Help making sheet steel look 100 yrs old

[Gary Fowler]

The iron oxide (bluishish black patina on it) is the natural formation on steel when it is rolled and formed and it is pretty resistant to chemicals that work for making a patina. Acid is used to clean metal, not make it rust although if you leave it on and expose it to air it will rust up again. Acid will remove the iron oxide and phosphoric acid seems to do the best at cleaning carbon steel. Any salt added is going to make it rust and repeated wetting like wet boots will likely continue to rust as salt penetrates the pores in the steel and is very hard to remove. What ever concoction you use will need to be pressure washed really good to get all the salt and acid off.
Personally I would leave the iron oxide on it, maybe dent it up a bit with a chain but not a lot, take an awl and put some scratches in it like you would get from dragging a fire poker across it many times. TOO much hammering of the steel makes it look too fake at least in my opinion. Even after 100 years on the floor there will be more wear from walking (shining of the steel) than denting. I don't know of many folks who use their hearth for an anvil. There might be some minor scratches from the fire poker and some light(very light dents) but that would be about it.

 

[yomax4]

I saw an application like this only they painted the back 2/3 of the steel and fixed a 3/32" thick sheet of Copper to the front 1/3. Looked very cool and it aged really nice like copper does.. The price of the copper sheet would be the same as all the trouble you would go through ( or less ) than trying to age the steel with acid or hammering.

 

[Sodo]

I saw an application like this only they painted the back 2/3 of the steel and fixed a 3/32" thick sheet of Copper to the front 1/3. Looked very cool and it aged really nice like copper does.. The price of the copper sheet would be the same as all the trouble you would go through ( or less ) than trying to age the steel with acid or hammering.

Interesting idea?.thanks for the suggestion. I think steel looks more authentic, trying to use materials that people in the area would have 'had'. I plan to use uncoated nails too.

But whatever you decide don't try to color that metal with heat while it sits on that wooden floor.

I haven't settled on a method yet but certainly not bringing a torch into the cabin. Easy to slide the sheet out, I only put it there to make the pic to post here (and think about it.) Easy to slide it out I just put a board under to lift the stove 1/4".

The sheet is cold rolled, there's no mill scale on it, the pic is pretty much what it is, smooth and bright. Yes Gary you're describing the look I want, little dents from the poker are OK but not all over the sheet. Not sure I could dent it authentically but I want foot traffic to wear it shiny around the legs & nails as Brad described.

What is traditional gun blue (brown?) made from. Probably made from available ingredients its been around awhile. Often these things get commercialized then nobody knows how they are easy to make. It's txgiving, hope y'all are having happy days, family days. On that note I don't know where I'll get gun blue today but might try a concoction. I like the blued steel but not for this; brown seems to be the way to go.

For a cheap rust patina try this:
4 parts white vinegar, 1 part hydrogen peroxide 1/2 part of salt. Not my recipe but one I found on an artist blacksmith site. Certainly a cheaper alternative than little bottles of gun blue.

Chris do you know how long this takes, and is it tough? Might try this on a test piece.

 

[CNC Dan]

if you can heat the sheet, you might try linseed oil. It bakes to a leathery brown.

 

[sixdogs]

How about something simple like stove black? It's purpose in life is to keep metal looking a soft gray-black color with minimal effort and also protect against rust. Anyone that has ever "blacked" a stove will tell you the metal develops a nice soft patina and pleasant gunmetal gray color.

I've blacked a number of stoves over the years and it is easy and cheap. I've also had a few of those steel plates and usually just painted them Deere semi-gloss paint. I would have blacked them but never thought of it back then.

 

[moeh1]

Rust reformer (phosphoric acid) on new metal doesn't seem to go to full black for me, that might give you the look you were seeking if you controlled the time it was on there and cheaper to try. At least you have 2 sides, so 2 chances to get it right....

 

[Sodo]

Baked Linseed, stove black, phosphoric these ade good ideas too. Next week i will get a test sheet and try these and others.

Is the "stove black" an opaque covering (like paint) or a treatment? For cast iron (I suppose) but does it work on cold rolled steel?

 

[sixdogs]

Baked Linseed, stove black, phosphoric these ade good ideas too. Next week i will get a test sheet and try these and others.

Is the "stove black" an opaque covering (like paint) or a treatment? For cast iron (I suppose) but does it work on cold rolled steel?

It's like buffing with shiny powdered steel. I have used on steel and it looks like what you would call a semi-gloss patina. Like if you held a slightly rusty piece of steel against a wire buffing wheel for a long time. You'll have to try it to see if you like it. In my view, it makes a woodstove look beautiful and well cared for.

I used stiff brush to apply it

 

[bcp]

If you aren't in a big hurry and want an authentic look, just put it under the stove and use it for 100 years.

Bruce

 

[mike194]

Boil it in trap dye

Logwood Trap Dye-Minnesota Trapline