bluing techniques for firearms and there variations

Ive seen a lot of nice antiques ruined by Cerakote. I always hesitate to have any weapon system with tight tolerances treated with it.

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Good question mike. Everyone already covered this thread pretty well. Everyone’s technique will very. I agree you should have really good ventilation, and I mean like outside almost.
About ten plus years ago when I first started down this slippery slope I bought a Yugoslavian 8mm Mauser with a sewer pipe for a barrel. It was sporterized and everything. So I bought a NOS surplus barrel, cut a relief for the extractor, and removed the machining marks and polished the barrel. Cleaned up the action as well. Filled the throat and crown of the barrel with silicone. Built a steel water tight tank. Heated the water to boiling. Degreased all parts. And started the bluing process.


This is decade old bluing and still looks good to me. Believe it or not this was my first project ever with machining, or bluing.

Just be safe and have fun Mike! Because if it isn’t fun then it’s just work :smiley:

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that is some dam fine work you down there. I need to get my welding game together and a few other skills before I take on the project itself. I plan on letting a professional take it on and work on some small project that won’t cost a arm and a leg to do :smile:

the bluing you did is great. I’ve seen a few videos on youtube and the pre work is 95% of the project :wink:

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Absolutely! Hahhahaha
I always ask why they want to Cerakote an older weapon. As for the tight tolerances… that’s why you take it to someone who knows what they are doing, AND is a gun smith. I kniw there are some cerakoters out there that can coat, but they are not smiths. Big difference.
I have also restored some weapons that were extremely pitted with rust. I do not just jump on the Cerakote everything bandwagon.

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I was wondering if you knew anything about this best English black pipe finish or bluing that Holland Halloween uses and other famous to manufacture that make the Exotic stuff? Switch pod please comment as well. I’m still trying to figure out how to tag people on my cell phone. @switchpod

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Good question! Holland and Holland most likely used rust bluing/ fume bluing. This would have been instead of a hot tank bluing due to the solder joints between barrels. The last thing you want to do is weaken the joints.

Here is a step by step process of “slow bluing”

If you go through the tutorial for the forum it will show you how to do all the tags, quotes, etc. the bot named @sonny should have sent you a message @MikeBlack47. Just follow the instructions and you will learn all the finer points of the forum controls.

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Hi! To find out what I can do, say @Sonny Bring me my gun.

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@Sonny Bring me my gun.

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Turnbull Restorations, some of the most beautiful examples of Firearms Bluing/Case Color Hardening, simply stunning!

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Here is a Plum Brown for example.
Customized Swede Mauser.

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I am glad he mentioned the towels catching fire. Hahahhaha

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See the video! This is basically what I do on a lot of my parts that I do. Though there are different chemicals that I use. (My own concoctions)
But this is a great way to restore or just blend in areas on older weapons.
On many older firearms, i personally usually try to convince the clients not to change the patina of the weapon.

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It’s all fun and games until you wrap the oily towels up tight and throw them in a corner :grinning:

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deadthread2
Anyone have experience with Electochemical’s Ultra-Blak 400, more precisely the liquid version? It seems like the easiest/safest hot way to produce a durable black oxide finish. Reviews I’ve seen from industrial applications are very positive but there is little to nothing from the gunsmithing side.
Here’s one video of someone using it with a deep fryer as his bluing tank-

I ask because I have 2 pistols I need to refinish, an FN 1905 and an older CZ75b. There is a local FFL that does Cerakote but I’d rather stick with more traditional coatings, particularly on the FN. My plan is to strip both down to bare metal(pickling vinegar for the CZ’s bluing and hot/boiling diet coke for the FN parkerizing…yes it really works), sand and buff away all the minor surface rust and then re-blue.

Edited to add: What compound would those in the know recommend for buffing the parts to as polished a finish as possible before bluing?

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This is a great topic.

I browned a cannon barrel


Has a really good thick layer of brown rust. 6 coats of plumb brown.

Used the same solution on this .50 cal muzzle loader but only one coat which I then rubbed with steel wool and oil.

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BROWNELLS - OXPHO-BLUE® CREME Demo

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All those cold bluing solutions will work.
I prefer slow rust bluing. Also can be done at home. Just takes more time - wait time. And for longer pieces you will need a boiling tank.

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https://www.bigjimsgun.com/

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Yes, I have seen those before and they look excellent. But I think once I learn welding I will make my own.

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