On Sat, 4 Feb 2006 17:43:22 -0800, with neither quill nor qualm,
"Harold and Susan Vordos" quickly quoth:

An artist friend of mine asked how to impart a "rust" patina to a welded
steel sculpture.

No big deal! Go to any of the large hardware stores and buy a gallon of
hydrochloric (muriatic) acid and dilute maybe 1 part acid to 5 parts water.
Using a spray device, cover the entire thing. It will etch the surface and
start rusting immediately. Rinse after it's been on for a while, so it
doesn't leave a deposit behind. The nice part is this acid is very
inexpensive.

I found a gallon for $2.69 at Farmer's Supply last year.


Be certain to wear rubber gloves and eye protection, and don't
breath the fumes when you open the container. It does serious damage to
lungs, but once diluted with water, it isn't all that bad. This is the
same acid that is used to wash brick.

Just make sure to etchcorrode and rinse it on your BAD neighbor's
lawn. wink


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