Bronze wool
Bronze wool is a bundle of very fine
tannates in the oak and the iron
in the steel, forming iron tannate, a black compound.
Bronze wool also has uses for filter elements, again when rusting would be a problem.
The main US retail supplier of bronze wool is Homax Group, under their Rhodes American brand.
Bronze wool has largely been replaced for cost reasons, by plastic mesh abrasives from makers such as Webrax and 3M Scotch-Brite. These use grains of aluminium oxide or silicon carbide, bonded to a non-woven web of nylon fibres. Like bronze wool, they avoid rust problems.
References
- ^ Niemeyer, Shirley (1994). "NF94-139 Preservation of Metal Items". Historical Materials from University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension.