HISTORY OF TINPLATE

During much of the nineteenth century the tinplate stock from which tinners made their wares was made from wrought iron sheets which had been polished and pickled then dipped into a vat of molten tin which had a melted layer of flux floating on it to prevent oxidation. In the second half of the nineteenth century the Bessemer process made a steel base competitive and eventually more affordable than the wrought iron base. The steel, by its nature, was more "springy" than the iron and more prone to rusting once the tinplating was removed. By the end of the nineteenth century a much thinner coating of tin was made possible by electric "flash" plating. This made a less expensive product but cut down on the protective layer of tin over the ferrous base. It has become the industry standard for canning and other applications. Dipped tin continued to be made through the first half of the twentieth century, in the end primarily for the maple syrup industry, but it is no longer produced in the United States today.

Some modern-day tinners have tried to simulate the original dipped tin by dipping pieces of electroplated tinplate into a bath of molten tin. This gives a good thick coating of tin on the stock but it is thicker than the period tinplating and tends to a blotchy and mottled pattern on the surface rather than the faint, parallel ridges or waves that formed with the original process as the sheet of iron was withdrawn from the tin. Also, when this "neo-dipped" tin which attempts to reproduce dipped tin is heated the tin will melt and run off of it. Otter Creek Tinware is made from a specialty product that is not like the tin typically used in the canning industry. Although applied by an electrolytic process, the coating of tin is thicker than "flash" plating and on close inspection exhibits markings similar to true dipped tin. With regular field wear it will take on a patina that is similar to original pieces that have been used. The steel base if exposed and kept from rusting will tend to a dark gray and will not take on quite the same greenish tone as wrought iron.

See Also:

The History of Can Making
Modern Tinplate Cans

Available in http://rutlandhs.k12.vt.us/jpeterso/octin/ourtin.html. Adapted and illustrated to be posted by Leopoldo Costa.