Not so long ago, hardware foundries and manufacturers took pride in their creations, crafting beautifully ornate items that were more than merely functional. These hinges, doorknobs, lock plates, switch covers, cabinet pulls, key plates and escutcheons lent an air of sophistication to the homes in which they were installed, and they helped even mundane window sashes or cabinet faces seem refined and elegant.
Luckily for us, many of these wonderful bits of hardware have survived the years, and they’re waiting to be rediscovered and reused. All it takes is a little perseverance in tracking down what you need and a little sweat equity in resurrecting its beauty.
Locating what you want
Finding old hardware to restore and reuse is easy and enjoyable. Prowling around salvage houses, antiques stores and flea markets in search of architectural treasure is an adventure, and each source offers unique benefits.
Salvage houses and dealers specializing in architectural antiques are great if you’re trying to match a specific piece of existing hardware or if you’re looking for several pieces of a specific pattern or type. Antiques stores can also yield surprises, and although their selection may not be as vast as architectural-salvage houses, their prices are often negotiable. Flea markets usually have the best prices, but their selection is the most limited.
If you’d prefer to do your searching from the comfort of your home, the Internet offers many sources. A Google search for “antique hardware” yields more than 257,000 results, and chances are good that at least one of these sources will have what you want.
The price of that perfect piece will depend on its condition. At a local salvage house in Minneapolis, Minnesota, I found ornamental doorplates ranging in price from $5 for a very rusty piece to $40 for a restored, ready-to-install cast-brass item. In comparison, at a small antiques store just outside the city, I found similar doorplates — some restored, some not — for no more than $15 apiece. The selection was smaller, but the price was more palatable.
Restoring what you find
Unless you’re willing to pay a premium for ready-to-install items, you’ll need to invest a little elbow grease into whatever pieces of old hardware you plan on repurposing. Removing paint and rust are the most common problems, and they’re easily solved by a variety of methods.
For removing paint from old metal hardware, a simple, nontoxic method that yields great results is to heat the items in a crockpot filled with either vinegar or a solution of soapy water (see “Get Crocked,” photo). This method is effective but time-consuming, as it takes a while for the heat to work its magic. If you want faster results, you’ll need to employ a chemical paint stripper. Fast-acting methylene chloride will do the job in less than an hour; a less-volatile, less-toxic stripper will take several hours. Whatever chemical you use, be sure to protect your skin and eyes from splashes, and work outdoors or in a well-ventilated area.
For removing rust from metal hardware, your choice of method isdetermined by how hard you want to work and how delicate the item is. Methods range from a light rubbing with machine oil and 000 steel wool to chemical treatments, electrolysis baths and even sandblasting.
Bear in mind that many products (such as naval jelly or Rust-Oleum’s Rust Stripper) that advertise the ability to remove rust use oxalic, phosphoric or sulfuric acid to etch the surface and expose new metal. Besides damaging fine details, these acids have harmful properties, and you must use extreme care when working with them. Follow the product’s recommended safety procedures, and always store any unused product as directed by the instructions. (For more information on removing rust, see “After stripping off the paint, if you find that the hardware’s original finish is in good condition, a simple application of beeswax polish may be enough to protect it and bring out its luster. For more durable protection, you can spray a light coating of clear lacquer.
If the hardware was originally chrome- or nickel-plated and has deteriorated badly, you’ll need to pursue other options such as having a professional shop reapply the plating. Plating is a highly toxic process that is strictly controlled by environmental laws, and it’s not something that can (or should) be attempted in a home shop. Re-plating even small items can be expensive, but you can save money by waiting until a shop can “gang” your plating job with others — otherwise, you’ll pay a premium for a small plating run.
Sources
<a title="Rust Busters" data-cke-saved-href="/Projects/tabid/42/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/5194/default.aspx" href="/Projects/tabid/42/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/5194/default.aspx" "="" target="_blank">Architectural Antiques, (612) 332-8344
Harris International Laboratories (Evapo-Rust), 888-329-9877
Rust-Oleum (Rust Stripper), 800-553-8444
Soaps Gone Buy (Arm & Hammer washing soda), 888-858-7627