Oxidizing Chain

[WireWitchery]

So at the moment I have an... let's say "interesting" (so that I don't call myself cheap ) setup for my oxidation.

I use extra glad ware containers and cut little slits to basically thread spare bits of wire to hold the pieces above the ammonia. This actually works perfectly well and I'm not worried about it. The problem I have is that now I need to oxidize some chain to match and it's hard to get it suspended evenly without allowing it to accidentally touch the ammonia.

I was wondering how everyone else does this? I'd prefer to do it without spending a bunch of money or buying a special container but if that's what it takes to do this better than I will.

Any advice would be appreciated

[DawninCal]

Welcome to JAC, WireWitchery!

You could try the boiled egg method which basically involves boiling an egg, mashing it up and putting the mashed up egg and your chain in a plastic baggy for 24 hours. It's an eco friendly method and inexpensive, but doesn't always yield uniform results.

Another option and what I do (having tried the boiled egg method and got tired of the mess) is to oxidize your chain in a solution of Liver of Sulfer. There's a gel form that doesn't break down available that only requires mixing in hot water. Just dip until you get the desired results and then rinse in cold water to stop the oxidation process.

A small jar goes a very long way.

My other thought is that when possible I oxidize all of my components at the same time in the same batch of LOS, so that they all come out uniform and matching.

I'm sure others will chime in with how they do it as we're a helpful bunch!



Dawn

[WireWitchery]

Hmm, this liver of sulfur sounds like it would be worth a shot

How long will the batch keep? Part of the reason I like the ammonia is because I've been using the same batch of it for a few weeks without having to change it out.

Does the liver of sulfur affect the stones at all?

[koolbraider]

Get the gel form of LOS (liver of sulfur). First, heat the water in a microwave, pretty hot but not to boiling because that releases sulfur dioxide vapors which are bad. I use a Glad container a bit larger than my copper piece. I also hang the piece from a string or something so the piece gets completely immersed in the solution. For me, depending on the size of the container, three or four drops work well. The thread (I use crochet cotton) allows me to pull the piece up to check how dark things are getting (I have learned it's easier to darken to a certain point and not just let things go completely black). I got my gel from Cool Tools last year and it's only half gone now, and I use it quite a bit. I do find that it tends to lighten up faster and go bad but the LOS rocks always seemed to go bad when I needed them.. Cool Tools has a video on their site to show you how to use it.

As far as I know it doesn't affect any stones because it only reacts with the metals silver, copper, and brass.

Hope this helps. And like Dawn said, do any pieces that need to match at the same time.

[WireWitchery]

Good lord! I watched the video and it works quick. Well that definately looks like something I need to add to my toolchest.

[WireWitchery]

Well I've ordered some I'll let you know how it goes.

[DawninCal]

You are going to love it!

Once you get the hang of it, you'll figure out how to control the oxidation to get the results you want.

Have fun playing!



Dawn

[WireWitchery]

Oh my god I think I love you for showing me this. The chain finished in less than a minute and it didn't get all dull like it does when I use the ammonia

I also bought those polishing pads she used in the videos and those made a huge difference even on the old pieces I'd done... This site is amazing

[koolbraider]

Do you mean the Pro Polishing pads? I wouldn't be without them!!! And welcome to the community where you can ask any questions you need to ask, 'cos we've all had similar problems.