vincev
I'm the Wiz, and nobody beats me!
Do we now call you the Reflector Doctor ??
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'39 CW Rusty Build
- Thread starter Boris
- Start date
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Boris
Old fat tired rider
That would be @gkeep 's neighbor!
Resurrecting a nice jeweled reflector | Bicycle Restoration Tips
Thought this might come in handy for someone with a reflector that has lost its threaded post. Pete, (tocatahula) had this nice reflector for sale a while back and kindly let me be the next caretaker. I sent a photo to my neighbor who is also a bike (and old bike) person and also happens to love...
thecabe.com
GTs58
I'm the Wiz, and nobody beats me!
I can give you four reasons why you should not use a wood stain for tinting the BLO. First one is, you are not staining wood! Cutting the BLO with a colored oil would not be my recommendation with this project. Why go down another gopher hole that leads to solid granite? Just tint the BLO with the darkest brown colored tint you can buy, it should take very little. I've tried to darken up some wood stain with another much darker wood stain and the ratio needed to make any difference was a 50/50 mix, and it barely made a difference. And with "today's" off the self paint products for the Do It Herself decorators, you have no idea what the wood stain's actual chemical make up is. But if you're patient, try everything else first. 
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Boris
Old fat tired rider
He really means #68. Besides being a poor speller, he's dyslexic too.
Balloonoob
I live for the CABE
OMG I knew I was about to read 4 pages on how to use instant coffee and I did it anyway.... No participation trophy required. I think you may have asked the most credible question in the 4 pages of this thread regarding dying blo and tinting deeper using various methods. I imagine he is dousing paper towels in the solution and wrapping the already rusty parts. Hopefully not setting them aflame once dried. How do you get two elements to blend together? Just add water or fire maybe
. How do you achieve the darker rusty look? Probably with a bit more patience than I exercised on my recent crusty Huffy build. My only real advice is once you think you have it the shade you want, let it cook/dry in the sun for a few days. If it reverts to a lighter than desired shade do whatever you did again and let it dry again. Now for the dirtiest and most rotten sad reality that nobody else has discussed. If you tire of funk rubbing off on your hands and clothes and you really have ran out of patience, consider a matte clear coat. Ok. Let the crucifixion begin. LOL 
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gkeep
I live for the CABE
Having worked with household hazardous waste and commercial truck shop chemical products for 30 years there is always a chance the MSDS/SDS for the product will have some useful information about the components and percentage in the product. Not always, sometimes they just list something as 20% or whatever and "proprietary". I had to update hazardous materials business plans for 20 years and when you do one for a Household Hazardous Waste facility that handles thousands of containers a week you start to dream about those damn ingredient lists. You also become way too familiar with every common cleaner, finish, polish, lubricant etc...LOL. I walk down a hardware store aisle and like the character in a movie that sees dead people everywhere I see hydro-treated petroleum distillates, fractionated hydrocarbons, acids, bases, oxidizers, Ohhh the bells, the bells... Just don't mix chlorinated cleaners with ammonia cleaners or bulk a peroxide part A or B in the flammable solids drum and make the lid blow off. LOL,I can give you four reasons why you should not use a wood stain for tinting the BLO. First one is, you are not staining wood! Cutting the BLO with a colored oil would not be my recommendation with this project. Why go down another gopher hole that leads to solid granite? Just tint the BLO with the darkest brown colored tint you can buy, it should take very little. I've tried to darken up some wood stain with another much darker wood stain and the ratio needed to make any difference was a 50/50 mix, and it barely made a difference. And with "today's" off the self paint products for the Do It Herself decorators, you have no idea what the wood stain's actual chemical make up is. But if you're patient, try everything else first.
Seriously, there are great manuals out there that list the ingredients for every consumer and commercial chemical product on the market. Nowdays its all online at our fingertips so no thumbing though phone book size texts.
Like you say, tinting is a real art and just a touch too much or too little can make a big difference in the final color once it dries and cures.
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Boris
Old fat tired rider
The saga continues:
I mixed up a small batch of BLO with a dark stain. It dissolved nicely and I got a nice rich looking dark mixture in the jar.
However, when applied to the previously BLO coated parts, no darkening was perceived.
I then tried dark stain only directly to the previously BLO coated parts. Again, no darkening was perceived.
The mixture and the stain went on smoothly and did not roll off or bead up. And it seemed that either would be perfectly content as a top coat if I let them stay.
I did try the mixture on a rusty old spoke I had, and the result was the nice rich brown color that I'm after.
Because I'm really starting to hate the color, working on this bike has gotten me to feeling like Pee Wee Herman rescuing snakes in a pet store fire. So I'm going to start over, and here's my thinking:
1) Dissolve the existing BLO
2) Get it back down to just rust
3) Recoat with the new mixture that worked on spoke
So far, I've tried mineral oil and a light sanding to dissolve the existing BLO, then let set in the rain overnight.
Results: Nothing but beaded raindrops with no new rust on the surface this morning. At least we know BLO works, right?
Guess I'll try turpentine or acetone next.
.....UNLESS OF COURSE someone has a better idea. and wants to make this thread go another 6 pages.
I know this is getting a bit monotonous, but it may be helpful to someone.
I mixed up a small batch of BLO with a dark stain. It dissolved nicely and I got a nice rich looking dark mixture in the jar.
However, when applied to the previously BLO coated parts, no darkening was perceived.
I then tried dark stain only directly to the previously BLO coated parts. Again, no darkening was perceived.
The mixture and the stain went on smoothly and did not roll off or bead up. And it seemed that either would be perfectly content as a top coat if I let them stay.
I did try the mixture on a rusty old spoke I had, and the result was the nice rich brown color that I'm after.
Because I'm really starting to hate the color, working on this bike has gotten me to feeling like Pee Wee Herman rescuing snakes in a pet store fire. So I'm going to start over, and here's my thinking:
1) Dissolve the existing BLO
2) Get it back down to just rust
3) Recoat with the new mixture that worked on spoke
So far, I've tried mineral oil and a light sanding to dissolve the existing BLO, then let set in the rain overnight.
Results: Nothing but beaded raindrops with no new rust on the surface this morning. At least we know BLO works, right?
Guess I'll try turpentine or acetone next.
.....UNLESS OF COURSE someone has a better idea. and wants to make this thread go another 6 pages.
I know this is getting a bit monotonous, but it may be helpful to someone.
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gkeep
I live for the CABE
Turpentine should take of the BLO without too much effort. When I worked on 1800s schooners in Maine we used BLO cut with varnish and turpentine on the decks. To remove it we just used a scrub brush and sprinkled spic and span, took it down to bare wood for recoating.
Theres always the quick rust method with hydrogen peroxide and salt.
I'd think 0000 steel wool with turpentine would clean off the BLO coat, since your not worried about affecting original paint.
Are you looking for something along these lines for a finish? I've got a crusty/rsty previously stripped early 50s Monark frame I'm thinking would make a nice white tire scorcher like this one.
Absolutely document the process here, its for posterity.
Theres always the quick rust method with hydrogen peroxide and salt.
I'd think 0000 steel wool with turpentine would clean off the BLO coat, since your not worried about affecting original paint.
Are you looking for something along these lines for a finish? I've got a crusty/rsty previously stripped early 50s Monark frame I'm thinking would make a nice white tire scorcher like this one.
Absolutely document the process here, its for posterity.
Boris
Old fat tired rider
Yes similar in color to the darker parts of the bike posted, but with a bit more shine. I did get the bike to rust up in the first photo on this thread using the peroxide, vinegar and salt. I'll give the turpentine and steel wool a try today. If successful, I'll use the rust mixture again to make sure the BLO and stain have a nice porous surface to soak into, just like the test spoke. Thank you and I'll keep posting until I'm satisfied.
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