Thu Aug 13, 2015 5:16 pm by Papa Gleb
Hahaha HT.
Either you guys are looking to deep or I didnt explain it well enough but I think its time to reveal the truth. The core is from an American padlock no more than 10 years old. The key is a Star blank for the AM keyway which was made approximately 30 years ago or older.
By now you are probably asking how did the entire bible get such a rich patina if only the plug is in contact with the elements... so Ill tell you.... the secret is.... Brakleen. Yes you read right. When I got this core it looked nice and goldish like a lightly used brass core except it was glued to I soaked it in brakleen and forgot about it until yesterday. Went to check on it and was surpirsed to see that the chemicals in Brakleen actually acted as a catilist and oxidized the brass core. It looks like the core was outside in the elements for 50 years except this core only spent 3-4 weeks in Brakleen. I key on the other hand came from a retired locksmith who had these blanks handing for 30 some years.
The conclusion and why I said discovery is as follows, lets say you have an old lock an antique with nice rich patina but no key so you go grab a blank and make a key except the blank is new shiny and does not match the lock in any way.. so dump it in a jag of Brakleen and once a week check on it. Pull out when it reaches your desired color and boom you now have a nice old patina rich lock with a matching key. I know use impression freaks have always had this question and I even remember Gordon making a thread on this topic so now you have it gents. Brakleen: cleans your car brakes, degreases, stinks like hell evaporizing your nose hairs and also turns brass rich with patina.
Side note: this core was handled for a good 20m before the picture was taken so it will not just rub off. I struggled to shim and pick this core all at the same time and nothing happened to the color.
PS. Excuse any mistakes, typed this super fast as I have to ru..........