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Bronze plating on steel plate - for exterior use?

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Looking for advice on plating techniques for outdoor metal finshes. I'm an architect and furniture designer, and I'm working on a bench design that uses metal structurally. I want it to be dark in color, like bronze or gun-blued steel. But I also want it to be thin, so structurally I need to use steel. (We looked into bronze, but it would need to be 3/4" or 1" thick plate - heavy and expensive!) Is it possible to have mild steel plated in bronze? Will that be a durable finish when exposed to weather? (Obviously we don't want the steel to rust.) Or any other ideas for dark patinated finishes (not paints or powdercoats) for exterior metalwork? Thanks!

Peter Larsen
architect - San Francisco, California, USA

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Copper plating with oxidised or patina finished may be the only viable option for architectural use.

Khozema Vahanwala
Saify Ind

Bangalore, Karnataka, India

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