I thought that I posted this yesterday, but don’t see it. Has anyone tried to duplicate Rust-all, especially the bottle #2 that is used for blackening? I’ve used several other techniques to get a similar effect, but it’s quick and pretty much makes it difficult to overdo it.
Mike Thomasson
I’ve not used Rust-All, but have had decent results using Hobby Black, A-West’s Blacken-It, and also found that gun blue works pretty much the same. About the only thing I use these for is scrap loads for gondolas or for weathering miscellaneous parts around a car or locomotive shop.
I also dismantled a bunch of old and shot open-frame motors, and got a load of scrap copper wire…
…and a slightly less-credible load of steel…
The only weathering on those two loads was done with a propane torch, mostly to burn-off the shellac on the wire.
Wayne
Great photos. I’ve used the Rust-all product (blackening) to bring out the details on rocks or small plastic parts. Say more about the blueing. Would it bring out details on a plaster or rubber cast rock that’s been painted with acrylic paint without discoloration of the raised rocks?
I sorta doubt it, as the chemical reaction with metal wouldn’t likely happen on a non-metallic surface.
If you want to emphasise detail on cast rock (or real rocks), a wash of diluted India ink or thinned water-based paint (colours of your choice), along with a couple of drops of dish detergent added, will do a pretty decent job of accenting those details.
Wayne
Thanks. I’ve used that process and it works, but I found it easier to just grab the Rust-all blackening. Plus, I was always worried it might come out too heavy. If no one else has used Rust-all and has a suggestion, I may experiment.
It might if you ‘rusted’ the rock first, by making a solution with quad-ought steel wool in water and then brushing this on, soaking pieces in it, etc. depending on how much black you want and where in the detail. Rust converters should then happily darken things for you.