Browning methods

[smylee grouch]

Awhile back on this forum someone stated that they used cold bluing first before they used browning to get the browning solution to start faster. Am I dreaming or is there a way to do this? Seems as though I always have trouble getting the browning solution to take.   Thanks in advance for any input.   Gary

[heinz]

Gary. An alternative is to pickle the metal with a muriatic acid wash. Wipe a one to five solution of the hardware
Store variety on.let sit fot ten minutes and flush it off. This is an old time approach and avoids cold blue.  Safety goggles and gloved required. I will also show if degreasing is needed. Stronger mixturrs and longer times will pit.

[keweenaw]

People cold blue before they chlorox to get the chlorox to be more aggressive.  There isn't any reason to cold blue before browning as the browning agent will work just fine if the steel is perfectly clean.  Cold bluing before browning might also result in streaks or unevenness in the brown finish.  For almost any finishing technique what is important is that the first coat of agent go on perfectly even without streaks and the key to achieving that is a perfectly clean, degreased surface. 

Tom

[Lucky R A]

    A light dusting with fine sand in a sand blaster works wonders to get a quick even browning.  Do not use the sand blaster if you are looking for a really smooth "plum brown" look.      Ron