TEAGUE

solid bronze door hardware

Bronze and brass have both been around for a long time. There are hundreds of different grades of bronze and brass, so this comparison is grossly over simplified. And foundries, which are the factories that cast bronze and brass products, all have their own secret methods of melting, mixing, cooling, molding, and casting their brass or bronze door hardware. There are, however, a few general rules when it comes to comparing brass and bronze. These aren’t true in every case.

Ingredients
Bronze is made from a lot of copper and a little tin
Brass is made from a lot of copper and a little zinc

Maintenance
Brass shows fingerprints and often needs to be polished.
Bronze does not show fingerprints and never needs to be polished.

Strength & Weight
Bronze is heavier and stronger than brass
Brass is more malleable than bronze

Corrosion
Although the copper-heavy consistency within bronze and brass gives them both a corrosion-resistant advantage over nearly all metals, brass lasts longer than bronze in salty, wet areas. That's why brass is used for most metal boat parts.

Uses
Bronze is used more for sculptures and statues (it takes the form of molds well and its aging is considered more aesthetic.)
Brass is used more for screws and nuts (brass ages less and conducts electricity better)

Price
Bronze is more expensive

History
Bronze has been around for a couple more centuries.

Germ Killers
The copper quality makes brass and bronze both germicidal – called the oligodynamic effect. The copper used in their compound kills most bacteria within eight hours, that's why both are such great materials for door knobs.

Our Opinion
We think brass can often be a very ugly material for making doorknobs, even though it was bizarrely popular from 1960-1990. Occasionally, the nickel finish or pewter finished brass looks cool as door hardware. But these pictures display how hideously wrong a door hardware manufacture went with its brass door knob line.

Bronze Door Hardware Examples
(now doesn't bronze look better?)