Refinishing at home
- Thread starter Panic
- Start date
That finish is pretty and often is done by covering the parts in heated bone. There are kits you can get with the bone already charred to the proper consistency but as mentioned, it isn't a job for amateurs. One thing though it isn't nearly as durable as a decent hot blue or anodizing/Parkerizing.
BigUglyMan
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- New Scotland
Another vote for Kob. Look at this thread...
http://www.canadiangunnutz.com/foru...ked-up-parts-gun-quot-ALL-TOGETHER-pic-heavy-)
http://www.canadiangunnutz.com/foru...ked-up-parts-gun-quot-ALL-TOGETHER-pic-heavy-)
Thanks guys for the input. Its definately above my skill level, and I'm a cheap ass so wont be shipping it off and paying someone to do some prettying for me. Guess its time for me to crush this dream
You can do that at home, fairly cheaply, but it will take a fairly long term effort to bring together the equipment you will need.
An electric, temperature controlled, high temperature furnace is the main piece of gear. If you want to do it cheap, that means pretty much building your furnace, instead of buying it. You can build a small one for under $200 in parts and materials, if you shop around, and it will work as well or better for you, than one that will cost well over $1K+
Bone meal or charred bone meal can be got at the garden supplies stores, the rest of the stuff you need or want can be bought or found.
But you pretty much want to get really straight on the metallurgy of the parts you are dealing with, as best you can, and get your process and temperatures schedule worked out on parts that are not critical, before you do gun parts for sure.
The basis of the whole thing is to heat the parts up while they are packed in a source of carbon, so that the carbon infuses in to the surface of the metal. The part is held at the high temperature (1400F, give or take some, typically) for an hour or more, then taken out and quenched with minimum exposure to the air. If all went well, the colors are formed on the now hard surface of the parts.
Different results can be got by adding various chemicals to the quench water, by agitating the water with air bubbles, by adding various chemistry to the carbon pack material (some very toxic stuff, like cyanide, was once commonly used) and by varying the water and heating temperatures.
Like I said, it can be done, but folks like the fella mentioned above, have already worked out the details to their own satisfaction, and don't charge as much as it would seem that they could or should.
Cheers
Trev
