Patina Not Dark Enough on Lead

by john paul
(brampton ontario canada)

this is great,thankyou....i would like to know if there is any patina's out there that would react with lead that makes it very dark it seems the only one's from my supplier do not turn it dark enough....i think that the patina i purchase is diluted....also is it possible to find the ingedents {chemicals} used to make the patina

Answer
Rather than using patina try brushing the lead with a natural bristle brush after you have finished the putty process. If you use black patina, the brush will make the lead black as you vigorously brush it during the final clean-up. See my Putty Tutorial for a recipe for making your own black putty and how to use the natural bristle brush.

The chemical black patina for lead does not do a very good job. If you want to see the ingredients of all patinas made by Novacan, go here.

Many places, other than North America, use stove black to make the lead black. That is all we ever used when we had our stained glass business in Australia. It gave a beautiful deep black finish to the lead, and polished the glass in the process. Unfortunately, the product we used is not available in North America. However, if you have a wood burning stove business near you, you could experiment, with the stove black they sell, to see if it would work.

You need to literally splash it on the panel, then start scrubbing with a natural bristle brush until the lead is black and the glass is free of patina. Like I said, it is a messy process, but the outcome is beautiful and it gives a much deeper black then anything else available. If you can get paste stove black instead of liquid, it will be much easier to use. Just apply it with a brush used for shoe polish, then brush it until the lead is black and shiney.

Good luch with whatever method you try.