check if snaps are solid brass

[esantoro]

Is there a foolproof way to check if some trigger snaps are solid brass? I bought a bunch that were supposed to be solid brass, but I don't think they are. I've scratched the surface of both these and ones that are supposed to be brass plated. They both survive the scratch test, no other colored metal shows beneath the surface. My brass plated snaps even look better than these supposedly solid brass snaps.

Ed

[Romey]

Plating often will often look to have a better shine the solid, a good ecample of this is a pre 1984 solid penny and new copper plated zinc penny. Any solid brass or copper ect will darken and patina, and there are even varying things one can do to make cool patina colors

[Luke Hatley]

HEY ED... USE A MAGNET... IF IF IS STEEL THE MAGNET WILL TELL

YOU THAT IT IS NOT SOLID BRASS. :beer:

Edited November 6, 2007 by Luke Hatley

[esantoro]

Will a magnet also attract zinc, which I think is also known as white metal?

I have solid brass dees, and with a magnet there is a very, very slight attraction. Also with these snaps, there is a very, very, slight attraction.

I finally took a bolt cutter and started cutting the snaps in sections, both the purported solid brass, and the brass plated, everything looks like it's solid brass, yellow through the middle. They both are cut with the same resistance.

[Luke Hatley]

ED THE MAGNET WILL ONLY ATTRACT TO STEEL OR IORN.

[Romey]

Alther thing is not all brass is the same, there are several variations of Brass. Admiralty brass ,Rivet brass,Naval brass and many more all depending on the alloy mix. Brass is any alloy of copper and zinc and should have zero magnetic effect at all. I dont know about "white metal" but there is a white brass thats really brittle.

[whinewine]

A magnet will attract nickle, too, if it is a high enough concentration. A magnet will not attract a U.S. nickle, but it will definitely attract a Canadian nickle (unless they've changed the formulation like we've changed the formulation of our U.S. cents from copper to copper plated zinc).

[Romey]

Good call

Edited November 7, 2007 by Romey

[oldtimer]

A hacksaw seems to be an alternative to see what´s below the surface . ( costs one snap, but you´ll know for sure if it is brass or zink)

Edited November 7, 2007 by oldtimer