The short answer is that the lacquer or other coatings are just not
able to take the abrasion and impact wear that rings receive. They
will not even last a week or two before the coating has cracked , or
abraded away. If you want do a hands on experiment try painting a
ring with a colored spray paint they are typically at least as good
as the clear coatings for wear and impact resistance. Then wear it
for a couple of weeks after this examine it. Unless you are truly
tough on your rings there will still be color on it but the base
metal will be showing through in many places. All these exposed
areas will corrode if they are a base metal like brass, copper,
shakudo ,shibuichi etc… There is just not any available coating
that will take the punishment that a ring receives on your hands.
Jim Binnion
James Binnion Metal Arts
Phone (360) 756-6550
Toll Free (877) 408 7287
Fax (360) 756-2160
@James_Binnion
Member of the Better Business Bureau
I realize that all surfaces, including the ones that don’t always
come into contact with the skin, will eventually etch or corrode,
but a thought occurred to me. How about powder coating the inside
and sides of the ring?
Powder coat is a type of paint that is more like a hard, metal
finish. It’s done in a similar way to electroforming, in that, the
surface to be powder coated is painted with a negative-charged
substance and the paint is charged positive, then sprayed and baked
on. Very durable.
Hmmm…another thought just occurred to me…perhaps the temperature
required to bake the paint to its’ durable state is too high for the
materials discussed here. Anybody on the list have experience with
this process? Of course, no coating of any kind will last forever,
but is powder coating a viable option?
Has anyone tried patina-ing the mokume ring (with my favorite
patina, one containing selenious acid),and then rubbing off most of
the patina? As I have mentioned here before, my patinaed base metal
ring doesn’t leave any mark on my skin,and the ring doesn’t look
like it’s been patinaed.
There have been some questions here about whether selenium is
chemically unhealthy, but no evidence presented for it. Recently, an
article (copied below) mentioned the usefulness of selenium in
preventing colon cancer, and I have heard that it has some benefit
for the prostate,too. None of this proves anything, but could
indicate that selenium may not as harmful as arsenic, lead, mercury
or the like…
I’ve done some small scale powder coating. I have not done anything
yet on precious metals so can’t say how well it would work, but it
seems plausible. I have used it to protect 24K coated pen parts. One
fellow I know used it to prevent tarnishing and staining of aluminum
and brass pen parts. The maximum curing temp is about 450 F. I have
done all of my powder coat curing in a $20.00 toaster oven. Any
higher than about 475F and you just end up with a real “durable”
mess. In my experience it is tough enough to withstand a lot of
punishment, but it would eventually show some wear. I have not dried
any really fine polishing, but wet dry sanding up to 1200 did not
seem to leave as a “polished” as I was expecting.
Not a huge expense to get into. Probably about $150.00 would get a
good start in powder coating.
Powder coating is basically a plastic powder that is fused to the
surface of the metal. It was my understanding that it is not any
harder than other types of coatings in fact rather the opposite, it
is softer but that means it will not crack or chip and it is very
tough. It adheres quite well to most metals and it is applied at
around 400 degrees F. The down side is it is thicker than most
paints or lacquers and the clear coatings are not nearly as clear as
other coatings. It however will still not last for very long on a
ring, rings suffer lots of abuse.
Jim Binnion
James Binnion Metal Arts
Phone (360) 756-6550
Toll Free (877) 408 7287
Fax (360) 756-2160
@James_Binnion
Member of the Better Business Bureau
It however will still not last for very long on a
ring, rings suffer lots of abuse.
HI Jim;
I’ve been watching this thread, and I wondered if that ultraviolet
curing resin Gesswein sells comes in a clear version. That stuff has
got to be pretty tough. A clear layer of that over Mokume might be
pretty interesting.
I've been watching this thread, and I wondered if that
ultraviolet curing resin Gesswein sells comes in a clear version.
That stuff has got to be pretty tough. A clear layer of that over
Mokume might be pretty interesting.
I just don’t belive that there is a coating that will last on a ring
but who knows. Maybe someone can try it and report back.
Jim Binnion
James Binnion Metal Arts
Phone (360) 756-6550
Toll Free (877) 408 7287
Fax (360) 756-2160
@James_Binnion
Member of the Better Business Bureau
For some reason, the quote from DrWeil.com, describing the
potentially beneficial nature of selenium, did not appear with my
posting. Here it is again–
Science and Supplement News:
Selenium May Help Lower Colon Cancer Risk
Results of a recent study suggest that high blood levels of
selenium protect against the recurrence of colon cancer and
might help prevent the disease in the first place. Researchers
at the University of Arizona in Tucson combined data from
three clinical trials to analyze what effect selenium might
have had. They found that colon cancer patients who had the
highest blood levels of selenium were 44 percent less likely
to suffer a recurrence than those with the lowest blood
levels. None of the patients were taking dietary supplements
that contained selenium. The researchers commented that the
results suggest taking selenium supplements could protect
against colon cancer but weren't able to ascertain from the
study what form would be best or the amount that would be most
helpful. However, those issues may be resolved by results of
an ongoing prevention trial involving 35,000 participants. The
findings linking blood levels of selenium with colon cancer
recurrence were published in the Nov. 17, 2004 issue of the
Journal of the National Cancer Institute.
Source: Journal of the National Cancer Institute, Nov. 17,
2004 [from www.DrWeil.com]
I found that making a mixture of mustard, spermicide and plaster of
paris applied very thin on the finger of the wearer of a mokume ring
will prevent corrosion of the laminates.
However, from James Binnion’s posts I would understand if the
appropriate materials are used depending on the application, there
is no need to use half ass measures like powder coating , glue or
hairballs to try to stop corrosion that would be an inherent problem
due to how certain materials react to each other when in contact with
our bodies natural chemicals, and would compromise the integrity of
the mokume as soon as the coating wears off, before the wearer could
realize damage was occuring.
I found that making a mixture of mustard, spermicide and
plaster of paris applied very thin on the finger of the wearer of a
mokume ring will prevent corrosion of the laminates.
I’m trying to envision the circumstances under which this discovery
might have been made.