Stainless vs blued barrel

S

Salibas007

CGN Regular
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Location
Montreal
Is going with a stainless barrel worth it over a blued one on a hunting rifle ?

I know stainless is impervious to weather. But it's not like I'll be dunking the rifle in a swamp.

There's roughly 200$ difference between the 2 identical rifles.
 
Stainless all the way, it will out last you, take a look at most 100 year old blued rifles, pretty rough
 
I switched to a SS rifle with a synthetic stock a couple years ago, now I dont worry about it getting wet and rusting at all.
 
I switched to stainless 20 or so years ago. Never going back to blue. Now a blue and wood rifle is time less and there is a certain class to it. For actual out in the woods real hunting stainless with synthetic is the way to go.
 
Get both... stainless is nice for rough weather and conditions (but it is not "impervious")... but stainless rifles are soulless... I love the look and feel of well grained walnut and deeply blued steel. When the day comes up aces for weather I grab a walnut/blued rifle, when it is looking to be a rough go I grab a synthetic stainless rifle... the best of both worlds.
 
Take care of your gun at the end of the day, and the gun will take care of itself during the day, stainless or blued. Hunting rifles were meant to used. Look at all them hundred year old '94s, with only the character showing through.
 
chuck nelson said:
Blued steel does not melt in the rain.
Click to expand...

I agree... hunted most of my life with walnut/blued rifles and shotguns... In God Awful conditions, portage canoe trips, muddy beaver runs, two week long torrential rain hunts... never suffered a failure or bad outcome after the shot... just do a good strip and clean when you get home.
 
Stainless 100%,

A deeply blued rifle w/ walnut stock is beautiful and envokes pride of ownership, but that's where the pros end for me in a hunting rifle (more poor weather hunting days than good here on the coast) . If you're talking SS/synthetic vs Blued/synthetic, the Blued/synthetic has zero benefit over the SS other than price..... zero.

$200 is a drop in the bucket looking at the big picture, IMO.

Good luck with your decision.
 
hoytcanon said:
Get both... stainless is nice for rough weather and conditions (but it is not "impervious")... but stainless rifles are soulless... I love the look and feel of well grained walnut and deeply blued steel. When the day comes up aces for weather I grab a walnut/blued rifle, when it is looking to be a rough go I grab a synthetic stainless rifle... the best of both worlds.
Click to expand...

And then there is a well finished stainless steel and laminate. Hard to beat in my mind. Plastic stocks are, plastic. Functional but plastic.

I love a well figured gun stock, but hunting is, well, messy. If you don't have a team of folk to field dress / sherpa you around then that find gun stock will get beat up. A satin finished laminate can take a beating and still look stunning. Stainless steel is clinical, but still has its charm in a good stock. Blued steel is beautiful, but if snow / mist / rain or fog is in the mix, then it will not come away untouched over the years. Stainless steel will go on forever with minimal care.

Personally I am a real stainless steel fan, and paired with a finely figured walnut, wow..... what a combination. (But too good for the way I hunt, that why I have a synth or laminated stock for that.)

Candocad.
 
If given the option I will take stainless every time. However if there is a rifle I want that's only available in CM, that will not stop me from owning it.
 
It's called stainless not stainproof. A stainless rifle still needs looked after however it is MUCH more forgiving if you don't clean it after you drop it in the river. Oh and you won't worry about your stainless synthetic if you drop it in the river like you would with a nice Model 70 high grade or something. I go with stainless synthetic for hunting all the time. A rifle is a tool, not a show piece.
 
If you like the look of blued but want the benefits of stainless than for a bit more money you could get a stainless and cerakote it to a traditional gun metal finish. Voila you will have a blued finish that with minimal maintenance will outlast your great grand kids.
 
I've had some blued rifles in some wet stuff. Stripped and cleaned after the trip, no big deal. I've also had a stainless (savage) show rust spots fairly quickly.
I vote the stainless but I hunt with both.
 
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