wrote:
Hi.

I bought some brass door handles and was a bit disappointed with what
I received. Looking in the diy stores they all look the same design
and I suspect they are all by the same manufacturer and just put in
Focus/Wickes/B&Q boxes.

The brass is covered in a varnish and this seems to be lightly
scratched at the time of sale. Shallow scratches are not that bad if
the light doesn't hit at the right angle but some had scratches deep
enough to be visible so I took those back.

Over time the lacquer peels off and the brass underneath tarnishes. I
have not used any caustic cleaners, so what has caused this?

I did buy some more expensive handles mail order but these suffered
the same fate. Is this an inherent problem with brass handles?

Thanks.

You can buy both lacquer and lacquer remover. Mine are very old, so I
can't say where - probably a shed.

Remove old lacquer completely with lacquer remover. Polish brass with
Brasso. Ensure all traces of Brasso are removed. Apply Lacquer with a
small soft brush.

A lot of work, and it still doesn't last for very long on a high wear
area (like a door handle) :-(.

R.

JohnDW wrote:
, in article ,
says...
On Fri, 5 Jan 2007 10:54:33 -0000, JohnDW
wrote:

I
find the fix is to quickly wipe a mark in the lacquer with a
solvent and leave to dry. The object being to smooth the
lacquer, not remove it.
Thanks. What lacquer and lacquer removers do you recommend if I went
down the route of removing and reapplying or just smoothing as you
suggest? Is there a special metal lacquer? What's the difference
between a lacquer and a varnish?


I've just looked for the tins but can't find them. I think it
was a clear cellulose lacquer I had left over from car
building. The solvent I had for thinning also worked to
soften the coating of the brass fitting. Try acetone, but be
warned that some solvents may leave a ridged surface, since
they evaporate too rapidly.

Putting it simply, a lacquer is a usually type of coating that
dries by rapid solvent evaporation, and yes, there are types
for metal. Varnish is primarily designed for wood, using an
oil that dries, usually slowly. You normally spray a lacquer
and brush a varnish.

I think originally a varnish was translucent and a lacquer was not.

I generally these days think of lacquer to mean a paint that is thick
enough and glossy enough to totally obliterate whats underneath and hard
enough to take a lot of wear. Of course what YOu want is a ''clear lacquer.

Frankly, I'd dip it repeatedly in finishing epoxy meself, and then
polish up afterwards..solvent paints and varnishes are seldom tough enough.