Forced Patina on Copper Charcoal Goods Handle

I wanted to share a few pictures of a Charcoal Goods Copper Twin Helix Handle that I tried to force a patina on using a homemade fume chamber. I wanted to start with just a Handle in case I didn’t like how it turned out, and if that was the case I could just polish it back up. I made a fume chamber using a plastic Tupperware that I punched holes on each side of, and then ran a few metal wires through that I could set the handle on. I wadded up a few paper towels and placed them in the bottom of the Tupperware below the wires and dampened them with Ammonia. I then wet the Handle with water and sprinkled with salt, and set the Handle on the wires and placed the lid on the Tupperware to seal the fume chamber. I’ve never tried this before and was really surprised at how quickly the change took place. I’m planning on doing the same thing to a Charcoal Goods Copper Baseplate and Cap, and then sealing them with Renaissance Wax. I love Brian’s work, and his Razors are some of the best shavers in my Den. Thanks for looking!

Nice! I did the same thing with my bronze Timeless Razor. Though I didn't use straight ammonia; that will darken up the metal and speed the verdigris formation considerably. I used Windex; it's weaker and I could let it sit overnight.

Nice!  I did the same thing with my bronze Timeless Razor.  Though I didn't use straight ammonia; that will darken up the metal and speed the verdigris formation considerably.  I used Windex; it's weaker and I could let it sit overnight.

I love how your Timeless turned out! Your post on this and a post I saw on TSN of a gentleman’s CG Copper Handle made me want to try it myself. I was going to try to knock down the patina on mine so that the Copper would peek through more, but if that doesn’t work I’ll definitely try your Windex tip.

I love how your Timeless turned out! Your post on this and a post I saw on TSN of a gentleman’s CG Copper Handle made me want to try it myself. I was going to try to knock down the patina on mine so that the Copper would peek through more, but if that doesn’t work I’ll definitely try your Windex tip.

Thanks! I've seen someone just use ammonia fuming alone to turn a Timeless near black. But like you, I wanted something different.

The top scallops are wearing away on the high parts from stubble rubbing... As is the handle, to a lesser degree, from handling. You could speed up the process with careful polishing.

Make sure you apply some wax to everything when you're done... I applied two coats of caranuba.

When we want some dark patina in silver we use bleach. I heard also works on copper but never tried.

After taking a 5000 grit sanding pad to my brass Charcoal Goods razor I put it into a Rubbermaid container for a couple hours with a freshly made and peeled hard boiled egg. What it did was to darken the brass giving it a deeper richer color that took away the brightness. No green as it's a much slower process but I'm really happy with the results.

I wanted a quick jump on it initially then to watch the handle age with me naturally moving forward.

That looks very nice! I’ve considered trying it with my Timeless Bronze.

I would never do that to any item I'm about to use.

I would never do that to any item I'm about to use.

@"nikos.a" -
Is this because you aren’t a fan of the look, or is it because of a possible health concern related to using it with the Patina on it? I don’t have a Copper Head to go with it yet, but I am on the list for one. I could just as easily take the Patina off and polish it up if there are any potential health concerns. Anyone else reading please feel free to comment as well. Thanks for the input!

I would never do that to any item I'm about to use.

@"nikos.a" -
Is this because you aren’t a fan of the look, or is it because of a possible health concern related to using it with the Patina on it? I don’t have a Copper Head to go with it yet, but I am on the list for one. I could just as easily take the Patina off and polish it up if there are any potential health concerns. Anyone else reading please feel free to comment as well. Thanks for the input!

Hunter, I cannot imagine any health problems associated with that treatment (although I was a philosophy major...). I think that handle looks magnificent!