Painting buttons

[kilted2000]

Has anyone ever painted the square chrome buttons on a argyle jacket? I want the shiny buttons on mine to be darker, maybe black. I know you can buy buttons like that but I thought painting the existing buttons would be easier than replacing them all.

[OC Richard]

I haven't tried painting those buttons, but I have "weathered" leather and metal for costumes.

This buckle, and the snap button on the pouch, were gleaming polished metal. (The leather was new too.)

The first thing is to rough up the surface of the metal, because paint won't adhere well to polished chrome plating.

I've used steel wool, or sandpaper for a rougher look.

Once the surface isn't smooth I paint it with ordinary Liquitex acrylic paint. That stuff adheres to pretty much anything, and resists wear well.

If I did want to "antique" the buttons on my Prince Charlie that would be my process.

Personally, rather than doing that I'd purchase antiqued buttons off the shelf.

[plaid preacher]

Okay, I don't know how well this would work on chrome, but ...

In the Canadian Forces, many of the "heritage" regiments were made part of the Reserve Force back in the 1960s/70s. When the more traditional uniforms were reintroduced in the 1990s the Rifle Regiments did not have access to buttons that were manufactured with a black finish. The solution - a Sharpie. It seemed to work for them. Might be worth a try.

[Tobus]

You can darken chrome with heat. Back in my Harley-riding days, it always irked me that my fancy chrome drag pipes immediately turned yellow, then blue, then dark (almost black) where they were bolted to the jugs. Lots of heat at that connection. So you can probably take your buttons off and use a torch to get the same effect.

Chrome is a difficult finish to paint. You have to do the prep work, or it just won't adhere properly and will flake off later. You can google how to paint chrome and find lots of tips, as it's a popular thing to do when people want to "black out" their vehicles or change the look of their house fixtures. The problem with doing it on jacket buttons is that they're tiny and usually have a lot of crevices due to the decorative casting. Sanding them properly would be a challenge.

Prepping them right for painting sounds like a lot of work, especially if you don't want to take them off the jacket. Personally, I think it would be easier and more forward-thinking to go ahead and remove the buttons and convert the attachments to a ring design. This is very commonly done on these type jackets so people can swap buttons later as their tastes change (or for different levels of dress). You may want or need shiny buttons later. So if it were me, I'd save those buttons and just replace them with darker ones for now, using a keyring type connection through the material.

*edited to add: I know this isn't a motorcycle thread, but here's a close-up of the color you could expect on chrome with lots of heat. See where the exhaust pipes connect. The hotter it is, the darker the chrome turns.

[OC Richard]

This topic came up recently on a bagpipe site.

There's a gent in Canada, David Davidse, who does amazing hand-engraved bagpipe mounts.

However the uber-shiny brilliant bare aluminium isn't everyone's cup of tea.

He told me that the traditional "antiquing" methods used for silver and nickel don't work with aluminium.

He said the best approach he knew was to use a black permanent felt marking pen, specifically this one:

Staedtler Lumocolor Permanent Special

due to it being a true black (unlike most "black" markers which are in fact a very dark purple).

Here are my Davidse aluminium bagpipe mounts before and after.

(You can always reduce the amount of black/increase the amount of shiny aluminium by rubbing down in the crevices with a rag.)

For chrome buttons you could get a "brushed nickel" finish with steel wool, then use the Staedtler pen, for a more antique look.

[Pleater]

Try a few coats of nail varnish.
It comes in all colours these days - or it did at one time.
It can be got into the grooves and lightly rubbed off with a cloth dipped in remover for various effects, or simply applied in several light coats to build up the effect.

Anne the Pleater

[Ninehostages]

Okay, I don't know how well this would work on chrome, but ...

In the Canadian Forces, many of the "heritage" regiments were made part of the Reserve Force back in the 1960s/70s. When the more traditional uniforms were reintroduced in the 1990s the Rifle Regiments did not have access to buttons that were manufactured with a black finish. The solution - a Sharpie. It seemed to work for them. Might be worth a try.

Being a Canadian Veteran myself, I can attest that this sort of "McGivering" has been part and parcel to serving Canada since the Boer War era.

[Highland Logan]

Being a Canadian Veteran myself, I can attest that this sort of "McGivering" has been part and parcel to serving Canada since the Boer War era.

@Ninehostages .. the Boer War.. you don't look that old.. lol

Frank

[Ninehostages]

@Ninehostages .. the Boer War.. you don't look that old.. lol

Frank

I was in the Navy during the Cold War ... just after the "Age of Sail" to those serving now.

[stickman]

Those pipes are a perfect example of tempering colors.

You can darken chrome with heat. Back in my Harley-riding days, it always irked me that my fancy chrome drag pipes immediately turned yellow, then blue, then dark (almost black) where they were bolted to the jugs. Lots of heat at that connection. So you can probably take your buttons off and use a torch to get the same effect.

Chrome is a difficult finish to paint. You have to do the prep work, or it just won't adhere properly and will flake off later. You can google how to paint chrome and find lots of tips, as it's a popular thing to do when people want to "black out" their vehicles or change the look of their house fixtures. The problem with doing it on jacket buttons is that they're tiny and usually have a lot of crevices due to the decorative casting. Sanding them properly would be a challenge.

Prepping them right for painting sounds like a lot of work, especially if you don't want to take them off the jacket. Personally, I think it would be easier and more forward-thinking to go ahead and remove the buttons and convert the attachments to a ring design. This is very commonly done on these type jackets so people can swap buttons later as their tastes change (or for different levels of dress). You may want or need shiny buttons later. So if it were me, I'd save those buttons and just replace them with darker ones for now, using a keyring type connection through the material.

*edited to add: I know this isn't a motorcycle thread, but here's a close-up of the color you could expect on chrome with lots of heat. See where the exhaust pipes connect. The hotter it is, the darker the chrome turns.