How To Fume Patina Copper, ammonia salt - Front Door Build Part 1 - Woodworking - Metal 

Thanks, I wish the finish would stick to the salt, but cool results either way!

It's been a few years since I made this door, so I can't remember the exact specifics. The finish I used was a Sherwin Williams product designed for copper, and I'm sure I put 2-3 coats on.

Let me get back to you. I need to where I put my book

@@Benham_Design Dang it!

haha any update on this? i just got the book too, would be nice to know which recipe number to look into

Thanks, I may have to get that a try!

An exterior grade spar varnish.

Links in the description 2nd paragraph

Once you open the ammonia it starts to degrade pretty quick from there, after about a day, it's pretty weak. There is no secret sauce, and much better explanation on Google than I can give. I rinsed with water

😂, RU-vid is no longer about educational content. It's about click bait titles and looking constipated in the thumbnail. I rinsed it off with water, and sealed it with a resin sealer from Sherwin Williams. Sherwin William's marketing department is terrible so they don't give their products actual names, just a string of numbers and letters, so I don't remember all that. But if you go to Sherwin Williams website under commercial finishes, and search for resin sealer you should find it. I highly recommend having a spray both with a lot of air movement. That sealers VOC will put you on your azz.

Here is a link to the book I read that got me started down this path amzn.to/3ffOYY3

@@Benham_Design Great video! I bought the book from your link and was also wondering what recipe number from the book you used to get the darker browns?

@@Justin-yh8gz Generating that range of colors is less about the formula and more about the process. The formula is pretty simple. Apply vinegar, sprinkle salt on it, then seal it in a chamber with a cup of ammonia. However, when I did this on a small sample, I got a pretty dull color and pattern. Then when I did it on the large sample, I started to get a broader range of colors. I discovered that on the small sample, I could put the cup of ammonia right next to it and the fumes would hit all of the metal, creating a reaction on the whole piece, but when I did it on the door panel, which is about 6 feet long 24” wide, I had no way of ensuring that the same concentration would cover all the metal. So the result was a graduation in color and pattern. The first time I did it, it looked bad. What you don’t see in the video is that I sanded back the same piece of metal and re-did it 7 or 8 times until I was satisfied with the end result. Each time I did it, I paid attention to all the details and what the result was and started to adjust my process until I got a cool pattern and color. The formula is just a starting point; the result took tons of time. This is not something I can just tell you; there are too many variables; you have to put in the work and observe what happens in your situation on the size of the piece you are working on. Now that you have the book, make every color multiple times, and observe what is happening. You will probably figure out something cooler than what I did here.

@@Benham_Design Thanks for the tips. I have tried the vinegar, salt, ammonia fume chamber with huge aqua blue results. I was just thinking that spray you used and didn't want people to use for safety reasons was something different that made those deep browns.

I don't understand, what do you mean by guides?

It was a process!

It took several test pieces to figure it out

@@Benham_Design it must be a well paid contract to be able to take so much time for trials . I am into Stained Glass/ windows /doors restoration realm. And I must sometimes do much research /trials . It lowers a lot my income intakes. But it’s also a Passion…

If I take too much time on experimenting, I try not to think of it as a loss, but as something I learned for the next job. But yeah, I hear ya. Sometimes it feels like a costly time suck.

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Safety

@@Benham_Design for using the gun?;)