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Old 3rd Nov 2019, 9:57 am   #41
Sean Williams
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Default Re: How do I age stainless steel screws?

How about heat - real heat?

All the stainless fixings we use on exhaust systems very quickly discolour and change to a dark grey/brown shade. (these are A2 and A4 grade bolts)

A good thrashing with a blowtorch should sort this out.
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Old 3rd Nov 2019, 12:17 pm   #42
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Default Re: How do I age stainless steel screws?

Attacking the problem from a different angle - I don't recall seeing what size and style you need ? Just a thought, but maybe someone here knows where to find them in a normal steel grade, as opposed to stainless.

Alan
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Old 3rd Nov 2019, 8:30 pm   #43
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Default Re: How do I age stainless steel screws?

Ha Ha, I didn't think of that

No4. 2.9mm Dia 6mm long slotted and flat(ish) head, in mild steel.

As per the picture in one of the earlier posts.

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Old 3rd Nov 2019, 8:31 pm   #44
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Default Re: How do I age stainless steel screws?

I always thought Stainless steel went a blueish colour, but I'll give one a blast tomorrow and see what happens.

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Originally Posted by Sean Williams View Post
How about heat - real heat?

All the stainless fixings we use on exhaust systems very quickly discolour and change to a dark grey/brown shade. (these are A2 and A4 grade bolts)

A good thrashing with a blowtorch should sort this out.
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Old 3rd Nov 2019, 8:35 pm   #45
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Default Re: How do I age stainless steel screws?

When you buy online you dont expect the quality of the items to be great, unless you use a trusted source.

These said they were A4 Marine grade, but I've heard this before and had things rusting outside in no time.
On this occasion they seem to be living up to their name.

https://www.westfieldfasteners.co.uk...ess_Steel.html

I did not buy from this company on this occasion, this is just for reference.

Nick G0HIK

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Originally Posted by Bazz4CQJ View Post
I think that stainless steels can contain anything between 8-25% chromium, the element which confers corrosion resistance, but that's expensive and a lot of cutlery has a composition at the bottom end of the range, and is "just about adequate" most of the time. You quite often see corrosion occurring along the line where there's been a meniscus.

In trying to age stainless as in this post, it really needs be done in such a way that you get uniformity across the screw-head and from one screw to the next and complete immersion is probably the way to go. I'm guessing that the screws could be a 300 series steel, with 18% Cr, and really quite resistant to attack.

B
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Old 3rd Nov 2019, 8:40 pm   #46
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Default Re: How do I age stainless steel screws?

You might just be right, sometimes life is just too short, I want to get this project off the work bench.
Those shiny new screws will be annoying me though till they dull down.

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Originally Posted by ColinTheAmpMan1 View Post
I appreciate this might sound a bit iconoclastic, but why not just use the screws and let nature take its course? I admit that I rather like nice, new, shiny things.

You could otherwise buy some nickel-plated screws, which I am sure will "age" more readily.

Colin.
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Old 3rd Nov 2019, 8:53 pm   #47
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Default Re: How do I age stainless steel screws?

Plumbers flux will also discolour stainless, but I'd go for high heat as it's fast.
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Old 3rd Nov 2019, 9:32 pm   #48
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Default Re: How do I age stainless steel screws?

Grit blasting
 
Old 4th Nov 2019, 5:24 am   #49
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Default Re: How do I age stainless steel screws?

The "A4" designation is the same as type 316, which is one of the more corrosion resistant. Looking at some websites, it appears that many fastener companies are now offering to supply electropolished parts (not at all common when I was a boy!), which makes them even more resistant.

B
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Old 4th Nov 2019, 7:31 pm   #50
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Default Re: How do I age stainless steel screws?

I had two screws in Plumbers flux today, one in good old fashioned "Fluxite" and the other in the modern stuff, but showed no signs of discolouration.

This evening I've just used a blow lamp, this is certainly the quickest and best.

Like anything else there is a technique, some have discoloured better than others, I dont know what the technique it yet

It's also difficult putting a load in the vice as it takes the heats away, so I need to work out a way of doing several at a time.

The picture shows :-

Top two original

middle two heat treated.

bottom two as received from the supplier.

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Originally Posted by matthewhouse View Post
Plumbers flux will also discolour stainless, but I'd go for high heat as it's fast.
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Old 4th Nov 2019, 7:57 pm   #51
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Default Re: How do I age stainless steel screws?

Glad it worked for you
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Old 4th Nov 2019, 9:18 pm   #52
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Default Re: How do I age stainless steel screws?

The discoloured ones certainly fit in better than the shiny ones!
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