Lacquer For Bronze.
II.—The following is equally suitable for boots and leather goods as for application on iron, stone, glass, paper, cloth, and other surfaces. The inexperienced should note before making this liquid that it does not give a yellowish bronze like gold paint, but a darkish iridescent one, and as it is a pleasing variation in aids to home decoration, it would doubtless sell well. Some pretty effects are obtained by using a little phloxine instead of part of the violet aniline, or phloxine alone will produce a rich reddish bronze, and a lustrous peacock green is obtained with brilliant aniline green crystals.
Quantities: Flexile methylated collodion, 1 gallon; pure violet aniline, 1 pound. Mix, stand away for a few days to allow the aniline to dissolve and stir frequently, taking care to bung down securely, as the collodion is a volatile liquid, then strain and bottle off. It is applied with a brush, dries rapidly, and does not rub off or peal.
Celluloid Lacquer.
Colored Lacquer.
Apply with a soft camel’s-hair brush; it is better to use too small a brush than too large. When complete, warm the articles for a few seconds before a clear fire; the hotter the better; if too hot, however, the colors will fade. This makes the lacquer adhere firmly, especially to metallic surfaces. Aniline green works very well.
Lacquer For Copper.
Ebony Lacquer.
Gold Lacquers:
I.—For Brassware.—A gold lacquer to improve the natural color of brassware is prepared from 16 parts gum lac, 4 parts dragon’s blood, and 1 part curcuma powder dissolved in 320 parts spirits of wine in the warmth and filtered well. The articles must be thoroughly cleaned by burning, grinding, or turning either dull or burnished, and then coated with a thin layer of the above mixture, applied with a soft hair brush or a pad of wadding. If the objects are colored the lacquer must be laid on by stippling. Should the color be too dark, it may be lightened by reduction with a little spirit until the correct shade is produced. The most suitable temperature for the metal during the work is about the warmth of the hand; if too hot or too cold, the lacquer may smear, and will then have to be taken off again with spirit or hot potash lye, the goods being dried in sawdust or recleaned as at first, before applying the lacquer again. Round articles may be fixed in the lathe and the lacquer laid on with a pad of wadding. In order to color brassware, a solution of 30 parts caustic soda; 10 parts cupric carbonate; 200 parts water (or 200 parts ammonia neutralized by acetic acid); 100 parts verdigris, and 60 parts sal ammoniac is employed, into which the warmed articles are dipped. After having dried they are coated with colorless shellac varnish.