AHA! Blackening maille without a torch

Vladimir · Post by **Vladimir** » Thu Feb 28, 2008 8:46 am

All you need is an oven with a self cleaning cycle and a big open space with fans.

Like my shop at work.

I came in over the weekend to get about 2 hours worth of work done, then spent the better part of the day on this project.

I had to use the self cleaning cycle, the max setting on the oven does not work.

Soak maille in vinegar to remove zinc coating.

Place maille on oven rack.

Set oven to self clean.

Open shop doors and turn on ventilation fans (just in case you missed some zinc).

After 1 hour remove from oven with tongs, place on concrete outside and spray with WD-40.

It turns a beautiful blue black color.

Cat · Post by **Cat** » Thu Feb 28, 2008 11:10 am

The problem I've found with WD40 is that it always seems to leave a greasy nasty residue that just keeps oozing out onto your hands/clothes, and never seems to stop. Did you end up with the same problem?

Cat

Vladimir · Post by **Vladimir** » Thu Feb 28, 2008 3:46 pm

yeah, for a while. I got most of it off by putting the sections of maille in a terrycloth bag and letting the bag get the lion's share of the oil off.

Might not have worked for a full bernie, but small sections worked just fine.

Brynjolfr Hrafnsson · Post by **Brynjolfr Hrafnsson** » Thu Feb 28, 2008 4:31 pm

Could you use olive oil instead? Not that it would be less oily by any means...but it would be less chemically active and I have heard of folks doing it.

I have got a kiln waiting for me in the garage that I picked up, now I just need something to blacken hehe

David Blackmane · Post by **David Blackmane** » Thu Feb 28, 2008 10:42 pm

Actually, you can soak you maille in vinegar, the white kind, then heat it and you will get a nice pearly black. Conversely, you can soak it in vegetable oil and set it on fire and you will effectively laquer it.

LWCM · Post by **LWCM** » Fri Feb 29, 2008 4:16 pm

Are the fans for ventilation just in case you hadn't stripped all the zinc off? Since I'm working mostly in riveted mild steel these days I'm wondering about the smell. I'm planning on degreasing the maille with lacquer thinner or something similar first and letting it dry. So there really shouldn't be any residual residue. I was just looking at this and thinking to myself "Gee self, a standard is small enough to fit in the oven...." Maybe I'll try it when the wife is out of town or something.

Thanks for the post!