Not every restoration has to be massive – sometimes the small ones bring me the most joy because they’re often overlooked. This old 19 oz ball peen hammer was in an old toolbox full of tools that I purchased for $5. I’ve used it in many other restorations featured on this channel until finally it decided that it wanted to be the star of the show!

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Japanning recipe:
• 4 tablespoons turpentine
• 2 tablespoons boiled linseed oil
• 4 mounded scoops of asphaltum (gilsonite) – the mounded scoops are because it’s a loose powder

Japanning directions:
1. Thoroughly clean your part with acetone/degreaser and do not touch with bare hands
2. Thoroughly mix ingredients above, allow to sit for at least 24 hours for asphaltum to dissolve into solution and for any extra asphaltum to settle to the bottom so it doesn’t make your japanning grainy
3. Carefully dip a paintbrush in the japanning solution, ensuring you don’t go too deep in your container to disturb any of the sediment on the bottom
4. Paint a thin coat on the item.
5. Bake at 150F for 1 hour, allow part to fully cool.
6. Bake at 250F for 1 hour, allow part to fully cool.
7. Bake at 300F for 1 hour, allow part to fully cool.
8. Apply a second coat, repeat steps 47.
9. Apply as many additional coats as you feel are needed to produce a smooth, even finish by repeating steps 47.
10. Bake at 350F for 30 minutes, allow part to fully cool.
11. Bake at 400F for 30 minutes, allow part to fully cool.
12. If part still feels tacky, you can bake at 425F for 30 minutes.

Japanning tips:
• Less is more. Fresh japanning is runny and will drip as it bakes – use thin coats to prevent this!
• Use an oven dedicated only for japanning. Do not use your home oven due to the fumes.
• Bake in a well ventilated space.
• Japanning solutions actually get better with time! They thicken up and are easier to apply slightly thicker coats. If the solution dries out, just add in more turpentine to loosen it up.

And finally, you can never mention japanning techniques without a shoutout to ‪@HandToolRescue‬ who did the real work to develop this recipe!

__________Timestamps_________

0:00 – Hang onto your hammers!
0:09 – A long, long time ago…
0:50 – Head cleanup
2:39 – Polishing my knob and head
3:55 – Japanning the head
6:11 – Sanding the handle
6:41 – removing the metal wedge
7:04 – plugging the wedge hole and new wedge
8:16 – Reassembly
9:15 – Before/After
9:47 – Testing

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