Bronzed european skull

[jwj4856]

Here is a pic of a mule deer european skull mount of mine that i wanted something besides the typical bone colored skull. I bronzed it, very easy to do and I think it looks great, now have 2 customers that want theirs bronzed as well.

[trkyman]

looks good

[andyb]

how do you go about doing this?

[jwj4856]

you will need to get you some bronze pearl powder, can get from auto paint stores but kind of expensive or maybe a couple suppliers may have it, need some clear brush on lacquer, Lowe's has Deft brrand which I use and some flat black lacquer paint.
First paint skull in flat black lacquer, I used airbrush for this to get complete coverage, then mix some bronze powder with clear lacquer, I used 1/2 teaspoon and 5 ounces of clear lacquer, then brush on but just kind of stipple it on and not brush it. let it dry overnight and put second coat on, do this till you get color you desire. I only used 2 coats of the pearl and clear mixture. thats all it is to it, do not clear coat after this.

[weasel]

Looks Good I have a couple skulls I wasn't sure what to do with I may try this on them.

[circleh]

Thats cool. Was it to thick to spray through you air brush or was it just easier to use the brush.

[jwj4856]

you can spray the flat black but you have to use a brush and thick paint to get the stippled look of bronze, you do not want it to be a solid color.

[weasel]

Approx how much did the bronze power and supplies cost to do the skull (Approx) not leighbor or like airbrush mainly paint etc...I think I may incorperate this into my "craft type stuff" but I wanna get approx cost if possible)

[jwj4856]

You can get the bronze powder at michaels and hobby lobby in a small portion, probably enough for 1 or 2 skulls forprobably around $15 i think, can of flat black lacquer 3 or 4 dollars and clear in a quart size around $9, i bought a half pint of the powder from automotive supply store for $79 since I know I will be using it on more skulls and other things but you can get smaller portions, just call around to auto paint stores and michaels, hobby lobby and ask about it.

[weasel]

Ok thanks man.

[trkyman]

thats really cool

[circleh]

Thanks JW. I will have to do some to have in the shop. I know people around here will love them. I have a doe skull I can get cleaned up and try it on first.

[Derek]

something else that works quite well, and is a little more inexpensive, is to use the flat black spray paint like jw said, then when its dry you can use the gold colored scale tipping wax, and rub it in real good, when done correctly the gold will stay in the cracks and low spots but the black will still show through some, its a little different look than jw's but I really like it for dressing up common skulls such as coon skulls which I can get by the hundreds. I've seen the tipping wax at the local walmart for 3 bucks or so. its called treasure gold, you want the rub on wax not the liquid, jim allred also sells a variety of colors for around 14 bucks, they include copper, brass gold and peuter, plus silvers and many more. if your into this kind of thing the allred might be the better value because of the bigger selection, you could offer customers, if i can find some pics of my skulls I will post them, derek

[jwj4856]

I tried it with the tipping wax and it does work well, it is a brighter and shinier look than the bronze powder, but is quite a bit cheaper also. The bronze powder gives me the color choice that I was looking for when I started trying to do these skulls differently, you can use several different waxes or powders and get the color choice which you like best, just have to experiment with them a little. I do like the brighter color the waxes give on small mammal skulls better than the bronzing.

[fossilman]

that looks wicked ;D