The colonial lock took almost 3 weeks. The smaller buckles may only take 2-3 days. Be patient! When the vinegar turns black its time to put in a fresh batch. Oh, & use gloves! The vinegar gets nasty when it turns black. When all of the rust is gone, rinse & dry.

2) Brush (paint brush) the relic with Evaporust immediately after drying. You can purchase this at Autozone. This will stop & get rid of any flash rusting. You can start with this step & soak in Evaporust to start but it is expensive. This may be a good option for a lock with a brass keyhole cover as it will not mess up the patina of the brass, it will only affect the iron. It's also good for any valuable relics you don't want to take any chances on. This also works well on items such as a lock because it will get into the inside well. Electrolysis doesn't do a great job with that aspect.

3) Brush the item with Crisco, yes Crisco. Then bake for an hour or so in the oven at 250 degrees. Take out, let it cool down some & then wipe off any excess Crisco. Be careful! Iron gets hot! This is basically sealing your iron relic & after a few days it will have the desirable black iron look.

That's basically all there is to it! As you can see, the difference is night & day. The colonial lock turned out fantastic! It is one of my favorite relics now. I'm sure the more I do this the better I will get but these results are pretty impressive. Feel free to send me a message if you have any specific questions, I'll be glad to help. I know this isn't a find from today but its a lot different than the iron rusted blob I originally posted. I also think this is helpful to the tnet community as a whole.

A special thanks to Buckleboy for being so helpful & posting some great cleaning tutorials. Buckleboy, feel free to chime in of you have anything additional to add that I may have missed.

Thanks for looking & HH!

 

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[Msbeepbeep]

Looks great! Lots of great info thanks! HH!

 

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[mangum]

Just finished this one up last night. This shows you how vinegar affects the brass. I like it but some may want to keep the patina. It's just the face of the lock. I put it in a display case I'm giving a land owner today. His great great grandfather built the home he lives in so its great to give something back.

 

[jewelerguy]

that lock is cool

 

[ModernMiner]

ModernMiner - Just thought you should know - that NC buckle! Awesome! I'm jealous. I need to fit find the missing link to mine!View attachment 903568

Thanks buddy! My best find so far. I looked and looked for the other half, but no luck. I had TWO banners up top back then. The "NC" buckle and a "CSN" Navy button from the same property. I miss my old stomping grounds. Not much CW action here in Asheville.
Have a Happy Thanksgiving.
-Doug-

 

[BuckleBoy]

Thanks for the kudos, Magnum! The original ACV method I owe to Old Stonewall. I like the Evaporust coating to prevent flash rust afterwards.

Just a mild pointer-- citric acid is NOT the same as vinegar (which is acetic acid). Vinegar will eventually dissolve everything metallic, except gold.

Oxalic mobilizes iron and will take iron stain off glass or porcelain as well. (I put a tablespoon or so in a plastic dish with enough water to cover the object and put it in sunshine for awhile, checking every half hour or so.)

One thing about oxalic-- if your item has calcium deposits (lime, caliche, etc) the oxalic will react with it to make a white impossible-to-remove film, so you'll want to wash/soak the lime deposits off with vinegar or citric acid first.

I am going to try oxalic acid. I know that gloves are a must, but is there anything I should know about disposal? Would oxalic react with evaporust, WD-40, or any other oil or wax which I might use for a final coat if the relic is not well rinsed after the process?

Regards,

Buck

 

[PeteWmass]

just neutralize the oxalic acid afterwards by putting it in another bucket with some baking soda -
while you have some oxalic going - try putting any old tin/tin toy/etc with rust on it in - it will take off the rust...leaving the paint - citric eats down to the base metal - oxalic takes longer sometimes - depends on how strong you make it
remember - oxalic acid is slightly toxic - wear gloves (probably a good idea for all acids..they will dry out your skin) - and when you mix it up -dont breathe in the fumes if you use too hot of water - if its hot I do it in the garage - when its cool - doesn't really matter - its not nuclear waste toxic - more like anitfreeze ...heh

 

[CoilyGirl]

I know this is an old thread but I have an old iron padlock I dug a year or so ago and the iron is chipping off every time I pick it up. Would it hurt if I try soaking it in just apple cider vinegar and then coating it with something to seal it? I have not used electrolysis on it,just water and dishwashing liquid. The brass looks good and I would love to see if I can bring out any more detail but also worried the vinegar may completely eat that lock up.

 

[BuckleBoy]

I know this is an old thread but I have an old iron padlock I dug a year or so ago and the iron is chipping off every time I pick it up. Would it hurt if I try soaking it in just apple cider vinegar and then coating it with something to seal it? I have not used electrolysis on it,just water and dishwashing liquid. The brass looks good and I would love to see if I can bring out any more detail but also worried the vinegar may completely eat that lock up.

Smokehouse locks and thin iron are a risk. Another possibility is sand paper or sand blast and then soak in rust converter.

 

[DownNDirty]

I clean the rust off of iron relics using electrolysis or apple cider vinegar, depending on what type of relic it is and the extent of the rust. As soon as I have cleaned it with soapy water I dry it thoroughly with a hair dryer to the point that the relic is hot to the touch. Then I immediately drop it into melted microcrystalline wax and wait until the small bubbles disappear (which means that all moisture has evaporated), take it out and wipe off the excess wax.

No need to use Evaporust if you use this method. Also you can use paraffin wax , which is cheaper; a friend of mine recommended using microcrystalline wax because it has a higher melting temperature (170 degrees) and it permeates the metal object better.

 

[DownNDirty]

Here are before and after pictures of an 18th century bell clapper that I just finished preserving using this method.