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OU11BB
12/07/2013, 09:33 PM
serious question and probably gonna get ripped on here.

I have some left over gold alloy from a school project. I really want to wax up something creative and dump into the tank. Is this possible?

disc1
12/07/2013, 09:46 PM
Pure 24K yes, perfectly safe. Any alloy is most likely not.

disc1
12/07/2013, 09:47 PM
What else is in the alloy mix?

OU11BB
12/07/2013, 09:47 PM
ya thats what i figured...

OU11BB
12/07/2013, 09:54 PM
gold, palladium, and thinking about it probably copper. so thats a no go.

knap_123
12/07/2013, 10:29 PM
I'm going to use some 24 it gold leaf on ceramic replica coins from the Tortuga shipwreck. You can get real gold or silver.

OU11BB
12/07/2013, 10:33 PM
I'm going to use some 24 it gold leaf on ceramic replica coins from the Tortuga shipwreck. You can get real gold or silver.

seriously??? or are you just bustin my balls?:strange

OU11BB
12/07/2013, 10:41 PM
I was thinking like the top of a wine bottle glued to a rock with coral growing around it. I think it would be unique. I take an impression of the threads for the cap, wax up a cap and cast it in gold. thats my plan, but it may cost me too much. I had a couple ounces of some alloy, but that wont work.

knap_123
12/07/2013, 11:44 PM
Lol, just reread my post. Not gold from the wreck but storebought goldleaf. Its about $40 for a pack of it. http://www.lagoldleaf.com/index.php?cPath=23

duperdave
12/08/2013, 05:47 AM
not sure about it, but you want might want to check on the chemicals that are used to attach gold leaf, but I really like the idea.

dkeller_nc
12/08/2013, 09:05 AM
You're good with gold leaf if it's 22kt or purer (24kt pure gold leaf is readily available). Gold leaf is ridculously thin - so thin you can actually see through it with a really bright light. So the actual amount of alloy that you're using is in the microgram range.

But, as David noted, "jewelry gold" (10 - 22 kt purity) is typically alloyed with silver and copper, which isn't something you'd want in a reef tank. Other widely used alloying elements are nickel, manganese, palladium, cobalt, and even rare-earth metals like ruthenium and rhodium.

The typical glues used to adhere gold leaf to a substrate aren't compatible with saltwater. But epoxy will work, though it doesn't yield the ideal smooth surface that results in a shiny, gold-leafed surface.

Joe0813
12/08/2013, 09:56 AM
i would like to see some pictures of this when its done

Petown Mike
12/08/2013, 10:09 AM
Isn't anything like this just gonna be covered up in a month or two anyway?

knap_123
12/08/2013, 10:20 AM
It wil ldefinately get covered up and fun to watch. But it will also get that cool aged look with glimpses of gold or silver. Arghhhhhhhhh! http://i733.photobucket.com/albums/ww340/Joshrothathan/Pirate_Smiley.jpg (http://s733.photobucket.com/user/Joshrothathan/media/Pirate_Smiley.jpg.html)

OU11BB
12/08/2013, 11:10 AM
haha....... you have an inner pirate

zachfishman
12/08/2013, 11:53 AM
I assume it isn't much gold? Otherwise I'd be selling it and putting the profits into more frags!

disc1
12/08/2013, 12:02 PM
I'm going to use some 24 it gold leaf on ceramic replica coins from the Tortuga shipwreck. You can get real gold or silver.

It wil ldefinately get covered up and fun to watch. But it will also get that cool aged look with glimpses of gold or silver. Arghhhhhhhhh!

24K pure gold is OK. Silver is a no-no for a number of reasons.