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I've cracked the code on a spray japanning technique.  Why is this technique lost to time?

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Can You Spray Japanning?

I finally discovered a decent method for spraying on japanning. For more information on japanning, check out my original video here: https://youtu.be/SBqgpdBNrt8 Spray Japanning Recipe: 60% Turpentine 25% Asphaltum/Gilsonite 15% Boiled Linseed Oil Mix together (not in the spray bottle) and set aside for at least 24 hours. Check if consistency is spraying to your liking, and add more turpentine if too thick or more asphaltum if too thin. Wait at least 24 hours after the addition of any further ingredients before use. The recipe is only in percentages and not by weight or volume because different quality turpentine and asphaltum will produce slightly different results, so use the percentages as a general guideline. Once ready to paint, do not stir or shake the japanning as undissolved particles will be at the bottom of the container. In this video I used a spray bottle designed for thick liquids and a re-fillable spray can that you pressurize with an air compressor. I am sure using a HVLP spray system would work here as well, but I wanted to make this as accessible as possible. Spray on one thin coat and let sit for a few hours before baking so that any runs or dips have stopped. Place painted item in cold oven and set it to 200F for 1hr then let cool. Bake it again at 300F for 1 hr and let cool in the oven. Then bake at 350F and finally 400F for 45 min each, cooling in between steps. If japanning is still not hard after 400F, you can bake at 425F for 1 hr. Once fully hard, you can smooth out the first coat with sandpaper and apply further coats. You can also apply further coats before you bake past 300F, if you think your first coat is smooth enough. Spray japanning will require more coats than if brushed on. Keep the unused japanning in a container with a tight lid. If the japanning starts to get too thick or hardens, you can always add more turpentine to bring it back to life. I hope to put this out there so more people try the recipe and experiment with it so that we can all get as close as possible to a working recipe. You can follow along on the traveling hand plane here: https://www.youtube.com/c/WoodWright/ https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCHsqqRjziUaMwZgQZHw-n1w https://www.youtube.com/c/RexKrueger https://www.youtube.com/c/GreenBeetle You can find more details on Japanning here: http://www.cranialstorage.com/Wood/japanning.html#Japan-Metal http://www.inthewoodshop.com/ToolRestorations/ColdCureJapanning.html https://www.lumberjocks.com/JayT/blog/32704 https://books.google.ca/books?id=gZgXTVwhRvIC&pg=PA2&dq=japanning&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiV2tTC8N_jAhWGct8KHUCNBnMQuwUIKjAA https://www.2ndusss.com/uniforms-and-gear/an-actual-japanning-how-to-yes https://books.google.ca/books?id=xV0OAAAAYAAJ&printsec=frontcover&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=japan&f=false

Comments

Zach Allen

Finally! My needs have been satiated!

Marcus Retaken

Thank you for sharing this one! I'm gonna use it for sure!

Robert Speer

Is there hours of baking between each coat?

NJ.VJ

So it’s it’s like a 5-6 hour cycle per coat?

NJ.VJ

Also what’s the sanding process between consist of?

Duarte Da Silva

Where can I acquire asphaltum in Canada (Ontario)?

OldFrenchy

Very generous of you to provide the world with a lost art!

Ampws

Frank used to work at Roneo-Vickers, back in the late 50's he had a friend whose granddad used to work for Ford. Apparently they used to keep huge oil drums full of the jappanning mix made up, as long as the barrels were turned reguarly the mix would not settle and thus stay fluid. He reckoned that they used a lot of turpentine and that the workers could tell if a barrel was properly mixed by the smell alone. I wonder how high the workers got as protective gear was non-existent. I do not remember the ratio's but I think that the ashphaltum was roughly a quarter so you are correct as far as I can tell.

Dustin

Is Japanning always a gloss sheen? I wonder how one could go about making a matte finish…

Cody Falgoust

Is there a video series being made on the restoration of this plane? If so can you point me to the link? Great set of craftsman in on this collaboration and I’d love to see their contributions.

Marc McKenzie

Eric, every new video and project you do is a gem - hope I can try this in 2022!

Steve Seidel

Hey! The video disappeared before I had a chance to watch it.

Timothy J. Brown

I cannot see the spray japaning video. It says that its "private".

RedWraith

Same for me, video is private for some reason.

handtoolrescue

If you add spar varnish to the mix, it makes it matte.

Dustin

Shit ya, good to know. Thank you, sir.

Something

Are the measurements by weight or volume?

Gene Simonalle

Eric, when is your book coming out, where you gather the gems of knowledge you have accumulated like the hoarder of knowledge you are?

Jeff LeBell

if your having problems with the stuff staining your hands, try getting some worx hand cleaner. It's great stuff. That with a little dish soap usually takes whatever garbage gets on my hands. it works great for automotive paint, as well as the concrete chemicals i am around every day.

John willis

HTR, I live in Japan and my students use the the traditional extremely black pigment ink for calligraphy - i assume this is the basis (or a similar a derivative) for traditional Japanning. Would supplying you with a “classroom” size bottle of this special pigment ink be useful? I will comment to you about this in a newer thread sometime soon as well.