Inspired by Mr. Sean A. Flynt's article on antiquing, I took it upon myself to try his methods. I chose my DT 2153. For the antiquing medium, I used the vinegar and salt combo. Since Sean noted that he just mixed random amounts together, I went for overload--full saturation. I kept adding salt until the vinegar wouldn't dissolve anymore, then I added just enough vinegar to dissolve what was left over. I sprayed the blade and hilt furniture while protecting the leather wrap with Saran wrap and masking tape. I let the sword rest for one full day (I couldn't help going back and re-spraying from time to time after the previous spraying had dried) and then cleaned everything off. I noticed some areas that would benefit from more "definition" in the patina, so I re-sprayed and went another day. I then cleaned off all of the rust, leaving the black as Sean suggested. A brass wire brush came in handy in cleaning out the nooks and crannies on the pommel and cross. A good buffing with 0000 steel wool and a good coating with Renaissance Wax, and now the sword just "pops"! I love the way it turned out. I was surprised at how black the blade looks. I'll post all of my pics in my album, but here are a few good ones to whet your appetite. Hmmm, maybe my Black Prince is next....

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Antiqued DT 2153 Full shot

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Antiqued DT 2153 Hilt

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Antiqued DT 2153 Blade detail

Hey man, very nice. Normally I'm not too keen on the whole antiquing thing, but that looks really sweet. Nice work.

Steve, did yo do anything to prepare the metal before using the antiquing solution? Any stripping, buffing, cleaning, or did you just take the sword "as is" and apply the mix?

Like what you did there Steve, but you stay away from that nice shiny Black Prince Mister! :)

Steve that looks fantastic!

I've never been much on aging, but results like yours are really tempting me to give it a try.

Hey Steve...

That is one great looking sword... excellent work, especially considering it was your first shot at the whole new-for-old improvement.

ks

Wow! That came out nice!

I should do this to a few CAS pieces I have lying around... spruce them up a bit...

Looks great Steve.....good job!


Bill

Very good results Steve: Its good to have an idea about how far to push the antiquing before starting the process.

Also I wouldn't want to antique a custom piece or a very high end piece.

For something like the squire line I might want to age it just enough to give it the caractor of a well maintainned sword that has been passed down for a few generations and that has seen battle but has not been seriously damaged: No big dents in the blade.

For a much lower end wall hanger that has the lines of a real sword, at least in profile, but not the handling or balance of a good using sword i.e. an cheap wallhanger. (Maybe an EXPENSIVE sword bought before I new any better.) I would go for the much more corroded look pushing it past the point were it would still be a user.

As to corroding medium I have had some success with lemon juice

Again, good job.

Nice, Steve, nice. :cool:

I'm a huge fan of the antiqued look and finish. And I think you did an excellent job!
Very nicely balanced finish throughout.


Very well done, sir, :)
Jesse

Well, I think that's just gorgeous. Whew! When I saw the title of this thread I was afraid your post would begin, "Does anybody know a good lawyer?"
I really do love what you've done with this piece. Congrats on a very successful experiment!