Japan Black demonstrations

Reid · Japan Black demonstrations

Japan Black is not paint, because paints, by definition, are pigmented.
Pigments by definition are fine particles of solid matter.

Instead this is a varnish whose resin happens to be black at the molecular level.
The resin is a particularly ancient asphalt called gilsonite--about 50 million years old, it is found in Utah,
and was once the primordial ooze of the ocean bottom.

A first coat shows how the material handles and self-levels

Japan Black was once widely used for metal finishing.

It makes a glossy, porcelain-looking surface.

Japan Black affords the blackest black surface finish in the world.

Nick

Reid, this stuff is very impressive. You need to find someone that can continue making this.

Reid

Mike Caswell, founder and owner of Caswell Electroplating in Miniature
(they handle also all sorts of finishing systems including powercoat for the hobbyist),
is interested in putting this to market at my suggestion.
At Mike's request I've volunteered to be their product development consultant.
What I get out of the deal, all that I've asked for, is name credit for bringing this product back from lost history pages.
I'll gain great satisfaction in seeing Japan Black available at reasonable cost, ready for and easy to use by anybody.

---

Am going to lard this thread with all sorts of gilsonite information,
stuff I've seen and not seen before.

For instance,
http://tinyurl.com/3d6l5v
this leads to a Google Books preview of an article telling what gilsonite is used for today.
I just learned that some sorts of gilsonite coatings are still employed in metal finishing.
I wonder what their formulas are? I doubt they gloss and are as black as what you'll be seeing in this thread.

Here we aim for a black, wet look that can be brushed on by any beginner with assured success,
baked dry, recoated, and -done-,
all in the span of a few hours or less.

No overspray hassles for there is no spray, non-toxic, pleasant pine smell that the wife won't dislike,

can be flowed, dipped, brushed;
can be cured fast in tabletop convection oven.

Thanks for looking in, Nick.

Cheers,

Reid

Odd & Mysterious Japan Black
as I made it years ago and use it today

The solvent and binder of the present recipe is dipentene,
a super-strong version of turpentine.
Dipentene is distilled from the stumps of pine trees.
It is an oily, thick, aromatic complex of terpenes, which, if allowed to dry on a clean surface,
leaves behind a considerable amount of gummy, sticky residue.
Dipentene as sole solvent for gilsonite, requires us to add a japan drier and also to well-bake the coating,
to cure the terpene gums to hardness.

Gummy solvent aside now, for it is gilsonite that is the key ingredient.

The gilsonite I used is a finely pulverized powder straight from the mine, indistinguishable in appearance from brown cocoa powder.
So what about the black level? How can brown powder become a perfect black?

When gilsonite is dissolved in solvent and then laid down in sufficient film thickness
the coating becomes the most jet of all possible blacks.
How? Because the film, if it is glossy, is a perfect light trap:

all wavelengths of visible light enter the film and are absorbed, and cannot bounce back out of the film.
The total absence of pigment particles is how and why the light filters in, but cannot bounce back out, other than off-axis reflections from the gloss.

On the other hand, if the gilsonite film is made very thin, then the true brown colour of the matter is revealed:

Nick

Sorry if you've posted it, but where can I get some gilsonite and what would I mix it with to get this Japan Black?

I have a Jensen firebox dreaming of a new coat.

Reid

Reid

Application and performance notes (to be revised as I learn more).

It has been so many years since I used this varnish;
now with new experience old lessons are coming back to remind me:

-First coat can go over bare, clean steel, no problem.

1) Let the coat air dry, preferably in the cool oven, or otherwise under cover, for a half hour or more. This step allows time for the self-leveling.

2) 150F for the first half hour of baking to gently drive off the greater portion of the gross solvent quotient.

3) Raise the bake temperature to a full 400F and hold for at least 30 minutes.

First coat is now done.

For the second and any other coats, repeat the three steps.

-----

Why must the baking be done at such high temperature?
Ans: to "burn the cookie to the pan." But burnt it truly is not, the varnish only becomes cemented and insoluble.

Commentary: If we do not bake, or if we do not bake at full temperature,
the first coat still dries, seemingly alright.
However,upon application of the second coat, the first coat will partially dissolve again, thicken the new coat as we brush,
and this will make an untidy looking brush-marked second coat.

If that happens, two choices:
bake as described above and then wet sand with 600 grit
and plan for two more coats,
-or-
strip and start again.

How to strip Japan Black:

Acetone will undo powdercoat in a few minutes.
Paint strippers bearing methylene chloride will undo most other paints equally quickly.

Neither of these powerful paint destroyers will touch gilsonite, and so hardly affect Japan Black.
What do use?

A long soak in naphtha or mineral spirits will gradually dissolve or at least soften the gilsonite, which can then be scrubbed from the part if needed.

In the case of a Japan Black incorporating linseed oil, such as Henry Ford's "elastic japan black",
only caustic lye will fully destroy the finish,
and only if the part to be stripped is left in near boiling lye water for a full day.

that is to say: linseed oil is destroyed by caustic and not by much else.
gilsonite is immune to caustic, acid and all chemicals other than petroleum or hydrocarbon solvents.

The Japan Black in question contains no linseed oil, not in this recipe.
Therefore, caustic cannot cause its dissolution.

-----

I am stripping the cylinder shroud shown earlier down to bare metal.
The second coat of Japan Black did not level properly because I did not bake coat #1 but to 200F for a couple of hours.

To strip this all, including the OEM powdercoat, the part is soaking now in a mixture of acetone (kills powdercoat)
and mineral spirits (slow solvent of gilsonite and turps gums)

That I baked coat #2 at 400F for an hour is not making this any easier to strip!
My gosh, this is some finish folks. It's black as hell and about as hard as the devil.

These application notes will be amended as I regain practical experience.
In the old days I was concentrating on air-cured Japan Black,
and never truly succeeded.
For no matter how long I let the coat air dry, in the sun, in the shade,
the next coat would tend to partly dissolve the first, and so the second coat would become thick quick and fail to level well.

Baking, baking at high temperature, appears to be essential, even for an oil-less Japan Black.

How to strip an aborted job down to bare metal

How high a bake? 400F for one full hour seems fully indicated.
Such a bake makes the coat extremely resistant.
Ford baked at higher tempertures yet--surely 450F will not damage the coat.

Reid

data screenshots via Google Book Search

Gilsonite Lore & Ore & More

The Non-metallic Minerals: Their Occurrence and Uses, 1899

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War Work of the Bureau of Standards: April 1, 1921
By United States Bureau of Standards

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The Corrosion of Iron: A Summary of Causes and Preventive Measures, 1915

---

Painting by Immersion and by Compressed Air: A Practical Handbook, 1915

---

Manufactures, 1905
By United States Bureau of the Census

---

The Industrial and Artistic Technology of Paint and Varnish, 1904

---
tbc

Bogstandard

Here in the UK we have been using a jet black coachwork enamel for many many years, with very similar properties. Called Japlac, it is now made by International paint and comes in a multitude of colours, including a superb gold, which I use for pinstriping. It goes on and self levels beautifully.

It was, as I said, originally used for coachwork painting, but over the years has been used for many different applications.

http://www.historyworld.co.uk/adv...old&l2=Painting%2C+Decorating

A lot more expensive now of course. But obtainable in most DIY stores.

John

Reid

I'd like very much to learn more about that product, John.
There's no matching product in the USA.

JapLac won't contain gilsonite of course (thank god for that),
but that it self levels, dries hard, dries fast, resists considerable heat:
a set of good qualities I've not seen in any other paint before.

The Japan Black will be of major interest to restorers of old things like gas engines and antique electric fans and motors
and such where the material once played a part,
and where/when the authentic original finish, not a substitute, is wanted.

Folks, while I play up the great blackness of Japan Black, its great blackness is not required to make an impression of jet black in normal room lighting.
It is only in broad daylight, or under strong interior light and with juxtaposition to other black paints, that asphaltum's supreme black level impresses so well, strikingly-so in full sun.
Indoors any black will do quite well. All is relative too, for our eyes gauge things best by direct comparison.

JAPLAC. All those good qualities and the black is quite black. Would the black possibly last alright enough on a firebox?
I hope to see an MSDS because that will give an idea of its chemistry*. As said, we have no such paint to purchase here in the USA.
Thanks John!

*found
Nothing but the solvent and drier system is revealed.

Bogstandard

Reid,
It all started as a finish on early autos, so I shuld think that there would be a bit of heat resistance in there, purely from engine bay and exhaust proximity.

You must have Hammerite in the US. They do a smooth version of the hammer finish, and that is almost bulletproof. It can be painted straight over rust and stops it going any further. I painted my wrought iron garden entrance gates with it about four years ago, over the rust, and they are still like new. But it does really need two coats, the first has a very dark brown cast, the second is a very deep black. It is fully self levelling and can be thinned and sprayed if needed. Whereas Japlac, as far as I know, is brush only.

John

johnreid

How heat resistant is Hammertite? I see it is being sold by Marine distributors in the US for the boating industry ( people that do not worry how much something costs

) and I see a Gloss Black in brush or spray, I doubt it is flame resistant like VHT though. There is no Gloss VHT paint in the US whereas it seems like there is in the UK.

Bogstandard

What is the original finish on these engines?

That surely is the best possible material to use.

Or in the US you could try this high temp gloss

http://www.pitstopusa.com/detail.aspx?ID=1640

John

johnreid

THe Engine paint doesnt seem to stand up too well, most have been using the Flame Proof version of that product. I am going to need to do some experimenting.

Bubba

Reid

Hi Bubba,

One Shot is popular. It's an alkyd enamel and so it offers no very good heat resistance, about 250F to 300F tops.
It is the same thing as regular old Rustoleum oil paint--same chemistry and all.

The black level of any and every pigmented paint is far inferior to japan black, folks.

The antique engine and antique car guys have been salivating for decades,
wanting to have again that perfect, glass-like black enamel.

They've all seen it. To see it is to believe it: it is the only true, broad-daylight black.
Everything else pales.

I think it would serve nicely enough for toy engines' fireboxes.
One specification (see previous page) had the bake done at 600F
to ensure maximum impermeability for WWI marine mines.

I don't call this a product to repaint every or any bit of a toy steam engine.
I do call it time to revive Japan Black and add it to our arsenal of finishing systems.

No spray. No poisons. Perfect gloss, glass hard, perfect black...

Unless a person has seen old japan he cannot say modern paints are "black".

I've compared them all--including against the blacks on costly automobiles.
Japan black trumps them all for gorgeous true blackness.
Of course, in typical low-level interior lighting, any old black will do as well,
but it won't have the shine or fine level attainable with japan black.

The VHT paints too, all of them, all of them: are charcoal greys and browns--not black, compared against the old system
that I propose to get revived, back onto the market, for we, the hobbyist-craftsmen.

Reid

Re-doing the cylinder shroud, first coat.
Also japanning a small inlay of recycled firebox brickwork.
Trying 425F for one hour--can't hurt and fully ensures a high resistant coating.

the rest of the results will go into this posting form

note to self: don't wipe the bottle's mouth with paper toweling.
Lint from the paper towel then enters the varnish supply and makes motes in the finish.

For short terms between use, foil over the mouth keeps the contents safe from dust and air.

first coat baked, ready for the second coat

second coat baked, parts done. time elapsed: about three hours
(image to come--the parts are too hot to handle)

Bogstandard

Reid,

I have to totally agree with you on this one.
My job involves a lot of printing, you wouldn't believe how many blacks there really are.
The pantone books that we use only touch the surface. We have special lighting dotted about the place, it gives a very good rendition of true daylight, and black is the worst colour to try to match to sample. Everyone has their own thoughts on what black should look like, and we would stand around arguing about whether you had a perfect match or not. With colours it is easy, black is in a world of its own.

John

Reid

That is so interesting and so good to hear about the hell of black matching from the printing trade.

I've only heard about it from the car painting guys;
they hate to match black; it almost cannot be done. The pigments and extenders and the vehicles are the variables of vexation.

Now here's a another neat thing about japan black:

it will always match if the japan is from pure gilsonite.
There's no off-tint possible to it.

___________

The second coat of the two small parts in the oven above will finish baking in a few minutes.

I'll get an image of the results into the posting form above.

___________

Offer: I will japan some tincaps like used for roofing (have to get some!)
And I'll send these out as samples to you folks who have curiosity.
Take one of these tincaps and commence to compare it against any other black out there;
on HRH's Rolls, if you can get close enough to try it!

The queen's blackest coach is not as black as your sample of japan black.

If I do-up these proposed samples I'll let you all know they are available for the asking.

Thank you for applying so much of such great value to this documentation thread, John. I really appreciate it because
where I am often in-credible, you are simply and properly, credible.

Thanks,

Reid

it was bare steel three hours ago...

______________

the light is just coming up here in Miami

the texture imperfection here is not so much in the coating, it's in the steel

if linseed oil were in this mix it might well bear an even higher gloss (no trace of shrinkage dimples)
but too, I rushed this job and perhaps if I'd let it air dry for hours before putting it to the blast of high temperature,
then even those traces of micro-dimples would be absent.

the two coats tally about two mils in thickness;
no prep or rubbing was done before or between coats
other than to strip the original powdercoat.

additional coats and rubbing between coats could be done if so desired;
top-flight old work, such as typewriters and quality small electric motors, decorative work,
was often dipped and rubbed and baked up to six coats deep.

Yes, for plain parts that will not drip, dipping was a fast and easy way to finish.

Nick

Reid, I just noticed that you are using a toaster oven. I always thought of baking the paint
in a big oven in the kitchen, so I have never done it out of fear of the smell.

I could pick up a used one real cheap and plug it in out in my garage. Should I get one?

Les

Reid

See if you guys can find a used or affordable convection oven?

Toaster ovens toast by radiant heat.

Convection ovens make no hot spots, plus the circulation of hot, dry air
may help speed the cure because part of the curing process involves oxidation.

Cedge

Reid
Your thread has had me out doing google searches and learning a bit more about Japanning metals. I'm quite curious to know if products known as Asphaltum Varnish or Black varnish are the same or similar to what you have there. I found a couple of commercial offerings used for acid etching, mirror blacking and hiding old sewing machine repairs. They seem to claim the same qualities that you've discovered in your formula and both use high concentrations of gilsonite to achieve a deep shiny black coloration. Baking times and maximum temps seem to be the only point of differing opinions.

Any ideas?
Steve

Reid

Reid

Application notes part one: technique

part 2: a pitfall

part 3 shows the rubbed-down firebox plus how to ensure adhesion of the japan

The firebox, which has two coats done over a week ago,
was therefore rubbed down to dull with Bon Ami scouring poweder and an electric toothbrush.
I realize now that one of the great values of rubbing the coats dull before recoating is to
give the varnisher a visual guide: one can see what's been recoated afresh when applying over a dulled surface;
not so when laying gloss black upon perfect gloss black: too easy to miss spots.
Henceforth I will rub between coats of japan

Oral B "Crossaction" $6 electric toothbrush + a slurry of Bon Ami cleanser:

rubbed dull to guide the eye for the next coat of japan

Cedge

Reid
I spotted several sources, including one for a Mil-spec version in 5 gallon minimums that eludes me at the moment. The more I read, the more this stuff matches the claims you make with your formula. A search for Asphaltum Varnish or Black Varnish will give you plenty of hits to add to your knowledge base and a few commercial sources beyond the few I've added here.

Let me know if this stuff sounds like the real deal. I've got an engine build coming up that just might be a candidate for this nearly forgotten process.

Steve

http://shorinternational.com/EngravingSupplies.htm

http://www.thompsonenamel.com/products/supplements/resist.htm

http://www.printmaking-materials.com/products/default.aspx

http://www.dezurikwater.com/AppData_PDF/10_02_2.pdf

http://www.naturalpigments.com/detail.asp?PRODUCT_ID=462-10B

http://www.1911encyclopedia.org/Japanning

Reid

Great legwork, Steve! OK. I will study these offers
and give a -dubious value opinion only, because I don't know:

These are only guesses, only guesses:

1) An acid resist "asphaltum" coating
http://shorinternational.com/EngravingSupplies.htm
may be asphalt other than gilsonite in a solvent.
may or may not dry glossy. may not have sufficient elasticity.
may or may not be uber-black. may not self-level.
may not dry flinty hard. may be a solution of xylene and kerosene for "slow drying".we can only know by buying and trying out such a product.
If it is purely solvent-borne gilsonite that won't make a lasting finish:
japan needs some linseed oil or at least some gummy residues left by say, the heavy dipentene solvent that made my mix at hand.

NB: I also have lots of japan made with linseed oil and with dipentene solvent.
The current application experiments all center on the oil-less version of my recipes.
Later I will see how the linseed oil stock does on this work: better, most likely, but needing longer to bake to a cure.

On to the next links:

2) More of the same as #1
http://www.thompsonenamel.com/products/supplements/resist.htm

3) Type keyword "asphaltum" to see a page of cutbacks and powdered asphaltum, unspecified nature, likely to be gilsonite.
Inquire of the company to see if it is gilsonite (accept nothing else but)
http://www.printmaking-materials.com/products/default.aspx

4) This is almost certainly a petroleum asphalt and asphaltum blend.
It will not cure hard nor shiny, and is meant to remain soft and gummy
for protection of damp-area iron and steel work. Not suitable.
http://www.dezurikwater.com/AppData_PDF/10_02_2.pdf

5)Ah! There's your basic ingredient if you want to cook it yourself.
That's the trick, though: making it up yourself.
You can do it if you have determination and patience.
http://www.naturalpigments.com/detail.asp?PRODUCT_ID=462-10B

6) There is the overall best, most concise description of the nature of japan black.
The vintage article goes on to term artistic types of "japan" which the pro painter of the day would call irrelevant.
To the commercial finishers of 1911, the manufacturers of japanned goods, "japan" meant only one thing:
that jet black and usually glossy, porcelain-smooth, easy to create gilsonite-based finish
for both durable goods such as typewriters and fans,
and for mass production stamped steel products,
for automobile fenders and running boards,
for electrical conduits, junction boxes in lieu of galvanizing,
and for etc. & etc. An excellent article indeed:
http://www.1911encyclopedia.org/Japanning

Great finds, all, Steve. Thanks!

So far we see there is not at present a purpose-made japan black for the hobbyist/craftsman.

Few will want to dick around cooking up japan varnish from scratch today.
We need a commercial source, a specialist maker who can do it right and deliver product as needed.
I hope Mike Caswell pursues this project.

More, the current results at this thread:

http://modelsteam.myfreeforum.org/sutra208080.php#208080