Copper mods = Green hands... Solution?

[mujuru]

Hi everyone..

So... i've been using a copper mod now for about a week. Its natural patina is nice and all, but i'm noticing that my hands are turning green... Not green green...but i'm sure all you copper mod enthusiasts are probably encountering it in varying degrees. Anyways... washing my hands constantly, but it still seems to linger. I'd hate to see what my hands look like after a month of use.. or a year...lol.

Anyways... before it gets out of hand, what are you guys doing to deal with this? Wash with something in particular? (cuz soap isn't really cutting it)... will it stop or reduce at some point?... Any tips, suggestions, or information is appreciated...

thanks in advance.

 

[vapero]

once you have the patina you like you can clear coat it

 

[Ryedan]

once you have the patina you like you can clear coat it

This ^^^. Clear Varathane will work well. I would use a oil base version rather than a water based one. Be careful to keep the threads clean.

 

[mujuru]

But if i don't clear coat it, it will just continue to turn my hands green?... ugh! I kind of wanted to just "let it go.."... naturale!! lol. I guess i'll just put up with green hands til i can't cope...lol.

 

[VapingTurtle]

...
Anyways... before it gets out of hand, ...

It won't get out of hand unless you hold it with other parts of your body.

 

[Ryedan]

But if i don't clear coat it, it will just continue to turn my hands green?... ugh! I kind of wanted to just "let it go.."... naturale!! lol. I guess i'll just put up with green hands til i can't cope...lol.

Correct. Or you could let it go until you like the patina, then clear coat it and it will stay that way and won't mess up your hands anymore

 

[JulesXsmokr]

You can also try to rub some machine oil on it and wipe it down, it will help to keep it from oxidizing as fast, thwarting the greening leach from appearing. (Like you would a gun barrel)

 

[mujuru]

You can also try to rub some machine oil on it and wipe it down, it will help to keep it from oxidizing as fast, thwarting the greening leach from appearing. (Like you would a gun barrel)

I'll give this a go. Thanks! I'll think about giving the clear coat a try down the line if the machine oil doesn't help enough!

Thanks for all your replies...my green hands thank you!

 

[Froth]

I've been using a Copper Panzer clone for about two weeks now and I've not once noticed a single bit of green leeching onto my hands, I've even been making sure to handle it as much as possible to help accelerate the patina, but no green on the hands at all. Do you have excessively sweaty palms or something?

 

[mujuru]

I've been using a Copper Panzer clone for about two weeks now and I've not once noticed a single bit of green leeching onto my hands, I've even been making sure to handle it as much as possible to help accelerate the patina, but no green on the hands at all. Do you have excessively sweaty palms or something?

lol.. not that i know of! But I do take my vape when I go play ball and vape whenever there's a break... so yeah, sweat gets on it. But outside of those 4-5 hours a week, I'm generally sweat free. And it only takes about 2-3 hours of usage for me to notice it on my hands. Washing generally gets it off fairly well, but I do notice a slight tinge even after a good scrubbing!

 

[JulesXsmokr]

The more impurities copper has in it, the more or faster it will tarnish, leach, or corrode. Cheaply made copper, or copper touching against other dissimilar metals such as stainless, or ferrous metals will lead to more discoloration.
Oxygen content in copper also will have an effect, the more oxygen, the more "oxidation" - salt in your sweaty hands will tarnish the metal.
This is a good reason for coating copper metal.. Keeping threads shiny and uncoated is important for good electrical connections.

 

[mujuru]

The more impurities copper has in it, the more or faster it will tarnish, leach, or corrode. Cheaply made copper, or copper touching against other dissimilar metals such as stainless, or ferrous metals will lead to more discoloration.
Oxygen content in copper also will have an effect, the more oxygen, the more "oxidation" - salt in your sweaty hands will tarnish the metal.
This is a good reason for coating copper metal.. Keeping threads shiny and uncoated is important for good electrical connections.

So with the machining oil, am I supposed to avoid getting on the threads?... also, what would you recommend cleaning the threads with?.. alcohol or something different?

I did notice that the threads have not changed colors or anything as of yet. Presumably because my hands have not come in contact with them? Also, you mentioned copper being in contact with other metals such as SS... will my 510 connection be prone to increased patina since its in contact with a SS atty?

Thanks.. i feel like i'm getting schooled a bit on copper right now... love it!! lol.

 

[JulesXsmokr]

If the machining of the threads, both male and female were done properly and mate well, connections will be pretty solid with a little oil on the threads, some guys use some different pastes on threads, I wouldn't use any thing that would have some abrasiveness in it. It will put some wear on the threads.
2 dissimilar metals will react to each other, some more than others. It depends on the environment they are in as to how they will react.
S.S. depending on its content of other minerals - should not be much of a factor if you keep your threads cleaned up regularly.

 

[mujuru]

If the machining of the threads, both male and female were done properly and mate well, connections will be pretty solid with a little oil on the threads, some guys use some different pastes on threads, I wouldn't use any thing that would have some abrasiveness in it. It will put some wear on the threads.
2 dissimilar metals will react to each other, some more than others. It depends on the environment they are in as to how they will react.
S.S. depending on its content of other minerals - should not be much of a factor if you keep your threads cleaned up regularly.

Thanks... yeah, the thread mate well (MMVapors machining is on point), so I'll put a light coat on. I too stay away from pastes on threads. I generally find that that ends up being more hassle than its worth (extra PITA cleaning).

I'll start with light coats of machining oil and go from there. Thanks, its greatly appreciated.

 

[v1k1ng1001]

I'm kind of over cheap brass and copper clones for this reason. The metallurgy is fine in some and just terrible in others.

 

[mujuru]

I'm kind of over cheap brass and copper clones for this reason. The metallurgy is fine in some and just terrible in others.

I'm not completely sure how i feel about this comment... lol...

 

[pcporter827]

my The Copper turns my hands green...I wouldn't say it's a cheap mod, sure it's more affordable off the US made authentic mods but hands down it's one of the best mods I've ever used/owned. It's machined out of a bar of 99.95% pure copper with 101%+ conductivity rating. If it's impurities alone that turn hands green then I've been lied to.

 

[v1k1ng1001]

I'm not completely sure how i feel about this comment... lol...

I'm not saying they're all awful...but it's kind of like playing the lottery.

 

[mujuru]

my The Copper turns my hands green...I wouldn't say it's a cheap mod, sure it's more affordable off the US made authentic mods but hands down it's one of the best mods I've ever used/owned. It's machined out of a bar of 99.95% pure copper with 101%+ conductivity rating. If it's impurities alone that turn hands green then I've been lied to.

Yeah.. just from my reading about patina and such, I think there's quite a bit more to it... Simple things just as locale seems to speed up/slow down patina process. So i'm fairly sure there's a lot of things working all at once, all playing a factor. So i take this all with a grain of salt... but as noted above, some machining oil and (from my readings) carnuba wax seems to be able to slow down the process a bit temporarily. So it should help with the dirty hand syndrome...lol..

I noticed that the mod will be relatively dark in the morning when its been sitting all night untouched... but after some usage, it gets lighter in color... presumably because that dark stuff is transferring onto my hand, etc...

But my guess is that there's a lot going on...and things like impurities play a role, but isn't the sole determining factor...

 

[mujuru]

I'm not saying they're all awful...but it's kind of like playing the lottery.

I getcha man! But your comment just seem to insinuate that patina transfer is due to "terrible" metallurgy (and that I'm using a cheap clone)... but after some reading and such, it appears to be simply the nature of copper itself and how it reacts to its environment.

But i hear ya.... some mod metals are probably better quality than others... but to be fair, i'd venture to say that it probably isn't limited to just cheap clones.