Hello to all fellow collectors.
I find this an interesting subject. Some years ago now I had the misfortune to purchase an item from the USA that was supposed to be a 100 year old item. When it arrived it was brand new from some snoozers workshop--What was I to do? Caveat Emptor--Buyer Beware.
I rang a friend who makes metal work that looks old. My question was, "How can I make this item that I have look old?" His advice was to bury the item in the ground after you have used some hydrachloric acid on the item. The ground must be wet and make sure you bury it under a tree with plenty of sap in it--like an old cypress tree. Leave it there for a couple of weeks, remove it, let it dry and repeat the process for a couple of months.
The result is astounding. I defy anyone to tell me that the rust is not 100 years old. No "orange" looking rust but rather a baked on brown rust just as you get from many years of wethering. I still have that item hanging in the shed and no-one ever makes a remark as to how old it is.
A couple of years ago, at the Ballarat Swap Meet, here in Victoria, I nearly got conned into buying a sign that was fake. The only thing that gave it away was the "orange" looking rust on the reverse of the sign and if the seller had used the tried and true ageing method no-one could tell. The eagle eye of Greg Howard at "Old Sydney Signs" saved me on that occasion. The shonks are out there so Caveat Emptor--Buyer Beware.
Regards, George Grant( Rustycutters)