Aging osage with Ammonia.... I mean Lye (pic added)

[Sidewinder]

Is there any special technique to aging the look of osage with Ammonia? Is it just wipe it on or does it need a catalyst like the vinegar and steel wool?

[duke3192]

If you are referring to the Simon buildalong, he was fuming his wood in an enclosed container, to age osage just use bleach, wipe-on/wipe-off, grasshopper. You can repeat the process, but it won't add much.

[Sidewinder]

So are there advantages or disadvantages to either method or for that matter the vinegar and steel wool method or is all arriving at the same place just using a different technique?

[Eric Krewson]

You can just wipe on ammonia and darken osage, any base material works including lye.

Vinegar and steel wool is a whole nother'  ball game. You are making a stain that reacts with the tannin in wood to change the color.

Aquifortis (ferric nitrate) is the same stain on  steroids, it will turn osage black when blushed with heat.

[Sidewinder]

How much wiping on Eric? I have done it about 4 times and it does not seem to be having the effect I was looking for so I guess I'm looking for a way to get better results. If I need to give it 20 wipe and let dries, thats ok just want to make sure I'm not leaving out something in the process and just spinning my wheels.

[Eric Krewson]

OOPS! I gave you some bad info. When I read your post I grabbed my bottle of ammonia, headed to the shop, scraped off an osage billet and applied the ammonia, no change at all.

I was sure I had used ammonia years ago but my 67 year old memory wasn't what I thought I remembered. Now I realize I used lye (drano) dissolved in water to degrease with, this is what darkened osage immediately.

[Sidewinder]

Thats ok Eric. Im just glad I'm not experiencing some kind of anomoly. I will try the draino.

[PEARL DRUMS]

I wiped it on 2 pieces last week. It did zero to the wood. I let Drew guess which side I wiped it on, couldn't tell.

[crooketarrow]

    Any darking basic only lighty shades it. With in 6 ,7 months nature age it's by pasted darking you did.

  I have to friends that use to build osage recurves. They took some kind of industal cleaner. Cut a strip of cloth soke it in the cleaner. Rap the bow tiger striping (swirls) the whole bow. Then take a torch and follow the rapped cloth. Catch the whole spiral cloth on fire as soon as its on fire they put it out.

 Tigger striped the whole bow with a darker strip. The longer to leave it burn darker the strip. He told me unless you really burn it almost black. The nature ageing still takes over and it ends up the same color.

  I'd have to ask him what the cleaner was.

  After a few bows the gave up on the idea. I never went that route I just it get that color with age.

[duke3192]

USE BLEACH; wipe on/wipe off. try it.

[jimmy]

I've noticed that there are some opinions here that contradict each other a little.  I am somewhat interested in darkening osage too.  Some of it is real pretty when finished and oiled, and some of it is almost neon yellow.  If anyone has pictures to back up their claims I would sure like to see them.  I'm not doubting anyone, but I think it would be interesting to see a side by side comparison of fresh osage and chemically darkened osage.  It does not have to be a bow, maybe just a scrap piece.

[crooketarrow]

 I've tryed bleach it only lightly shades the wood. The natural color take over after a short while.

 I was once told doing this then stain The stain will stay that color. DOS'NT WORK THE NATURAL AGED COLOR ALWAYS COMES BACK OUT.

[Sidewinder]

Ok. I got some drain cleaner with lye in it and it works immediatly. The amonia and the bleach methods were ineffective. I will post pics soon when I get some time.

[PEARL DRUMS]

You go right ahead wipe drain-o on your bows Danny boy!

[IdahoMatt]

Dannydi you think it would work on other woods, i.e.  all white woods?