How to antique weapons and armor

[Sir Ulrich]

Well I got this new practical norman sword. I want to somehow antique the hilt and blade a bit, but it's made of stainless steel most likely as it is not magnetic. Is there some kind of oil I can put on it to antique it and make it look a bit worn. It's supposed to be an "older model" of sword that's a hand me down as it's a 1000 AD sword for my 1250 AD persona. Kinda wanna do the same for my helmet as well just don't want it rusting out of control.

[Dragonlover]

Being stainless, I'm not altogether sure there is anything you would want to put on it. the only safe way I would think to give it that "well-worn, antiqued" look, would be to handle it! Bill, Ed, or Wolf would probably have a recommendation. What say ya, lads?

[Sir Edward]

It's hard to say with stainless. If it weren't, I'd probably just handle it a lot without oiling it! I'm not sure what a good method would be for intentionally aging it. I suppose you could bury it for a week and see what happens.

Disclaimer: I'm not actually recommending any of these things. Do so at your own risk!

[Sir Patrick]

You might try this technique.  I used it on a wallhanger saber I had lying around, and it worked pretty well (though I'm not sure if it's applicable to stainless).

http://www.myarmoury.com/feature_bench_ws_estoc.html

[Sir William]

You said practical Norman...who made it, if I may ask?  Reason I ask is because the Hanwei ones are high-carbon steel (like their sharp counterparts) and as such, would be more amenable to the aging process.  Or you could bury it for a few months and dig it back up!

[Sir Ulrich]

It's a Hanwei sword. The blade I know is carbon steel, magnetic and it came oiled. Not sure about the fixings and pommel though, they're kinda shiny and have this weird look that's similar to galvanized metal without the zinc. It isn't magnetic so I think it's either stainless steel or nickel.

[Sir William]

Ok, I was confused for a moment, so the blade is magnetic, but the fittings are not.  The fittings are probably mild steel, although they might be stainless for ease of care.  Either way, I was thinking about this last night and do recall that vinegar has been used before- but I couldn't remember where I'd read that.  SFI or SBG, can't recall which.  Maybe Das Bill could weigh in?

[Sir Edward]

Yes, vinegar will corrode steel pretty quickly, apparently. I was just reading about aging wood, and one of the things they suggest doing is dissolving steel wool in vinegar for 24 hours and then brushing it onto the wood (diluting it first, unless you want it really dark). 

I haven't tried any of it personally.

Stainless should still attract magnets. As will pure nickel. The fittings could be some sort of aluminum or non-ferrous alloy. It's hard to say.

[Sir Patrick]

A salt/vinegar solution will do a nice job.  I just add salt until it starts to fall out of solution, then spray on.  Metal will turn rusty within about 10-20 minutes.  You'll start to freak out, but DON"T do anything!  Leave it on overnight, then wipe it off.  You'll find you need about three applications, depending on how aged you want the item to look. 

[Sir William]

@ Sir Edward- that's true...I was giving Hanwei the benefit of the doubt but truthfully, the mild steel furnishings normally apply to offerings from the likes of Albion, A&A, VA and Windlass.  There are others, those just come off the top of my head.  The H/T swords have mild steel fittings I believe, no plating of any kind far as I can tell.

And there's the Red Knight with the last minute lance! lol

That's not a bad idea...might try that on one of my beaters, see what happens.