I have a few lights that have a lot of exposed copper to air and to my hand. Now it looks really ugly, greenish, and smelly );
I sand papered some, but the tarnish got it again!
Is there a way to keep it this shiny?
Old lumens also made some lights out of copper pipes that looked nice and shiny.
I have to put tape over my lights so I wont touch the copper and to not get that smelly copper smell on my hands.
I really like to have the pure copper look instead of the tape. Any ideas?
You can polish them, that helps. And waxing them is also possible. There are some polish pastes which have some waxes in them already.
lights are made of copper alloy so they don’t oxidize. Kinda like those copper Maratac lights.
Renaissance wax.
Uhhh, don’t most pasties have something else in them? :party: And we ain’t talkin’ Cornish pasties… and the wax is usually found a bit lower…
raw copper oxidizes and turns green (think statue of liberty)
Only way to protect it is electroplating and/or some sort of clear coating
P.S. The copper vaping mods people have used tarn-x to clean then clear coat too keep them nice and shiny
Brasso.
Or just let it oxidize, that’s also a nice look for copper.
Otherwise you could have it nickelled or chromed.
Remember some “copper” is actually brass — if it looks yellow it’s brass; if it looks orange it’s more likely mostly copper.
Brass generally has some lead in it (the lead is what makes it easy to machine). The lead smears over the surface during machining — which is why most old brass fixtures and keys are a health issue, particularly for children who may handle them and forget to wash their hands before eating or touching their faces.
This describes that problem: http://sdfca.org/articles/Lead_Associated_with_House_and_Automotive_Keys.htm
So check what the alloy is, or use one of the hardware store lead test swabs to see if there’s lead coming off the metal.
Particularly anything from China is going to be a problem for this.
What light is that? I have to have one now!
I havea AA, AAA and CR123 countrycomm lights sealed in their factory foil packages, I’m going to give them to the kids to open in a couple xmas’s (you know, once their old enough to not loose them). I plan on letting them tarnish then, thats why their still sealed now.
I gave a Sipik SK68 clone to my brother, he is 8 years younger than me so 32…he managed to leave it on, blow up an AA battery, so much that it corroded solid in the light pretty much rendering it useless…my sister in law did the same but managed to get the battery out…and after cleaning up the PCB and all the corrosion out of it managed to save it…my brothers not so much
To us flashlights are our hobby and we enjoy them…some people just don’t appreciate it, but hey such is life
That protectaclear link from above shows to work with metal in high use and salt environments…probably would work well in a hand that has salts in sweat as well
(more than likely a cheap clearcoat laquer paint/varnish in a re-labelled bucket)
Makes my hand smells bad every time I hold it. I am not that worried about the smell, but the copper. I don’t want lead poisoning because I like to hold a light wherever I go.
Copper lights are not usually alloyed but instead 100% pure Oxygen free copper. The Maratac copper light will tarnish almost overnight. My Sinner Cypreus was beautiful for the pictures, tarnished the next day. Any uncoated or un plated copper is going to leave the copper smell on your hands when you handle it. Nature of the beast.
Rennaisance Wax and ProtectaClear will seal it, keep it pretty for a short while, but it will still tarnish. I have both, have used both, the ProtectaClear peels off, the Rennaisance wax simply fails. Apparently handling the object wears the wax off. So the only permanent solution I know of is to have it plated. Or handle it daily to keep the tarnish worn off. That works as well. 
> Copper lights are not usually alloyed but instead 100% pure
Yeah, but “copper” doesn’t mean, well, anything you can rely on.
Plumbing pipe, for sure, you have to check.
Absolutely brilliant stuff.
I’ve not had it react badly with anything I’ve used it on yet, buy the 200ml tin and it will last you a long time.
Renaissance wax is around 18$+ online );
Anyone willing to sell me a little bit in a ziplock bag? I live in California/Los Angeles
Clear nail polish? Clear coat spray paint?
Disclaimer: I have no idea if these work, just throwing ideas out there.
Spray paint does not leave a SUPER SHINY SMOOTH layer. I just sprayed my light with plasti dip, i’ll post pictures. There is a bunch of ripples.
Mothers Mag Aluminum Polish. Its the standard for hot rodders and polished metal enthusiasts. Polish chrome, nickle, aluminum, copper, brass, bronze and steel… and every other metal Ive ever tried it on. Blows away flitz, brasso, rouge, blue coral, etc. and dozens of other products Ive tried. It also seals the finish from oxidation so a sealing compound isnt necessary. I polish very expensive custom aircraft props, custom made aluminum racing mags and rare brass antique lanterns to a mirror finish and I have yet to find anything so versatile or forgiving. Google and find thousands of positive reviews. Works by hand or power finish… and its cheap and available almost everywhere.