Case hardened or Blued?
- Thread starter RCPerkins
- Start date
New Vaquero
Both will be equally prone to rusting. A TRUE colour case hardening will provide the surface with a harder layer which will be a LOT more scratch resistant than a blued surface. But be aware that there's a lot of faux CCH finished guns out there these days. As much as I like my Pietta cowboy guns I'm pretty sure that the nice looking CCH is not a true and proper CCH. Unless you pay a premium for whatever firearm you get this is very likely to be the case.
Cocked&Locked
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- S. Ontario
As BC said.
Case hardening is just what it says, a process that imparts carbon into the surface of the steel, resulting in said surface (the case) being made much harder then the material underneath. Formerly much used on low quality steel or in some cases wrought iron. With the advent of alloy steel the expensive and time consuming extra process was omitted and we went with a plain blue finish. The colors result from the chemical residues on the surface from the material used to embed or soak in the carbon, in the case of guns, usually charred bone or leather.
Real case hardening is quite wear resistant, but the colors will rub off, they're just surface discoloration, see Turnball (?) firearms for really good examples.
Case hardening is just what it says, a process that imparts carbon into the surface of the steel, resulting in said surface (the case) being made much harder then the material underneath. Formerly much used on low quality steel or in some cases wrought iron. With the advent of alloy steel the expensive and time consuming extra process was omitted and we went with a plain blue finish. The colors result from the chemical residues on the surface from the material used to embed or soak in the carbon, in the case of guns, usually charred bone or leather.
Real case hardening is quite wear resistant, but the colors will rub off, they're just surface discoloration, see Turnball (?) firearms for really good examples.
TheWharGoul
CGN frequent flyer
- Location
- Thunder Bay, Ontario
BCRider is correct, most companies don't do proper CCH, it is usually done chemically using cyanide, if I recall correctly. It gives the same look as true CCH but doesn't harden the surface. True CCH is done by heating the part past its critical temp in a crucible filled with bone/charcoal/leather then the part(s) are dropped into aerated water. The danger is losing the part due to cracks or warping.
Take a look at Doug Turnbull's work, he does the real thing and will warn you on his site that even for him there is the possibility of losing the piece in the process.
Take a look at Doug Turnbull's work, he does the real thing and will warn you on his site that even for him there is the possibility of losing the piece in the process.
