thank you for the suggestion; I have heard about the wax and will give it a try,

Mary Rose

This question comes up frequently. I ran tests on cover coats from Renaissance wax to water based varnishes to oil based varnishes to epoxy, etc., and found that they all changed or eliminated the beautiful torch colors. However, a couple at the Ozark Craft Center in Mountain View, Arkansas teach a method for creating and retaining these colors in a very controlled way, producing incredible, colorful patterns that last. Skip and Racheal Mathews http://arkansascraftschool.org/?page_id=395 or http://www.coppercolorists.com/ . Have a look.

I use permalac by peacock industries.  You can buy spray cans or gallons from artchemicals.

It is bad for you.  I use a supplied respirator so as not to breath any of the toluene.  They say it lasts 10 years outside.  sculptnouveau used to sell it and now they have a less violent alternative.  http://www.sculptnouveau.com/Results.cfm?category=7  That is a good place to read up as mr young has a very long carrier finishing bronze sculpture.

On all lacquers the matt finish is the same as the satin or gloss with a little added talc or mica to reduce the shine.  

On any product check the dry time, if it takes too long then you might get dust or bugs.

cheers  m

Thank you for your welcome response.  I will certainly check it out,

Rosemary

Thank you for your response.  I will definitely check it out,

Rosemary

Hello Candy, thank you for the information on Skip and Racheal Mathews.  I too have tried almost everything on the copper colors.  What do you use to protect your copper now?

For shiny copper or liver of sulfur patina, I use two light coats of Renaissance wax. It will wear off eventually but can be removed with alcohol and the shine or patina renewed.

For torch color, I leave it bare and when I no longer like the color, I pickle it and reheat and color it. For customers, I tell them about the color change and offer to recolor it at a later date if the piece has no stones. Most people get used to the changed color and love the piece as it is.

For an explanation of why cover coats don't work well, watch  http://art.jewelrymakingmagazines.com/en/Videos/Tools/2013/02/Video.... The discussion is using liver of sulfur patina as their example but it applies to torch coloring, too.

Thanks for your very informative reply.  For great copper stuff, have you seen the work of Dawily in Etsy?

The colors are amazing.  You must be heavily into copper coloring.  Have you tried Titanium for coloring?

for the titanium, once you get your setup all the colors are repeatable because the color is achieved by exact voltage.  

On the copper, if you use liver of sulfer first for the recessed dark areas, you need to completely clean off the metal where you want heat coloring, or the colors will be dull.  I usually sand blast with slag to give the surface pits for the liver of sulfer to stick in.  Then using a piece of cotton t shirt and cold liver of sulfer, i heat the piece with a heat gun if thin or a torch if thick and sponge on the liver of sulfer.  The hotter it is the faster it works/ darkens.  I do not breath patina chemicals.  Some are VERY bad and cause cancer etc.

Then after LOS  I clean off most of the surface with steel wool, leaving onle the recessed areas dark.  Then heat color, often from the back.  You can use various heat sinks to vary the patterns, and also clean off areas that need to be lighter.   Galvinic copper plaiting solution will zap off the patina and make a light area.  That is an acid based solution of acid and copper.  Try Jaxx.  You can then re heat.

If I was going to sell products that were heat colored they would need to be protected from changing color for at least a couple of years.  

cheers  M

Hello, thank you for the information.  What are you referring to in your statement re "heat sinks"?  Steel utensils or wire?

Mary Rose

Good morning, Mary Rose. I make many things from copper and the torch coloring seems natural for many of them but I've never found a satisfactory coating to retain it. Same problem with raku pottery. The Dawily pieces are as amazing as the Skip and Racheal Mathews pieces. A video of how he does it would be great!

Anodizing and nano ceramic E-coating are fascinating but enameling is so beautiful and permanent I'll just stick with that!

yes steel, wire or anything that will keep one part cool.  Try wet leaves on top of thin copper then heat from under. 

Candy  i recomend trying the premalac or whatever they are currently selling at sculpt nouveau.  Their whole business is based on making and preserving patinas.  I have a old kennedy tool box, the kind with 10 drawers.  i put their copper B paint on it.  The B is a acrylic with copper powder.  You can acid patina it when still wet.  Then permalac.  After 2 years of using the tool box the patina is just fine.  The box weighs about 50 lbs so moving it around causes wear.  

cheers  m

That's very interesting but are we talking about the same thing? heat patina? I understand how you can preserve verdigris and other opaque patinas but heat patina? Isn't that a surface effect, an interference effect, an optical effect that will be changed by adding anything to the surface?

A photo of your tool box or any other patinated piece to illustrate this would be most welcome.

Sculpt Nouveau has good finishes. They also have wonderful youtube instructional videos and are very helpful and quick to respond to emails and phone calls. http://www.sculptnouveau.com

I also use Renaissance Wax and love it. It doesn't dissolve the blues and reds.

Jude

Thank you for your informative reply; I will definitely follow up on your suggestions,

MR

I use Renaissance Wax. However, I both live and sell in a Desert environment and I don't know how the wax will do in a damper area.

I am interested in a sealent to use on copper to retain the colors after torching.  I have tried a car wax and a spray but both covered some of the colors.

Thank you.