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Playing with FIRE
Aug. 27th, 2016 03:18 pmSo yesterday I was looking at How to EASILY Anodize Titanium at Home (2 Methods) and wondering if I should invest in a dozen or so 9-volt batteries and where I might purchase some insulated alligator-clip wires...
This morning it occurred to me that I could test out Method 2 -- the heat method -- without needing any extra equipment; just a gas stove and some fine metal tongs, which I had. And a pyrex dish filled with ice water. And some already-anodized Titanium scales, which I had thought I had ruined by over-tumbling them.
So....
I did some playing with fire.
( cut for images )
Ta-da! I got the multi-colour effect by sticking just the tip of the scale in the flames; that caused the oxidation to be graduated from the tip to the base. Cool, eh?
Then I wondered, in the interests of science, what would happen if I did the same thing with copper scales. I made the mistake with the first one to put it into the ice water, and it went completely black with firescale. Then the second one, I put on my breadboard, which now has a leaf-shaped outline burnt into it. So I got my smallest tempered glass board and put the scales on that instead. Two more dud scales, but the rest were... astonishing. Nothing that I had expected. So cool!
( cut for another image )
The trick with the ones with the v-shaped pattern and the dark base, was not to leave it poking into the flames too long, only to allow the tip to heat to a dull red. If one left it a teeny little longer, the colour-change went over all the scale like an oil slick, which was really cool, but if one left it a moment beyond that, it went a uniform pale pinkish-orange colour all over, not very interesting. Very tricky timing.
I polished them with Renaissance Wax, I hope that will preserve the colours.
Edited to Add:
( Read more... )
This morning it occurred to me that I could test out Method 2 -- the heat method -- without needing any extra equipment; just a gas stove and some fine metal tongs, which I had. And a pyrex dish filled with ice water. And some already-anodized Titanium scales, which I had thought I had ruined by over-tumbling them.
So....
I did some playing with fire.
( cut for images )
Ta-da! I got the multi-colour effect by sticking just the tip of the scale in the flames; that caused the oxidation to be graduated from the tip to the base. Cool, eh?
Then I wondered, in the interests of science, what would happen if I did the same thing with copper scales. I made the mistake with the first one to put it into the ice water, and it went completely black with firescale. Then the second one, I put on my breadboard, which now has a leaf-shaped outline burnt into it. So I got my smallest tempered glass board and put the scales on that instead. Two more dud scales, but the rest were... astonishing. Nothing that I had expected. So cool!
( cut for another image )
The trick with the ones with the v-shaped pattern and the dark base, was not to leave it poking into the flames too long, only to allow the tip to heat to a dull red. If one left it a teeny little longer, the colour-change went over all the scale like an oil slick, which was really cool, but if one left it a moment beyond that, it went a uniform pale pinkish-orange colour all over, not very interesting. Very tricky timing.
I polished them with Renaissance Wax, I hope that will preserve the colours.
Edited to Add:
( Read more... )
