Mirror making tutorial. Chemical silvering process
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- čas přidán 20. 08. 2024
- In this mirror making tutorial, I cover the chemical silvering process that was developed nearly 200 years ago
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What a great video. I happened to be riding on the bus and asked myself "How are mirrors made?" Thanks for sharing your expertise.
Thanks very much, I’m glad you enjoyed it! :)
As i said before, this is one of the best videos so far, showing the how to for things no one dares to share or even do. Bravo my friend!
Cheers Omar! It’s one of my favourites too. It’s been such a long and disappointing path to get here, so to finally get it right feels great 😎🍻
The earth shattering kaboom, is if you converted it into silver fulminate by accident. Washing the glass with an alcohol could be a pathway? Maybe sodium carbonate and silver nitrate then ammonia? Another channel mentioned a saturated salt water solution might be a way out before it becomes an illuddium q-36 space modulator.
Love the finished product! Time for you to put all your skills into a book. I’ll take a first edition signed copy please! Cheer Paul! 📖 🪞
Thanks Ted! If I ever decide to publish a book you’ll be the first to know 😎🙏🤜🤛
Thank you for sharing your knowledge with us. I'm a traditional stained glass artist hoping to get into verre eglomise and other reverse-glass painting techniques, you're channel is an amazing resource!
Thanks very much, I'm really glad you're enjoying the videos!!
Bro PLEASE wear gloves during handling silver nitrate and sodium hydroxide. you will dissolve your fingers. also PLEASE use a glass stirrer. youre killing me here
This was great to watch Paul. Thanks for putting your years of trial and error into a guide for others.
Cheers Stephen, really glad you enjoyed it!! It might not be as alluring as some of the more flamboyant techniques like glue chipping and acid etching, but achieving a perfect mirror finish is one of my proudest achievements in reverse glass :D
Best Video so far on CZcams with Clear instructions of silvering process ..but I want a video on the silvering of mirror through Spraygun Method....
From India 🇮🇳
The finished piece is extremely beautiful. Thanks for sharing the method. It's intriguing.
Thank you!!
Neat Paul! I've been silvering all freaking day today. Careful, fulminated silver is explosive.
Cheers Scott!
Thank you Paul for showing how to do this, something down the road to do.
Cheers John, glad you found it useful! :D
Your a great teacher
Cheers mate!!
FINALLY! I’ve been looking everywhere for an actual GOOD video in this! 😊
Glad you enjoyed it!!
If you think you’ll do this relatively often (ie more than a couple a times a year) then a magnetic stirring plate (stirrer) might be worth your time. Or maybe not. But it would reduce spills, though it would also require flat bottomed vessels.
They are in the 20-30 (US) dollar range. Or maybe even cheaper on something like aliexpress or eBay. But you can also find instructables to make one with stuff you might have at home. Also useful for home brewers!
Thanks for the amazing and informative content.
Thanks very much for the advice, I’ll definitely be getting one! :D
Thanks Paul I’ve been looking for a “how to“ for mirroring and it looks like you’ve cracked it- excellent advice, as always. 👍👍
Cheers mate!!
Never heard of Gilders.
I'm going to give this a whirl soon. I just got glue chipping supplies some abalone and some white gold leaf but incorporating this would be awesome
Cheers Tim! Looking forward to seeing more of your creations on the group!!
Please make a two way mirror 🙏🙏🙏
Nice work. If you are going to try this with a pc where you have invested a lot of time look into the back coating process. Commercial mirrors have the silver layer, sacrificial copper or copper bearing paint layer, sealing layer and environmental protection layers. OTH corrosion at the edges might fit the look of the piece.
Thanks man. I definitely need to look in to the methods of backing up. Only time will tell if the spray paint holds up
Just in time!!! I'm so happy to see this, it's been the same here, i have just enough silver nitrate left to give it one more go
That's great! Glad to be of service :D
@@happygilder aww man, it still didn’t work. It just gets grey and cloudy. I guess it must be my nitrate, I got the liquid 🤯
@@deannak1841 Ahh maaan, that's a real shame :( . Unfortunately I can't give you any advice that's not in the video because that's all I know. It works for me every time now so I can only suggest a process of elimination starting by replacing the liquid silver with granules
@@happygilder exactly what I was thinking….I’m saving my money cuz boy it’s expensive now, but thanks for all you do!
Já sabia como fazer com duas soluções. Mas com uma solução aprendi agora. Muito bom!!
Obrigado amigo!!
Glad it was useful :)
Terrific video. You are a great instructor. Question. Can I glue chip tempered glass and the silver it?
Thank you! No you can't chip tempered glass because the glass is stronger than the glue
Wow... what a great video. Now I want to give it a try... just because! 😆 Thank you for taking the time to produce this.
Thanks very much, I'm glad you enjoyed it!!
Another great video Paul! Many thanks for your efforts. Have you (or anyone else out there) tried this process with vinyl masks or Asphaltum barriers?
Thanks so much for sharing! How do you properly dispose of the chemicals when you are done?
According to Solubility rules only like dissolves like w/ exceptions. Organics to organics and inorganics soluble in inorganics
Paul, my last comment looked like I was delighted you failed , didn't mean it that way and apologise . I am delighted you took away the mystery of mirror making and your alternative ways of reverse glass painting, even the video a while ago, using clear acrylic spray to make sand blasted parts clear in a mirror was genius. on a lighter note how do you get away using your kitchen , I would be shot.
Hahaha I didn’t read it like that :D
I’ve been barred from using the kitchen because I kept getting paint everywhere. The dining room is mine to mess up now 😎
So delighted to have come across this video - such a great tutorial. Do you have any advice/videos regarding removing the old, degraded silver finish from a vintage mirror so that it can be resilvered?
Thanks very much! I've never tried removing silver from an old mirror, but if I was to try I'd use a paint stripping putty to remove the backing paint, then perhaps some oxidizing acid to remove the silver. That's pure guess work though so it might not work :)
Wow!! Magic I love it.
Good instructions and all the learning done by you. Thank you.
Can you tell us about antique mirror making methods?
Paul thank you so much for this video I have been looking for this information. I know you are closing your Patreon page please keep these videos up thanks so much.
Glad you enjoyed it! No need to worry, I'm leaving all of my videos on CZcams :D
Great video and very educational.
These ingredients are for the small mirror you did. Can you tell us the square centimeters you did with it? I am in the process of making a mirror bigger than that and like to know how much I need from everything to get the right amount of ingredients.
Thanks in advance.
Hi, the small piece of glass I used was 8x10 inches
@@happygilder Thank you, now I can calculate the correct proportions
Fascinating thanks.
Hi Paul hope u and the family are well…just started my reverse glass journey…so glad I found your channel thanks for all the amazing content and knowledge just about to attempt my first sign, if u have any corses available in the future that would be class …thanks again
That's great to hear, I'm really glad you're going to start this lovely craft! I don't think I'll ever do in person courses but Dave Smith (who taught me) does amazing workshops out of his home studio in Torquay, Devon
Thanks for taking the time to get back to me Paul I spoke to Dave he’s a top man looking to join him soon on a workshop…a quick one how do I become a patron of your channel I’m not on FB could u please send me a link, thanks again Paul
@@1982retroyears Thank you that's really kind of you. Here's a link to my Patreon: www.patreon.com/happygilder?fan_landing=true
I’m amazed -
Really nice work and video. I want to make semi silvered mirror. 50%. Do you have any instructions on that?
Very interesting! Thanks for sharing Paul!
Cheers Chip!!!
Beautiful !
Thank you!
I have a question what’s the best way to get rid of the selution that’s left because I don’t want to get poisoned
Dawn dish soap and steel wool (not the kind from the hardware store) gets most of the silver nitrate "bluing" off your skin; just don't be aggressive. 😉
Thanks for the tip!
Thank you for such an informative video. I've been wanting to try this for a while up to now I've been using rustoleum spray but it doesn't give that proper effect, I've just ordered everything to give it a few trys but can i ask is distilled water you use just boiled tap water or deionised water and what do you do with the run off mixture in tray as i can't imagine you could just pour it down drains.
I always use distilled water. I imagine you'd get mineral deposits in the silver solution if you use tap water
Great video. Thank you!
Thanks, glad you enjoyed it!
这是我最期待的一期，因为只有这个工艺我做的还不完美。谢谢你，哥们！
You're very welcome, glad you enjoyed it!! :D
中国同胞啊 留个联系方式一起研究
@@jphuang8544 你在哪里呀？
@@heinzji4693 浙江
@@jphuang8544 我，云南
Beautiful work, thanks for sharing!
Thank you!
Hi, you mention 'kit' a number of times. Are the chemicals available as a complete kit, if so where does one purchase it, or if individual chemicals, where did you purchase them?
How do you remove the old silvering? And how can you tell if the original coating is silver or aluminium oxide?
Thanks in advance.
You can by the kits from Angel Gilding. They also sell the chemicals to remove old silver
Awesome and super helpful.
Just wanted to ask about the 'tin side' part. In other silvering demonstrations they actually 'tin' the surface as an initial step, which supposedly assists the Silver to grip the surface. So it seems weird that you use the 'air side'.
Are you sure it's not the other way around, that the side you're using is the tin side?
I'm interested to know because you achieve a good result without 'tinning' the surface and I wonder if I need to tin my glass surface or can I skip it. My suspicion is that you don't need to tin it because it is already tinned in the float process.
Thanks for sharing great video. My query is can we use same process on Telescope concave mirrors?
I can't see why not. You'd have to mask the front and submerge it but it's worth a try :)
❤your channel, thank you for sharing your knowledge
Thanks very much!!
Great video, thank you
Thanks, glad you enjoyed it!
Do you have any suggestions for making a first surface mirror?
Amazing video, thanks for producing and what an amazing resource your channel is! One question if you don't mind? Are you aware whether it's possible to apply something to the glass prior to applying the silvering liquid to act as a kind of resist that prevents the mirroring of certain areas?
Obviously you could use vinyl (unless there is a chemical reaction?) but i've used HF acid extensively and bitumen and beeswax did a good job as a resist that stopped the HF from melting the glass. Do you think either of those would work with the silvering chemicals to prevent the silvering or would there be a reaction? Perhaps an idea for a video?!
Thanks and keep up the good work... (edit: just noticed someone below also asked the same question. Do patreons get to suggest vids :)
Would this process be suitable to do a primary concave mirror for a telescope?
Thanks for showing this process and explaining how it works. I have seen it done before with no commentary and it seemed like alchemy. One thing that it would be most useful for is when you have a fitted mirror with a bevelled edge that has deteriorated. I inherited a lovely credenza sideboard with arch topped mirrored door panels with complex bevelled edges. The silver has corroded and it would be extremely expensive to have new mirrors made. If I can resilver them myself it would be wonderful. One question though, how do you stop the silver running around the edges and on to the tin side of the glass, or won't it stick because of the tin contamination?
Hi Mark, glad you enjoyed it! The surface tension holds the solution on the glass, but it doesn't matter if silver gets on the other side. It's easy to wipe off while it's wet.
Good luck re-silvering your beveled mirrors!!
Pretty cool stuff to learn, not that I would but I do have a question. The mixture you poured on the glass had to have ran over and gotten on the tin side, so why didn’t it turn silver?
The surface tension contains the solution to the one side. If some does get on the other side during the process, it can be easily wiped off while it's wet
Great video really informative. Just a quick question how do you safely dispose of the excess solution?
Thank you! I wash it down an outside drain with a hose. Loads of water! :)
@@happygilder Pour it in a solution of salt water then pour it down a drain.
Thanks for another excellent video Paul. I would love to try this one day - it looks great on your glue chipped glass. One thing I was wondering. When you talk about which side of the glass is the 'tin' or 'air' side, I imagine that it doesn't matter if you are sandblasting it first? Cheers.
Cheers mate! No if you're sandblasting it, the tin residue will be removed. I'm not sure how much of an issue it causes using the tin side, it's just a rabbit hole I went down while I was researching the silvering process. Every piece I've made over the last 7 years could be one or the other and I've never noticed a difference in quality between pieces
@@happygilder Thanks Paul. That's pretty much what I thought. I did the water test and it works great - it's easy to tell which side is which. I didn't have any distilled water handy, so I just used tap water with a pipette and it works just fine. It's certainly a handy thing to know. Cheers.
Would the chemical reaction produce the same results if using a clear acrylic sheet?
great lesson , can you put up your suppliers,
glad you failed before and never gave up
Thanks Fran. I didn't buy the supplies so I don't know where they're from. Other than the silver nitrate they're all household chemicals so I would just search to see where does the best deals.
The chemicals are: Ammonia, Caustic soda, & Dextrose :)
@@happygilder Thanks , Brexit made a mess of supplies to Ireland. roll on Labour
Can I double ingredients for a piece of glass 900mmx700mm?
Hi, this video has been so helpful to me with making my artworks. Thank you. I just wondered which backing spray do you use? Is a spray acrylic enamel ok do you think, or any spray acrylic like montana spray paints. Many thanks
impressive video
Thank you!
Thank you for teaching me with your very good lesson, how much dekstros for 2 grm silver nitrat
I was just looking for silvering supplies. The piece for your dad at the end. That is glue chipped and sandblasted only? It looks amazing.
Thank you! Yes it was sandblasted in stages to achieve the different tones, then glue chipped :)
what percentage of silver nitrate do you use
are you not allowed to use like a stir stick?
A stir stick would work fine
Amazing, thank you very much for this great video, This formula is the same that they use in hydrochrome? And i wonder if this method it gonna work if i want to use it in hard surfaces like statue to get the chrome effect color? Thank you again for your time and your effort,
Thanks, I'm glad you enjoyed it! I don't think this method would work on had surfaces because it doesn't look mirrored from the back. It's a kind of milky colour
Great video!! What kind of paint would you recommend to use on glass, before silvering?
@@marinacarr7010 asphaltum is resistant to the chemicals. Enamel won’t hold up though
@@happygilderThank you.
I looked up asphaltum paint because I didn’t know what it was.
I only found a colour of paint named Asphaltum.
If enamel was paint isn’t appropriate, can you please recommend the type of paint that would be suitable to paint onto glass before silvering? Thank you.
@@marinacarr7010 asphaltum is also referred to as Brunswick Black. It’s oil based paint.
Can this same method be used to intentionally make a partially transparent mirror (two way mirror) ? perhaps just by not leaving the solution on as long?
It would be difficult to get an even finish using a weaker solution. If you’re looking to make a 2 way mirror, I’d use 2 way mirror film
Where to buy the silver solution
Does anyone know if the process is the same when the surface is not completely flat? For example something that looks like a large rhinestone with a raised surface. Will this mixture still work?
Any prepared glass can be silvered. I've silvered bottles and odd shaped items. Just remember the silver surface needs to be protected from scratching. Also don't touch the surface with bare hands. The salts from your sweat will start the silver to tarnish over time. Always seal along the edges.
Is it possible to make the silvering chemical in the same amount or even a larger amount and store it for later use? Or do you need to use it immediately? Cheers.
Once it’s all mixed together you have to use it relatively quickly because it becomes poisonous and explosive as it expires
Hi, is there a way to leave some area's as the transparent glass? Like say, laying a design in vinyl over it before silvering? Then remove the vinyl after applying the spray paint backing?
I've never tried it, but my guess is that the silver solution would make the vinyl shrivel up. It would be best to do all of the processes first then silver it last. You'd need to use a back up paint that can handle the solution because I don't think enamels would hold up. Maybe Asphaltum (Brunswick Black) would work.
this might be a really dumb question bud, but where did you get the tray you’re working with? I’ve probably been googling the wrong thing, but I’ve never been able to find one!
Here you go bud 😎
www.ebay.co.uk/itm/284224213678?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=25bVW6FYR6y&sssrc=2349624&ssuid=kkbhZ2SNRXa&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY
@@happygilder hero!
Where do I want to buy chemical silvering?
The ingredients are: Silver nitrate, Ammonia, Caustic soda, distilled water & Dextrose. You should be able to find them all online :)
@@happygilder Thank you.
Maybe I don't get it, I want to ask what it is for, why not just buy a mirror
It’s not about making a plain mirror, it’s about having the ability to use chemical slivering instead of white gold leaf on complex projects. It’s a fraction of the cost
Did my first mirror today and a little bit different (based on this czcams.com/video/nGmxHLHyUPc/video.html video from NileRed). It produced perfect mirror in the test tube, but failed on flat surface. I've had good adhesion and no transparent bits but the middle of my mirror became cloudy, grayish color with a little bit of a pattern visible. What could possibly be the problem? BTW. I am going to try your method next time.