[meteorite-list] Iron slice etching questions

Thu Jun 16 22:37:29 EDT 2011

Hello Shawn,

The radio shack etchant is ferric chloride and it works very fast.  It is a 
deep etch and will give more contast and bring out detail you will not get 
using Nitric.  (We etched a Fredericksberg Hexahedrite for Richard Norton 
once and brough out much Neumann line structure, and he was overjoyed!)  You 
want to polish your iron meteorite out to a mirror finish (moreso  than if 
you used nitric)  Traditional nitric acid will give a nice etch if you sand 
down to a #400.  For preparing your speciomen with the RS FeCl etchant you 
should go to #1200 or sometimes #2400 grit.  Your previous coating and and 
residual surface structures will be gone at this point.  Now hold the 
prepared surface under running water and quickly coat the speciment with the 
RS etchant using a broad brush (abou an inch).  Dabbing may give uneven 
results as it sometimes will bring out the pattern almost instantly.  If 
your etched surface turns dark you have over etched and you need to start 
over.  When satisfied, rinse quickly and thoroughly to remove any residual 
ferric chloride.  Then rinse thoroughly in at least a 90% Isopropyl alchhol. 
No need to go to a 100% because once you begin to use it you have 
contaminated it by a few percent water.   If it seems stable, submirse in a 
container of the ATF fluid.  Here is the trick.  Put into a oven and heat 
until you see bubbles coming out of the cracks and fissures of the 
meteorite.  You will be surprised how much water is still in the fissures. 
After a couple of hours let cool in the oven. During this process the metal 
will have expanded and any bubbles of water and other contaminants will have 
been purged from the meteorite and the fissures will fill with the AFT and 
seal.  It is failure to do this which eventually leads to rusting as 
virtually noone goes through this step.  After cooling remove the meteorite 
and allow a very thin coating to puddle on the surface, but wipe off any 
excess.  Let dry for 2 or 3 days naturally.  (Preferably upside down in a 
box so as not to allow dust to get embedded in the surface while sticky.) 
When dry you will have a nice protective coating from the ATF fluid.  Metal 
with ATF on it will not rust.  But be sure that you have treated the cracks 
and fussures.

Exact temperatures in the oven: Much higher than if you put in an iron 
meteorite not in fluid (maybe 200+ degrees). The surface would turn color 
and you may ruin it.
You need to experiment but don't cause an explosion or burn down your house. 
I offer these suggestions as a guideline, but I DO NOT ASSUME ANY 
RESPONSIBILITY FOR YOUR ACTIONS, and be careful when using any etchant. 
Wear potective gloves so you don't stain your fingers.  We have found 
parameters that work for us - nothing rusts, not even ruster Campos!  You 
may have to adjust times and temperatures used with dufferent meteorites.

Good luck. Let me know how you do.

(Use of AFT fluid developed by Jim Hartman who first noticed in 2000 in an 
auto wrecking yard that piles of junk iron that had had AFT fluid dripped on 
it were shiny bright where the fluid had dripped.
.
See our article on eiching in the archives of the METEORITE TIMES. 
http://www.meteorite-times.com/Back_Links/2002/November/meteorites_101.htm
(c) 2001 Ronald N Hartman / James C. Hartman

Ron Hartman

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Michael Mulgrew" <mikestang at gmail.com>
To: "Shawn Alan" <photophlow at yahoo.com>
Cc: <meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com>
Sent: Thursday, June 16, 2011 5:41 PM
Subject: Re: [meteorite-list] Iron slice etching questions

> Hi, Shawn.
>
> I use CLR on a Q-tip to remove rust, and rinse off the CLR with
> isopropyl alcohol.
>
> Rather than hassle with nitric acid solutions I use computer board
> etchant that you can purchase at any Radio Shack
> (http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2102868).  Dab
> it on with a foam brush and rinse with warm water, followed by an iso
> alcohol rinse and a couple hours in the oven to dry.  After it's dry I
> apply a light coat of automatic transmission fluid.  I don't use
> lacquer because if I don't want to seal anything in by accident, and I
> prefer to be able to quickly re-clean if needed.
>
> Here's a small Campo slice I recently rehab'd, it came out great!
> http://api.ning.com/files/TTNq51g3PmEprv8cGklQmHxEnDH*40GU9qqeWlLVr3cNNcgRVd*HYBhyOcU19upJ1sNWmzTcdWSxWfxxyek*qZu-H3pLDerR/camporehab.jpg
>
> Best,
> Michael in so. Cal.
>
> On Thu, Jun 16, 2011 at 3:40 PM, Shawn Alan <photophlow at yahoo.com> wrote:
>>
>> Hello Listers
>>
>> For all of you that collect irons I have a couple questions. The first 
>> one is I know some people seal their iron slices with a clear coat 
>> lacker, now is this safe to do if done right, and if so, what is the 
>> producted used. If someone wants to take it off the clear coat what can 
>> be used? Could acetone be a good agent to take off the coating?
>>
>> Second question what do people use to etch an iron. I have seen some 
>> videos but nothing talks about the acid used or the strength or I must 
>> have missed something. Also if there is some lite rust on the slice, 
>> whats a good agent to clean off the slice before etching. Why I aske is 
>> because I have an iron that is etched on one side and on the other side 
>> its kinda etched with some cool looking saw marks but could be etched 
>> more. I would like to have both side etched nicely and see what peoples 
>> thoughts are.
>>
>> Shawn Alan
>> IMCA 1633
>> eBaystore
>> http://shop.ebay.com/photophlow/m.html
>>
>>
>>
>> ______________________________________________
>> Visit the Archives at 
>> http://www.meteoritecentral.com/mailing-list-archives.html
>> Meteorite-list mailing list
>> Meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com
>> http://six.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list
> ______________________________________________
> Visit the Archives at 
> http://www.meteoritecentral.com/mailing-list-archives.html
> Meteorite-list mailing list
> Meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com
> http://six.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list
> 