rebluing question
- Thread starter brooksy
- Start date
there are kits availlable for reasonable $$ that have all the necessary solutions and materials to refinish the bluing. i would not touch my rifles with anything but. Stay far away from sand paper other than diamond cloth or super fine emery unless you are sanding rough spots around any dings in the metal. there is also a hot process called browning which is often used on shotguns for a old school look, actually looks really sharp, i bead blasted my old rem 870 and "browned" every part, turned out beautiful. I prefer the bluing paste kits over the liquid ones but might be tough to use on a shotgun, works like a charm on pistols and parts though. Any "knowledgeable" gun shop person with gunsmithing back ground (rather than just sales) should be able to recommend something for you. I know nothing about hot bluing other than articles i've read but i know there are solutions that can be made up to hot bath you firearm. maybe someone else here can elaborate.
brooksy said:
It is but don't use sand paper... sand paper is for wood. What you want to do is polish the barrel and this is done with abravise paper made for steel. Wet or dry paper is one type you can use. Commonly I see jobs started at home where way too coarse of abrasive was used and the steel got marked up more trying to refinish it that the damage from age.
I suggest you start with 120 grit and when all the marks are out and finish with 220 grit.
No cold blue will match either the look of, or the durability of a professionally done hot blue. BUT, you can do a reasonable cold blue job at home. Unless you are just doing a touch up, you can remove the old blue chemically...I think Birchwood markets the stuff, and any reasonably stocked gunshop should carry either the Birchwood, or another brand. It's very effective and easy to use. After that you'll need to work on any remaining rust or pitting. As the guys have mentioned, just make sure you don't use anything so abrasive that it leaves marks worse than the ones you started out with. Just my opinion, but the best cold blue I've found is Brownells Oxpho Blue. It's supposed to penetrate dirt and oil, but it's best to get your metal as squeaky clean as possible. Again, Birchwood and a few others market a special cleaning compound for that purpose, but if I recall, it's just carbon tetrachloride. Oxpho Blue may be available elsewhere, but the only Canadian source I've found is Wholesale Sports...the cream stuff as already recommended. Use a hair dryer or heat gun to make the metal almost too hot to handle before you apply the the blue. Follow the directions that come with it, and apply as many coats as you need to get the depth of color you want. A few supplies and a bit of patience, along with a good measure of elbow grease will give you results you should be pleased with.
Hi,
Just did the blue on one of my rifle and it did a "not too bad" of a job. The finish is dark blue and I used the Hopes bluing solution. One of the important step, or should I say most important is the cleaning before applying the blue.
The more you clean and buff before applying the product, the more uniform and nice the job will be
. I used xfine steel wool on all metal part but did not take all bluing off, just sand well with the steel wool and cleaned with metal cleaner then rince with hot water then clean again and rerinse.
From now on, no more touching the metal with bare hands, I used latex glove as the smallest print will show on your blue. Follow the instruction on the bottle and finish by applying light coat of oil with xtra fine steel wool..
Tried other bluing stuff, they all work but some finish are darker then others. I like the Hopes for that it produce a dark finish. "Outers" brand does also work but the finish I ended up with was a bit more on the brown side.
Hope that help
PaulT
Just did the blue on one of my rifle and it did a "not too bad" of a job. The finish is dark blue and I used the Hopes bluing solution. One of the important step, or should I say most important is the cleaning before applying the blue.
The more you clean and buff before applying the product, the more uniform and nice the job will be
. I used xfine steel wool on all metal part but did not take all bluing off, just sand well with the steel wool and cleaned with metal cleaner then rince with hot water then clean again and rerinse.From now on, no more touching the metal with bare hands, I used latex glove as the smallest print will show on your blue. Follow the instruction on the bottle and finish by applying light coat of oil with xtra fine steel wool..
Tried other bluing stuff, they all work but some finish are darker then others. I like the Hopes for that it produce a dark finish. "Outers" brand does also work but the finish I ended up with was a bit more on the brown side.
Hope that help
PaulT
PerversPépère
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Shawinigan (Quebec)
In many occasions, I noticed that a fresh blueing job gets better and longer wearing if you oil the metal thoroughly and let it sit a week or so before handling it again.
Could be some sort of crystallization taking place or something.
PP.
Could be some sort of crystallization taking place or something.
PP.
Yes that is true... and Always follow the instructions to the letter, thi smake a big difference. If you do not oil your blue job, you will see a red bbl in about 2 days. I have done a dozen or so and it does not comapre to hot blueing but you can get it to look pretty good.PerversPépère said:In many occasions, I noticed that a fresh blueing job gets better and longer wearing if you oil the metal thoroughly and let it sit a week or so before handling it again.
Could be some sort of crystallization taking place or something.
PP.
i have reblued a few 45's with the birchwood casey bluing paste kits.
comes with the following
bottle of bluing/rustremover and xtra fine steel wool as well as 220 (ithink) paper. they recommend doing a thourough job of removing any rust or old bluing.
bottle of cleaner/degreaser to be used after the bluing/rust remover
and a tube of bluing paste with applicators.
also comes with a packet of "sheath" which is applied after the job is done. it is awesome stuff and penetrates the finish to prevent rusting.
once the process is complete, i bake the frame at 200 in a preheated oven for 10 mins, the apply the sheath as it cools. this ensures any moisture in the steel gets released prior to sealing it in.
the project is then left for 24 hours as in this time , the finish will get much darker. GLOVES for the whole project, your body oils will mess with the bluing and , who wants those chemicals on your skin? I have found though that this stuff will eat latex so nitrile gloves are prolly better.
i had a link to a very cool set up for home hot bluing, a little involved but this set up really works. one of my friends set this up at home and the results turn out like a beautiful factory finish both in looks and durability.
I'll do some diggin and see if i can't find that link for you.
comes with the following
bottle of bluing/rustremover and xtra fine steel wool as well as 220 (ithink) paper. they recommend doing a thourough job of removing any rust or old bluing.
bottle of cleaner/degreaser to be used after the bluing/rust remover
and a tube of bluing paste with applicators.
also comes with a packet of "sheath" which is applied after the job is done. it is awesome stuff and penetrates the finish to prevent rusting.
once the process is complete, i bake the frame at 200 in a preheated oven for 10 mins, the apply the sheath as it cools. this ensures any moisture in the steel gets released prior to sealing it in.
the project is then left for 24 hours as in this time , the finish will get much darker. GLOVES for the whole project, your body oils will mess with the bluing and , who wants those chemicals on your skin? I have found though that this stuff will eat latex so nitrile gloves are prolly better.
i had a link to a very cool set up for home hot bluing, a little involved but this set up really works. one of my friends set this up at home and the results turn out like a beautiful factory finish both in looks and durability.
I'll do some diggin and see if i can't find that link for you.
Last edited:
Ishootguns
Regular
- Location
- Acton Ontario
45acpking
I too would be very interested in seeing that home bluing info you are looking for.
Thanks
Dave
I too would be very interested in seeing that home bluing info you are looking for.
Thanks
Dave
Careful with hot blueing, I am told you need alot of ventilation (as in a garage with the door open and you outside) and everything steel or aluminum in your workspace will corrode.
I know a guy who used to do a side business of hot blueing, if anyone within driving distnace is interested, the equipment and chemicals are for sale.
I know a guy who used to do a side business of hot blueing, if anyone within driving distnace is interested, the equipment and chemicals are for sale.
