Spar urethane coating brass and copper mods

[Kanthal]

I was just wondering if anyone has had any luck clear coating their brass and copper mods with spar urethane.

I was going to try a polyurethane clear coat but I've seen too many mods that would still patina beneath the clear coat. I don't want that happening to any of my mods. Today I picked up a can of Miniwax Helmsman Spar Urethane and so far I have only coated the top cap and the exterior of the firing button on my 4Nine mod. I figured I would test it on this mod first since it's my least liked mod. It's still to soon to tell if it's going to patina beneath the coating.

If anyone has experience on clear coating mods pls let me know what products work the best.

 

[graywoulf]

Spar Urethane would not be a good choice for a clear coat. Urethane is too thick and it will not be as clear on metal as you would probably like. There are specialty clear coat spray finishes made just for this type of application but considering that they are primarily used for things like lamps and brass and silver fixtures that are not normally handled very often and then you would probably see a very short time before the finish would become smudged and sticky from being handled so much. My suggestion based on professional experience in restoration of brass and silver lamps, bed frames and such would be to polish the mod to your satisfaction, then apply a coat or two of paste wax and then buff that out for a good shine. It probably will last a fair amount of time before needing to do it over but it will be much easier to redo than having to strip off a spray finish which by the way would also require some serious masking of the LCD display screen if yours has one which could be permanently damaged by the solvents in the spray as well as any buttons that could become stuck. If you go with the paste wax method then you would need to be sure to clean the surface with alcohol before applying the wax and be sure not to touch any of the surface with your bare hands before or during the wax application. Let the wax dry really good before buffing too and if there is any dried wax around any buttons or seams then that can be eliminated by brushing it with a very soft brush such as a child's soft toothbrush. Multiple coats of wax can be applied as well. Other wax products such as automotive waxes (Turtle Wax and Maguire's) can be used also. The only other alternative I can think of would be a custom fit "Skin" if the Mod surface is smooth, made from some of a shiny metal finish vinyl that may be available on eBay and other online vendors. I hope this information is of use to you and others that I have seen looking for a similar fix for their metal mods. Good luck!

 

[kkay59]

Butchers Wax Bowling Alley Wax

This may be the perfect thing for you. I have some of this, but haven't tried it on my mods. Reading graywoulf's recommendation made me think of it. I use this wax on my reels.

 

[Thrasher]

Sharkhide metal polish and sealer, used from racecars to boats used to be real popular with the expensive mods and recommended by caravela owners.

Not cheap though lol

 

[Kanthal]

Thanks for the recommendations.

I guess I'll just find some quality wax instead of trying to clear coat it.
I have some hard wax rocks that have different grades of grit in them that work really well but it's a pain in the .... to get the wax to stick to a micro fiber cloth.

The Spar Urethane was a bad idea. 24 hours after coating my mod, I noticed the color had changed to a dull orange. Luckily I was able to remove the coating without having to sand it by using some Nevr-Dull.