Removing Bluing

Winchester30-30

Regular
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Location
Fraserwood, MB
Hey guys im refininshing my NO4MK1 and i want to reblue it, ive seen a bunch of different methods, vinegar, rust remover, whats the best way? for the cheapest amount of money?


Thanks
Winchester30-30
 
Last edited:
Vinegar with as much salt as will dissolve in it, is a pretty good rust remover.

Can't much beat it for cheap. Since bluing is essentially rust, should work. Try a small part or two and see if you are happy.

Parts MUST be FULLY submerged. You will almost be able to watch the line etch away the metal if you leave the part sticking out into the air (oxygen, to go with the acid and the electrolyte= bad news for the part)

Lots of rinse water, really hot, dry the parts and oil immediately or you can pretty much watch the rust (the wrong kind) form.

Cheers
Trev
 
Home Hardware has small $0.99 jugs of their brand of CLR. Put on some gloves, either soak parts or wipe them down well with CLR and steel wool. After a minute or two its just bare clean metal!
 
Bubba (folk-smith) warning:

I've not done a #4...I have done a few .22's. I use very fine emery cloth now. I used to try purely chemical methods, but found the barrel once clean needed a touch of polishing...now I just start with the polishing step. I have not lost any marks I wish to retain doing this (stampings). The few I've done were pretty easy, as the rifles had pretty straightforward profiles. I could see chasing a chemical remedy for intricate parts, or assemblies.

How are you going to re-blue it? Hot dip? Cold-rust? "touch-up" cold blue? Your planned re-blue method may affect how you elect to remove the current finish.
 
CLR works really well. Put all the parts in a bath of CLR wait few hours give a scrub and the blueing should be off. Will need a sanding or polishing after as it discolors the metal a bit.
 
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