Rare Sambo Cap Gun-1897-Before & After Pics

Breezie

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Oct 3, 2009
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Rare Sambo Cap Gun-1897-Before & After Pics

Hey Gang,
About 3 weeks ago, I dug what I thought was a rare Sambo Cap Gun. Here is the original post:
http://forum.treasurenet.com/index.php/topic,419156.0.html
I did several hours of electrolysis on it, but my method was not very successful, so my next door state neighbor, TheCannonballGuy gave me a hand. His method was so much better than mine, and his 'tips' are on my original post. He did an excellent job on the finishing work too. :headbang: Breezie
Heeeeere's Sambo . . . .. .
 

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Re: Sambo Cap Gun-1897-Before & After Pics

Impressive .. he knows his stuff!
 

Re: Sambo Cap Gun-1897-Before & After Pics

creskol said:
Impressive .. he knows his stuff!

Creskol, Absolutely he does. :thumbsup: In the 3rd pic, I had already done 10 hrs. of electrolysis, and as you can see, was not very successful. Breezie
 

Re: Sambo Cap Gun-1897-Before & After Pics

Wow! Breezie that cap gun looks amazing! :hello2:

I've never seen one that old before! :o

I just found one on line that sold at auction for $225 last year! :notworthy:

Dave
 

Re: Sambo Cap Gun-1897-Before & After Pics

That is simply amazing work :hello2:



Blaze
 

Re: Sambo Cap Gun-1897-Before & After Pics

Wow! Way to go TheCannonballGuy! :thumbsup:
 

Re: Sambo Cap Gun-1897-Before & After Pics

Well done Breezie, I've always been a bit worried about electrolysis , but I will give it a proper try again after seeing your results :thumbsup:


hammered
 

Re: Sambo Cap Gun-1897-Before & After Pics

WOW Breezie!!! Sambo looks good as new. That's incredible. HH, Quindy.
 

Re: Sambo Cap Gun-1897-Before & After Pics

that's pretty sweet :thumbsup: :thumbsup:
 

Re: Sambo Cap Gun-1897-Before & After Pics

That cap gun is one sweet find ! :headbang:
Glen
 

Re: Sambo Cap Gun-1897-Before & After Pics

I'm amazed! I want to be able to do that!

Oh yeah.... cool gun!
 

Re: Sambo Cap Gun-1897-Before & After Pics

holy cow ...nice cleanup :hello2: and what a sweet gun...nice :notworthy:
 

Re: Sambo Cap Gun-1897-Before & After Pics

When Breezie mailed me the Sambo pistol to do the Electrolysis on it, I could tell from its relatively light weight that it was made of comparatively thin cast-iron. I know from experience that using high-amperage electricity on such items can cause loss of detail if an iron relic has much corrosion. So I adjusted my battery charger's current-flow to 1/2-amp. Lower amperage means a "gentler" cleaning.

That being said, it was fortunate that Breezie found her cast-iron cap pistol in soil that was "kind" to iron. (Some soil-types are much more corrosive to iron.) What Electrolysis does is break the electrochemical bond which holds the rust-concretion onto the iron's surface. Electrolysis cannot miraculously "put back" iron molecules which have been corroded away. In other words, it is not a magical cure for the rust-pits which often occur while the iron is in the ground for decades or centuries. I must mention that, because I don't want folks to think Electrolysis can make every iron relic you find look as good as Breezie's cap-pistol turned out.

Actually, the most important reason to do Electrolysis on excavated iron is that it not only makes the rust-concretion easy to remove, it electrochemically neutralizes the rusting which has been happening deep down inside the "micropores" in the iron. Electrolysis prevents the iron from continuing to deteriorate after you dig it up. Unlike other metals such as brass, lead, copper, etc, dug-up iron must be cleaned with Electrolysis, to prevent the corrosion from continuing. (Using a hammer to remove the rust-concretion on the iron's surface doesn't stop corrosion from continuing to happen down inside the iron's pores.)

After doing Electrolysis, and any "fine-detail finishing" work that is needed to remove small bits of remaining rust-crust, the iron should be coated with an oxygen-proof sealant, such as Polyurethane. I suggest MinWax "Satin Finish" Polyurethane (not the high-gloss formula). It costs about $6.50 for a spray-can of it at WalMart. MinWax "Satin Finish" Polyurethane is what I used on Breezie's cap-pistol.
 

Re: Sambo Cap Gun-1897-Before & After Pics

It sure beats wire brushing hands down. Great job Breezie.

Whoops CannonBallGuy. :icon_thumright:
 

Re: Sambo Cap Gun-1897-Before & After Pics

That is amazing!!!!!! Excellent work WOW.
 

Re: Sambo Cap Gun-1897-Before & After Pics

Outstanding resto job on the gun TCG. :hello2: :thumbsup: It came out amazing.

Breezie,
That is such a cool old toy gun. Best I've I've seen. :thumbsup:

Congrats,
MM
 

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