Vinegar shows interesting result

[Sthutch]

Hello,
I joined this forum a few weeks ago, awesome resource! I was out on a friends land detecting on an old logging railroad grade and picked some spikes. I usually wire wheel the crud away on interesting spikes, but I had a bent one and partial one that I thought I would try canning vinegar on. I tossed them in a plastic bucket and covered them in vinegar. Well, I got side tracked and forgot about. Two weeks later I pulled them out. A quick wire wheel and the result was interesting. The spikes seemed to have "grain" to them. I was not expecting this. Would someone enlighten me as to why this occurred? Also, does anyone know how they manufactured these spikes, late 1800's?

The dark spike has been wire wheeled only, the lighter colored spike soaked for two weeks in vinegar.


Thanks, Sthutch

 

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[Hawks88]

Thanks for the info on the vinegar. Makes it look new again.

 

[Hawks88]

Welcome to tnet from Niagara Falls.

 

[villagenut]

The grain you are seeing is the raw material that was worked by a blacksmith. You see this on hand wrought iron and not on cast iron. I love revealing that hammered out grain on old spikes I dig and conserve. Nice job.

 

[Sthutch]

Thanks for the replies!

That is what I thought at first too. But when I was researching these narrow gauge lines I found a reference to their cost, $300 per mile. If that was accurate, could they produce spikes that cheap by hand? I got to wondering if they were extruded thru a die and that caused the grain.

Cheers!
Sthutch

 

[maipenrai]

Villagenut is right, it is wrought iron. I have old anchors that are wrought from bog iron. A lot of people ask me if they are made from wood!

 

[sprailroad]

One thing I might point out, that when soaking iron (porous) in vinegar, after doing so, soak it in a water/ baking soda solution, reason being is that the acid in the vinegar soaks into the iron, and can corrode inside out, and the baking soda should draw out and or neutralize the acid.

 

[Sthutch]

One thing I might point out, that when soaking iron (porous) in vinegar, after doing so, soak it in a water/ baking soda solution, reason being is that the acid in the vinegar soaks into the iron, and can corrode inside out, and the baking soda should draw out and or neutralize the acid.

Thanks for tip, I will remember to do that!

 

[Sthutch]

Welcome to tnet from Niagara Falls.

Thanks!

 

[Rookster]

Welcome to Tnet from Mississippi.