(erielack) Painting brass...

["Tupaczewski, Paul R (Paul)" <paultup_@_lucent.com>]

> >   Painting brass tips are
> > 1. disaasemble completely
> > 2. bead/sand blast to a nice lusture
> > 3. soak in vinager to lightly "etch" and clean off oil
> >
> > 4. don't touch with bare hands after use gloves
> > ( I you don't have a bead blaster go to vinager, or
> > buy one Badger makes a very affordable one for $
> > 20.00)
> > 5. prime , paint let dry between coats
> 
> Vinegar is good, but I have been using vinegar with salt 
> dissolved in it (as much salt as it will take) which makes 
> dilute hydrochloric acid, and does a better job of etching 
> than the straight vinegar.

I've used plain vinegar, and it seems to work fine for me. BUT! An important
note: a friend of mine was etching a brass tender, and had it leaned into a
bowl of vinegar at a 45 degree angle. He forgot about it, and came back an
hour later to find a large diagonal etch line running across the tender.
(DOH!)  Make sure you watch the piece of brass, and don't leave it in there
for too long. I etched my SDP45 (required EL content!) for about 5 minutes,
then washed it off and used rubber gloves when painting.

The other big tip for brass is to BAKE your painted model after it's fully
dry. This will drive out any excess moisture and make a VERY hard coating. I
usually use a pair of 150-watt lightbulbs placed nearby for about an hour.
You can use an oven, but I wouldn't put it in for higher than 200 degrees,
lest you want to see the solder melt! :)

	- Paul

------------------------------