which hardware material keeps its color?

[magdy]

which hardware material to buy if i dont want my metal straps or chains or d rings to change their color.... should i go for brass (i heard it develops patina n looks difgerent wz time) or plated. if so which king of coat, and what are the chances that it will change color... i want to make a soiree/ night bag of chrome tanned leather with a golden chain and straps.. thanks

[americandreaming]

I would say solid brass.  It tarnishes over time but that can be fixed in literally seconds with some brasso.

[fredk]

On 3/21/2021 at 4:19 AM, magdy said:

which hardware material to buy if i dont want my metal straps or chains or d rings to change their color.... should i go for brass (i heard it develops patina n looks difgerent wz time) or plated. if so which king of coat, and what are the chances that it will change color... i want to make a soiree/ night bag of chrome tanned leather with a golden chain and straps.. thanks

Nickle plated steel or stainless steel, or almost any plated steel or aluminium

Brass is the one not to go for

[JohnnyLongpants]

Stainless is the one that changes the least, I'd say, but that means all of your hardware will be silver colored.

Solid brass will dull over time but just needs some polish to restore it. Some people like how it patinas. That will be gold colored.

If you prefer silver but do not want stainless steel then you can buy CB (chrome-over-brass), which has a coating so that will eventually wear off but at least it will not rust after that.

Don't go with anything that is brass-plasted or nickel-plated or plated with anything else. Usually that means it is mild steel with a coating on top and that coating eventually wears off and then the steel underneath rusts.

If you do not want it to ever change colors or looks you only have a few options: black nylon (the plastic hardware used on backpacks) or solid gold.  Everything else looks different over time.  Even rocks wear away.