Thread: Spray Painting a Sword--a Bad Idea?

I have a brass/gold coloured sword. It's one of those ones that's all one piece; the handle is the same material.

Almost ever since I bought it, I've regretted it, wishing I'd bought a silver one, instead. I thought of buying a silver one and, perhaps, trying to sell my brass one, but our local supplier has been out of the silver for weeks now.

Our student show is tomorrow, and my sword dance costume is black and silver. It's not a huge deal if I use my gold-coloured sword, but I was thinking that an easy and inexpensive way to get a silver sword would be to spray paint the sword I have with paint made for metal. I was thinking I might tape the handle, so it remains a different colour from the blade.

Is there any reason why I really shouldn't do this? (If I do it, it's going to be later today, so that it will be dry by showtime.)

The paint would eventually flake off. To successfully adhere paint to metal, you would need to powder coat it first, which often means a spray booth. A place that paints bicycles could do it perhaps. Not sure in the time you need it though.

You ought be able to use a metallic paste wax like Rub 'n Buff:

Rub 'n Buff® Metallic Finishes - find Rub 'n Buff® Metallic Finishes and Rub 'n Buff® Metallic Finishes products at American Art Clay Company

I'm not totally sure it would dry to the point of lots of handling within 24 hours, but it does eventually get that dry. You could get one color for the blade and another color for the hilt. It looks far more realistic than any paint would, and is widely available at craft and hobby stores. I've used it on chandeliers, picture frames and other random objects, it's very useful stuff.

I'm going to look for that. Thanks. There's a big Michaels craft store not too far from me.

I did spray paint my brass outdoor coach lanterns dark green a number of years ago. The paint is flaking off now, but it lasted outdoors in a harsh climate for close to 10 years before it started to flake.

So, if I can't find the Rub 'n Buff, I may risk the spray painting, even though, as Azhia says, it may flake (which was one of the concerns I had, too). If it does flake, I could always remove the paint with fine steel wool, I'm thinking.

But another concern was that it would be too fakey looking. This Rub 'n Buff sounds like a better solution.

Thanks for the replies. Wish me luck.

i wouldn't cause it sounds like an iffy project to do @ home
if it doesn't come out well, you have no sword and no time to get another one and can't sell it to get the one you want.

i'd just use it, then sell it and get a new one later. nobody will care that the sword is brass and the costume is silver
unless you have it powder coated like azhia suggested

That would probably be the smart thing to do, but once I get an idea in my head, I tend to be like a dog with a bone. (Doncha just love posters like me who ask for advice and then ignore it? :^/ )

So, I tried some stuff that is meant to use on finials, candlesticks, etc. It wasn't the Rub n' Buff, but it was all I could find, and it seemed like a similar idea. I wasn't happy with the effect, because it wasn't very shiny, and there were streaks from applying it, making the sword look like painted wood. I used a pot scrubber to take it off, and then I spray painted the sword silver. I like it, except that it's still not shiny enough. It does look like silver--the colour of real silver, whereas what I think I need is chrome. I saw some chrome spray paint, so I may try to do another coat later on with that, but I'm going to leave well enough alone for today, as I wouldn't want the paint to be still tacky at showtime.

How long it will last is the next question--and will it be prone to scratching, etc.? But I figure if the paint starts to flake or gets too scratched, I can always either recoat or remove the paint with paint thinner. A new sword would cost $75 + tax. (I've eyed the occasional one for sale on the Swap Meet, but I don't know how easy it would be to have it shipped across the border.) So, this is a relatively inexpensive solution for now, and I don't think it's irreversible.

Thanks for the responses and suggestions, everyone.

Originally Posted by sabrinabellydancer

i wouldn't cause it sounds like an iffy project to do @ home
if it doesn't come out well, you have no sword and no time to get another one and can't sell it to get the one you want.

i'd just use it, then sell it and get a new one later. nobody will care that the sword is brass and the costume is silver
unless you have it powder coated like azhia suggested