refinishing a long gun?

M

moose987

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hi all
I am thinking of refinishing a couple of rifles and am not sure the best way to strip the blueing.
I have access to sand and media blasting equipment.

also if you have any suggestions of a product you have had success with i would like the input


thanks all
Mitch
 
I have used mainly emery cloth up to 400 grit and polishing with a Dremel tool where needed.The emery is available from Brownells. They also have a product called oxphoblue gel which they claim can be applied over old blue to rejuvinate it. I have used it with good results, but don't expect it to look as good as a pro hot blue job. There is a problem with them shipping it internationally. I got mine before the restriction was put on.
 
If you are going to use a baked on finish (gun kote) or a paint (Armacoat) then get it blasted with aluminum oxide. 80 to 120 grit around 40 psi.
 
If your getting a hot blue there are several ways. If you media blast the parts they will have a textured, matte finish. If you buff them with a fine wire wheel they will have a smooth semi-gloss finish. Lastly if you buff them with compound until the metals shiny you'll get a nice deep shiny black. I have a few guns in each finish. I'm not sure what this looks like using cold blue though.

Birchwood Casey also has a bluing/rust removing chemical available as well, you use it with fine steel wool I believe. If you're doing an entire gun I'd suggest getting it professionally blued, or finish it in a coating such as armacoat, as cold blue is mainly for touch ups and isn't too durable.
 
You can also polish it to 320 grit and use a slow rust blue technique. Much more time consuming, but you use relatively safe, easy to source chemicals and you can end up with a superior finish to professional hot tank blueing. search in this forum or google "slow rust blueing".

I'm working on my first one right now, and it doesn't look that difficult, just time consuming. The reason that they don't use it commercially is that the process can take several days vs. 20 minutes in a hot blue tank.
 
The bluing doesn't have to come off to put on any new finish. However, no sand blasting or abrasives are required. They'll just scratch the steel. That's not a big deal for Armacoat though. Ordinary white table vinegar will take bluing off. So will any other rust remover. CLR, Naval Jelly, etc.
 
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