discolored b78 mounts

[arty]

anybody know why b78 mounts and rings arent blued like the rest of the rifle?  thought i had kind of a reject set but just traded for a b78 in 6mm and the rings and bases are virtually red.  if i get them reblued, will they age red given  time?

[First Shirt]

Don't know...the ones that came with my B-78 (marked Browning) are a dark blue/black.  Some types of tool steel turns a "plum" color when you try to hot blue it, maybe they changed the type of steel in the mounts at some point.

Greg

[bfoster]

It's a bit more accurate to say that the various alloy steels will "take" bluing correctly at different temperatures. Many of the steels used by Browning & Winchester in recent years do have a tendancy to turn "plum" colored if processed per the directions that are provided with many brands of bluing salts, but if processed at a bit higher temperature (10 to 15° F can make a major difference) will blue satisfactorily.

Of course this may not be practical. The 'smith would have to adjust the salt bath for just one set of rings- it's not just the temperature, it's also the concentration.

Bob