Brass Becomes Impact Metal

Part 3: With the technique "Glowing seas" by master painter Ferdinand Weipert, the coloring is controlled with the help of various oxidation accelerators on the brass brass.

Author I Photos: Ferdinand Weipert

First connected in the 3rd millennium BC BC Babylonian craftsmen used copper and zinc to produce calamine. However, the cornerstone for a mature brass production was only around 1000 BC. BC in Asia by heating the zinc-copper compound not in an open but in a closed crucible.

With the beginning of industrial production in the 17th century, brass displaced other copper alloys from many areas. The versatility of brass as a material is also evident in its colors: depending on the composition, a color spectrum from light yellow with a high zinc content to gold red with a high copper content is available.

Use of brass

To cover wall surfaces and objects, brass is further processed into impact metal and offered in various colors. Impact metal is usually offered in the formats 140 x 140 mm and 160 x 160 mm: color 0 consists of 100 percent copper, color 1 consists of 90 percent copper and 10 percent zinc, color 2 consists of 88 percent copper and 12 percent zinc, color 2½ consists of 85 percent copper and 15 percent zinc.

processing

Impact metal oxidizes regardless of how it is processed. The oxidation process can be slowed down or even intensified in order to obtain attractive coloring of the impact metal. The color of the impact metal can be controlled with the help of various oxidation accelerators.

Oxide metal

Many manufacturers already offer oxidized flakes of metal with the appropriate color under the name oxide metal. Colorings in blue, red, green and black are the most common. A disadvantage of processing oxide metals is the recurring pattern of oxidation on every sheet.

This creates a kind of checkerboard pattern when covering large areas. For the large-scale oxidation and coloring of the brass, it is recommended to cover the surface with non-pre-oxidized impact metal and then oxidize the metal directly on the object. This creates large-scale, homogeneous colorations on the entire surface of the object.

Glowing seas

For the technique “Glowing seas” shown here, milk is first applied to the prepared surface and the brass leaf is applied. After drying, the oxidizing agent No. 6 is applied thinly using a spray bottle. Immediately after the liquid has been applied, the oxidizing agent No. 8 is added with a pipette.

The two chemicals start to react immediately. During the reaction, the process can be controlled somewhat using a hot air dryer. After the liquid has completely dried, the top coat is applied with Zapon lacquer.

To the next episode: Silvering

Further parts of the series:

With a spray bottle, the oxidizing agent No. 6 is applied thinly.

Photo: Ferdinand Weipert

Immediately afterwards, oxidizing agent No. 8 is dripped on.

Photo: Ferdinand Weipert

The reaction can be controlled using a hot air gun.

Photo: Ferdinand Weipert

After complete drying, the top coat is done with Zaponlack.

Photo: Ferdinand Weipert

PraxisPlus

The recipes

Oxidizer No. 6

100 ml distilled water:

6 drops of ammonia (25 percent - 30 percent)

8 g copper nitrate

Oxidizer No. 8

100 ml of distilled water

10 g sodium hydroxide

For any questions: