Hello everyone, I’m using black patina (Jet Black Jax) on my sterling silver jewels. Now I rarely get a nice and uniform patina.
I’ve found I could sand it with 3M discs after maybe 15’ in the mechanical tumbler.
Instead of pumice (which I don’t have at the moment) do you think it’s ok to use 3M sanding discs (from coarser to finer grit)? I don’t have any polishing pad either.
2) Also, what kind of pumice wheel would you use on a hand motor? The thing is, I always texture my pieces and would like to keep it, any too coarse décidé might ruin the texture. Thank you for your kind help!
Thank you very much!
Black Jax’s active ingredients are hydrochloric acid and tellurium dioxide. tellurium reacts with silver to form black silver telluride. You could try diluting it as an experiment. The other patinating agent for silver is liver of sulfur or potassium sulfide. The process is slower. I’ve used a fine tipped artist’s paint brush to apply it. It comes as a powder and is mixed with water. Several applications may be necessary to get the black finish that you want. However, the process is more controllable as it’s slower… both materials are soft, silver sulfide is more ductile and tougher. If texture on the black surface is desired, some thickness build up is desireable. Since silver sulfide is tougher, consider going with liver of sulfer. If a smooth shiny polish is desired, know that both silver sulfide and silver telluride are very soft, Moh’s hardness 2 or less… use an abrasive that is gentle… baking soda is a consideration. finely powder calcium carbonate is also available online. Experimentation is the solution… try using it on silver scrap… PS: Potassium sulfide is toxic… tellurium also is toxic but less so.
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Thank you very much! Yes this time I used baking soda and it was much better. The patina is more uniform and doesn’t make darker patches. I will use your advice, thanks a lot!
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I use liver of sulphur (LOS) when I want to patina a piece. This isn’t very often. As a result, my gel is not as potent as it was a when I bought it, often more than a year ago. I also buy it in a solid chunk form that can be ground down and dissolved in hot water. Since it smells, I usually work it outside or under a ventilated hood. Make sure that the piece that you are working on is very clean. I will warm the piece a bit with a small torch and then put it into the hot LOS solution keeping it suspended as long as I can and not touching anything other than what you are holding it with. Take it out, rinse and repeat the LOS bath heating each time. Once it stops getting any darker or gets to the darkness I want, I rinse it, dry it and look it over. Depending on the desired final finish, I may carefully polish high spots with a hard felt wheel. More often, I will tumble it in stainless steel shot for up to 60 minutes checking every once in a while. This will give it a nice shine. Often, I will texture the finish with a green scrubby or even the edge of a small file to get a tree bark effect. LOS is discussed often on this board and you should do a search to see what you can learn. Good luck…Rob
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Pro tip here. If you want an even deep black patina in recessed areas a sand blasted texture is best. After oxydizing and the removing the black from the upper surfaces I then wax it to deepen the color even more. It’s best to have both the piece of jewelry and the solution warm when applying. I prefer LOS. Why? Because it’s organic and Jet Black Max has some really nasty chemicals in it. Hydrochloric acid and Tellurium. I tired it a couple of times and found that the fumes made my body want to leave the room.
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Jo…What wax do you use? I just bought a glass brush and will have to give it a try next time that I LOS. Thanks…Rob
I use Maguier’s car wax on pieces that will get a lot o wear and tear. I also use Renaissance wax on things like earrings or pieces that have deep recessed areas.
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I have and use both, but I haven’t tried them on LOS. Thanks…Rob
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I have found that a good alternative to pumice before patina is Barkeeper’s Friend.
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I have tried Renaissance wax and found that it really dulls the color and finish on the patina. Was I doing something wrong?
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How thick or thin a layer are to adding into the piece? I should be just a super thin layer.
Per Jo, be very sparing. Let it sit for a while and then buf it off with a clean soft cloth. You shouldn’t even know that it is there…Rob
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