Chinese Gold Leaf

Roderick Treece · Post by **Roderick Treece** » Wed May 07, 2008 4:41 pm

The boards been really active today.I have enjoyed reading everything.

I received a sample pack of all types of leaf free from a Chinese manufacture.I need to do a water gilded glass sample for a client so I used some of the 23k loose leaf.After laying 2 layers and letting it dry I turned it over to find small flecks of silver in the gold.

I wanted to make everybody aware of this.It's not a bad deal price wise but I don't think it's worth the worry.

Roderick

Larry White · Post by **Larry White** » Wed May 07, 2008 5:58 pm

Hey Rod-
I've used some of it also. I had a problem of it sticking in the book. Nothing worse than fighting with your gold when you're trying to water gild. I did use some for regilding an old ornate frame and it came out beautiful.

I like Manetti, glass gold. But I don't know....

-Aho!

Roderick Treece · Post by **Roderick Treece** » Wed May 07, 2008 6:51 pm

Hey, Larry (Whity)

The stuff we got through That guy in LA was very sticky in the book.

RT

Billy Pickett · Post by **Billy Pickett** » Thu May 08, 2008 6:39 am

...That's not silver. The Chinese put LEAD in everything...

Robare M. Novou · Post by **Robare M. Novou** » Thu May 08, 2008 11:32 am

They put "Lead" in everything!?

Do they make "Leaded" One Shot Lettering Enamel?

If not, they should, cause I'd buy some.

Hey Mr Kent Smith, can I add corroded lead to the One Shot Lettering Enamels? Thus thereby making it like the Leaded One Shot Paint of Past Lore?

RMN

Roderick Treece · Post by **Roderick Treece** » Thu May 08, 2008 2:10 pm

Billy bob,
I really got a laugh out of that one.Though I am not sure it would be lead.They are making what they call silver leaf as well and the silver in the gold is very bright silver.I don't think I've ever seen lead leaf but I would think it would be lead colored.

RT

Kent Smith · Post by **Kent Smith** » Sun May 11, 2008 8:32 am

Robare: Just adding lead to the current formulae would upset the balance of the current components. While a small amount of lead solution could act as an additional dryer, it could actually counteract the drying capability of the synthetic agents. Many components have changed to compensate for the lead-free formulations so no, one would have to start over.

By the way, the real issue of lead free is not so much the formula additives but the lead based pigments (hard leads which are not ingestably toxic, olny in dust form ie lung dust issues). The most light-fast pigments were Chromium Lead Oxides giving us durable yellows, oranges and greens; Red Lead Oxide giving us deep reds; soft Lead Cobalts giving us blues and purples; and White Lead/Zink compounds giving us pure whites.

RT: Lead foil which was used in the 20's like aluminum foil, was used sometimes as a backer for pearl. It appears galena blue through glass.