RobA, Care to share with us the method used for the copper patina?
There are loads of "recipes" out there of which most don't really work. I searched on the internet and found a solution sold by Jax Chemical Co. that was supposed to make it easy ( link to Jax ). It wasn't so easy. Any green patina it formed was flaky and most of it washed off. I thought that scuffing the surface would help it bond to the copper so I sanded it. Didn't do much good. Besides, sanding the horse wetahervane wasn't easy. So I called my nephew who is a chemist. He suggested chemically etching the copper using acetic acid (same acid in vinegar). He got me 'glacial' acetic acid which is almost pure. He cautioned me that it is flammable, an eye/nose irritant and could be smelled 100+ yards away - literally. He was not kidding!!! This stuff stinks like hell, and the vapors can choke you. I brushed it on, choked, coughed and wipe the tears from my eyes then hose it off. It did work much better but some of the green still washed off when I rinsed the Jax solution off.
In my area it would take 20 years or more for the copper to turn green so I figure I got a 15 year jump on it.
