rebluing

[mjbgalt]

i bought a used 870 wingmaster that USED to be a very pretty gun. it has been used and abused by its previous owner. how can i get it looking new again?

is there a cold blue that i can do myself that will turn out well? there are no scratches, just marks where it's without bluing.

i thought i would buy it for cheap and fix 'er back up again.

-Matt

[Brithunter]

Sorry to say but as of yet I have not found a good cold blue. They're OK for touchups on small marks but that's it. Methinks if your set on a re-finish then you need to make up a bluing tank and there are several forums which have information on this. The Curios & Relic forum comes to mind as there is a group on it that are well into building these and working with them includign the ols rust bluing method. I recall that plastic drain pipe was used to make a tank by at least one of them. Hope that helps.

[quickdtoo]

I've done a couple barrels and one receiver with Brownell's Oxpho Blue creme, it works the best of any cold blue I've used, preparing the surface is a must, and burnishing several times to get a nice finish is important, just one application doesn't yield very good results and even the best cold blue won't come close to a hot blued finish. Do a search, you'll find that info with some pics of the receiver I did.

Tim

[gunnut69]

The oxphoblue sold by Brownells gets my vote but I prefer the Liquid but it's likely just me.. If a really good blue job is desired and simple heated tank can be set up,,material should be metal. It is used to boil water to alter the blue left on the metal by the compound.  It can be a bit intimidating but in reallity it is little more than a controlled rusting of the metal and converting the rust to it's stabile form. Other than the tank all that's needed are the bluing compound and a method to card or remove the excess rust after it's conversion. Its really up to you as to how much trouble and money you want to invest. The hot salt bluing tanks which have become the standard are a lot on time and money as well as danger for a few guns for the ameture..

[iiranger]

You can also consider the modern "paint" methods used on, for example, cars. Well beyond the durability of WW II paint on SMLE rifles. And if you want camo... I stick with blue but I am getting old. Luck.

[Reverend Recoil]

I have found that the very best blue finish for home gunsmiths is the old slow rust process.  It take longer, is more labor intensive, but produces the finest finish of any bluing system.  All of the fine older double barrel shotguns were blued this way.  The investment in equipment is cheap.  All you need is rubber gloves, a bag of cotten balls, a fine wire brush, steel wool, a cleaning tank and a hot water tank.  It can be done with only one tank.  Cheap cookware can be used for small parts and handgun frames.  Making steel change color is not hard.  The real skill and labor is preparing the surface satin smooth and blemish-free with no rounded edges, dished out holes, or buffed out lettering.  That means use no power sanding or buffing tools.

[mjbgalt]

what about powder coat? would it blot out the engraving or would that work?

there's a motorcycle shop near me that would do it well and do it cheap.

just steel wool off the rust...?

[Halwg]

I used Oxpho Blue.  I was never satisfied with it.  Bite the bullet and get a professional bluing done.  Generally if you have the prep work done, you can get it reblued for $80 - $100.  It will be well worth the price.

[gunnut69]

I do quite a few guns in powder coat. It comes in handy when the pits get real deep and all that's wanted in a shooter.. Did one for a friend. He's a bird hunting fanatic and wears the finish off his 'special field' annually. OxphoBlue was just a one year fix.. Powder coated the weapon and it's not been back. The shop has some control of the thickness of the coating and they need to keep it fairly thin to avoid filling the serial numbers.. Generall more is required than just wooling off the rust. The shop here uses shot to clean the surface and then a prep wash to get the metal ready to finish.. Colors choices are nearly limitless, even hammer tone finishes are available. The green/gold one looks really nice..

[mjbgalt]

how many of my heard-earned dollars to do this?

[jerosem]

i bought a used 870 wingmaster that USED to be a very pretty gun. it has been used and abused by its previous owner. how can i get it looking new again?

is there a cold blue that i can do myself that will turn out well? there are no scratches, just marks where it's without bluing.

i thought i would buy it for cheap and fix 'er back up again.

-Matt

[jerosem]

You get what you pay for.  Cold blue is poor, at best, if you want a good looking gun that stays good looking.  Contact "Blues Brothers" in Prescott Valley, AZ.  Phone 928 308 2137. If you just send them what you want blued it can be done inexpensively.  The greatest cost is the dissassembly and assembly time. Therefore if you can do this work yourself they will charge as a "dip".  If you can not COMPLETELY take the gun apart, and put it back together, they you will pay for their time and knowledge. 

[gunnut69]

A cold blue is very erasonable.. A hot dipped blue is more expensive but can be cheaper if some work is done yourself. The rust blue is the most expensive if hired done but can be done at home by a skilled ameture. Powder coat is easy but one must find a shop that will do it..and most likely won't.. They can't keep a gun overnote or a FFL would be needed. Powder coat guns can be had fairly cheaply but I've no experience with them. For best adhesion a steam cleaning i done at commercial shop with a chemical additive.. Paint is near the bottom of the cost chart and all that's needed is available fairly cheaply. In all cases prep work is paramount. Poor surface prep will yeild a poor finish..

[Nessmuk#1]

$100.00 parkerized or blued.  PM me.

[Bigeasy]

I would have to add my vote to one of the new, spray on finishes.  Some require heating the metal (stove), some don't.  Powder coating is another option.  You can get any color you want, shiny or satin.  They usually bead blast the parts to ensure they are clean of contaminates prior to the application of finish.  I just had a bike frame done, cost $200.00.  The key to any new metal finish is proper metal prereration.  That means no rust, no oils, no finger prints.  Go on line and look at the Brownell catalog web site, metal finishing, for some ideas.

Larry