Thread: Where might I find old-style, blacksmith type bolts and washers please?

I doubt you can buy these anywhere. You may need to find a local blacksmith to make some up for you.

Instead of using paint you could try using plain steel bolts and giving them a coating of potbelly black or exhaust paint and then heating them in an oven to bake it on. It's just a guess but it should look better than paint although some of it might come off on the threads when you put the nuts on?

How abotu "the Restorers Barn" in Castlemaine, vic. They might have something you could press into service. If you are within cooee it is very easy to waste hours if not days in there poking around.

Restorers Barn - Home

Ah! You are in NZ. Not quite near by. But could still be worth a call.

I don't know where you can get something like that on that side of the planet.

However, if you can find what you want in steel (not galvanized or plated), you can blacken the bolt by applying oil or wax and carefully heating to burn the oil or wax. It can be done in an oven, I usually do it with a torch. Let me reiterate - if you do this, BE CAREFUL.

If you can find what you want in galvanized (zinc plated) you can strip the zinc with vinegar then blacken as above. If you don't get all the zinc off (or other plating) and you heat it you could get "metal fume fever". Probably won't kill you unless you have respiratory problems already.

ron

Plain steel bolts heated on the barbie grill over flame or berrer in a wood or charcoal fire.
Let them cool then dip in phosphoric acid rusr converter or even viniger to blacken. The heads and nuts could get a bit of a belting with a ball peen hammer to get a rustic look. Dont think you will find square nuts for sale but they could be home made out of mild steel.
Regards
John

Originally Posted by orraloon

Plain steel bolts heated on the barbie grill over flame or berrer in a wood or charcoal fire.
Let them cool then dip in phosphoric acid rusr converter or even viniger to blacken. The heads and nuts could get a bit of a belting with a ball peen hammer to get a rustic look. Dont think you will find square nuts for sale but they could be home made out of mild steel.

I was going to say almost the same - the only difference is I'd dip/quench them in oil.

The reason for not quenching them is that brittle bolts may fail. Hardness is not desireable in a bolt.
Regards
John

Originally Posted by orraloon

The reason for not quenching them is that brittle bolts may fail. Hardness is not desireable in a bolt.
Regards
John

If it is a plain steel bolt then it won't harden much, certainly not enough to worry about, or at all.

Thank you everyone. Some great ideas and plenty of food for thought. I'll try a few out this week or next weekend.

You were on the right track with railway bolts. I would go to the local railway museum and try there
les

I've got a box full of old railway line bolts (the ones that held down railway lines). I found them at a roadside railway line in western QLD. I could send you some if u still need them. How many are you after?

Here ya go. Square Nuts - For Sale Herefordshire Dragon Driving

If ya want square headed coach bolts, the easiest way of getting them would be to buy hex headed ones and file or grind them square....If you can be bothered.
washers are washers if you want thick ones ask for (engineers washers) like would be used with high tensile bolts.


There are all sorts of ways of blackening steel, but the problem is that unless you use paint they will all rust in very short order.

Belive me I know a lot about painting stuff black, I have tried all sorts of methods.

Due to a need for things I have built in the past, I have develoed a reliable method of blackening nuts bolts and screws..and they stay black and don't rust.

best to do in pretty good batches.....I used to do hundreds of screws at once....whole boxes.

1. wash the nuts, bolts, screws hinges or whatever in thinners...some things have varnish or laquer on them most don't...but there is often oil, grease or wax.

2.When dry put them in an icecream container with some off the shelf rust converter ( pure Phosophoric acid may be a little hard to obtain, because it is a precursor to drugs and a component used in the making of poison gas).

You don't need a hell of a lot just a puddle in the bottom.
Keep sturing with a piece of heavy wire or an old screwdriver.
be carefull of the fumes and the acid.
It should all foam up and all the plating should come off.

Rust converter or phosophoric is better than other acids as it is more controllable and wont atack the base metal neraly was much.

3. wash well with clean water, I start by filling the container above under the tap to dilute the existing contents...tip out and change the water a couple of times.

4. Take a sheet of cardboard and poke the screws and bolts in, but only far enough for them all to stand up....leave enough space between to get spray access.....nuts, hinges and other stuff just lay on clean cardboard.

5. Heat the whole lot with a heat gun or a hair drier, till they are well dry and well warm...just hot enough that you can still touch them is good.

6. while they are warm spray them with black etching metal primer. (I use wattly super etch, but I have seen similar stuff in spray tins)...spray from 4 directions to get all sides and into the screw slots.

7. let dry a little, just to let the solvent flash off, then heat the whole lot with the heat gun or hair drier till they are all well warm and well dry.

8 and so forth.
Use your black top coat of choice and repaet 6 & 7.......at least 1 coat, 2 coats if you are keen.

selecting mat, satin or gloss top coat can give a varety of effects.

with this method the paint goes off good and hard and they don't rust.

BTW if you use pot belly blak or stove paint.....its is self priming, but it does not go off properly unless heated pretty danm hot.


Be aware that you have now taken all the plating off the whole bolt or screw, if it is a problem that the threded end of the bolt or screw will rust you need to address that, with paint, wax or lubrcant.

Another option is to etch the plate off only the heads by dipping one at a time...and dropping in clean water......fiddly and be carefull.

cheers

Wow. What a wonderful forum full of excellent help and offers.

Thank you all so much.

I'm chasing down a lead on old railway bolts and screws but if that falls through may take you up on some of your kind offers. I did manage to find a few suitable bolts and screws locally, but nowhere near enough at this stage. However, certainly might go back there and get photos at least so I can be sure we are all on the same page.

Thanks again.

A bit late, but these guys are recommended by Chris Schwarz, and have been really helpful to me over some PayPal problems on an order I am making with them.

Welcome to BlacksmithBolt.com

and yes, they do have real, slotted steel screws for sale too.