Blackening Brass?

[Dacs]

I have noticed here and in other forums, that a lot of model builders have that very question.
Paint? Not good. Too delicate
Salt and vinegar? Sure, if you want to wait for hours and hours and...well, ad-nauseim.
Try Brass Black! Gunsmiths use it to blacken brass gun parts. It is fast acting too!
Perhaps this has already been addressed. So forgive me if I am repeating.

Dave
W.V.

 

[Quint]

Birchwood Casey Brass Black, also works on copper.

 

[DARIVS ARCHITECTVS]

If you don't have any brass browning solution, here is a method that works. If you want to brown the brass, not blacken it, take a sealable container from the kitchen, pour some household ammonia in the bottom, float a smaller container holding the brass parts on the ammonia, seal the container, then place it in a warm place, like in your car out in the sun, or on top of your house water heater. Wait 18 hours.

Small glass bowl with the cutoff bottom of a soda can holding cleaned, brass cannon barrels. Plastic wrap and a rubber band seal the bowl.


Fully ammonia fumed barrels on the right (exposed 18 hours), partially fumed barrels (exposed for 3 hours) on the left.


Lightly burnish the barrels with a Scotchbrite pad to polish off the white oxide, and you get a nice, browned finish which has a bit of texture so it looks to scale.

 

[Dacs]

Thank you the browning technique idea Rob444! Being ammonia, does it not create the lovely smell?

 

[DARIVS ARCHITECTVS]

Thank you the browning technique idea Rob444! Being ammonia, does it not create the lovely smell?

That's why you seal the container. Also, it's the ammonia fumes that do the work, so it has to be sealed.

 

[mantares]

Birchwood Casey Brass Black, also works on copper.

I am very pleased with this product. I make sure that the brass is cleaned with acetone. If I don't do that there can be some blank areas left on the brass.

 

[Polo]

If you don't have any brass browning solution, here is a method that works. If you want to brown the brass, not blacken it, take a sealable container from the kitchen, pour some household ammonia in the bottom, float a smaller container holding the brass parts on the ammonia, seal the container, then place it in a warm place, like in your car out in the sun, or on top of your house water heater. Wait 18 hours.

Small glass bowl with the cutoff bottom of a soda can holding cleaned, brass cannon barrels. Plastic wrap and a rubber band seal the bowl.
View attachment 439056

Fully ammonia fumed barrels on the right (exposed 18 hours), partially fumed barrels (exposed for 3 hours) on the left.
View attachment 439058

Lightly burnish the barrels with a Scotchbrite pad to polish off the white oxide, and you get a nice, browned finish which has a bit of texture so it looks to scale.
View attachment 439069

Great result!!! Thank you for the advice

 

[blickwer]

Bluejacket Shipcrafters sells a brass brown treatment similar to brass black. Follow their dilution recommendations. Pull your stuff out when it turns brown. If you use a higher concentration it goes to black very quickly.