Gun bluing kit?

[conty1]

My dad wants to purchase some kind of a gun bluing solution/kit from the US to take back with him to India.

Anybody got any suggestions?

Thanks,
Amit

[Mack The Knife]

Amit,

If he wants a kit, Blue Wonder, Hoppes and Birchwood Casey do these.

However, if he just wants a cold blue then besides the above manufacturers he can also consider G96, Oxpho Blue, 44/40 and Dicropan T4.

There are more but the above should suffice.

My pick is G96.

Mack The Knife

[mashh1]

hi
if u want to use it for repair of bluing or touch up, i have used Birchwood Casey Berma Blue. it is a paste type chemical which can be used for touch up. results are good usually but have a small life and give a different shade after some period. and there are complete rebluing kits available at brownells website which differ in size and cost according to requirement.
regards

[Mark]

Everyone is different, but here is my suggestion-

Buy the quart bottle of Oxpho Blue and the quart bottle of Dicropan T4 from Brownells. Everything else you can get in India.

Oxpho blue gives the most permanent of the cold blues, so if you want a finish that actually protects this is the one to use.

However, it is a little too grayish for my tastes, I think the T4 gives the best looking finish. I used to like 44-40 but nowadays I think T4 is better.

I've posted this before but I'll post again as I think it is an important technique- What I do is first blue a gun with Oxpho blue, using several applications and then I'll apply several applications of T4, which gives it a much nicer darker appearance. So you now have a nice and dark coating over a more durable coating.

The quart bottles are the best buy, if I remember correctly as they are not much more than a pint and not only will it last you a long time you have plenty to give to others, as 1/3 ounce is usually more than enough to do a gun.

The important item about cold blues for longevity- degrease the gun thoroughly, very hot soapy water followed by a very hot rinse works just as good as acetone or denatured alcohol, and when the gun is blued get oil on it immediately and get it hot. Hot as in laying in the afternoon sun or use a hair dryer. Or if you have a boiling trough put the blued gun in a boiling water bath for a couple of minutes and when you pull it out wipe it down with oil as it is drying off. Leave the oil on it heavy for half a day or overnight and wipe down the next morning.

It is a little bit of work but it will leave a very nice and long lasting finish you can be proud of doing.

[biking3819]

thanx Mark ...wud try it next weekend .
regards sanjiv

[Mark]

http://www.brownells.com/aspx/NS/store/ ... HO-BLUE%7e

http://www.brownells.com/aspx/NS/store/ ... PAN+T-4%7e

There you go!

PS- See what I mean about buying the quart bottles!

[biking3819]

thanx again Mark,
i have a lil arnd 30ml of Oxpho Blue but no t4, the oxpho blue i had managed to get it from a frnd after pursuing for long...
i visited the links and they say clearly that they wont ship outside continental us,
but i wud try ur trick about hot water and soap as well as the oil later on.do u think i sud be using 0 nos steel wool to apply or tough cloth and how many applications wud you reccomend,thanx and the gun wud be a old diana 35.
Regards sanjiv

[Mark]

Sanjiv,

Another way to apply cold blue that I like very much is to apply it with an old toothbrush and just keep scrubbing over the entire gun until it is as dark as you would like. It is a good technique because it is about the most sparing method to apply the solution. 30 ml is not a lot of blue, but used carefully it will be enough with maybe some left over for future touch up.

As I mentioned, clean clean clean, then open the jar of cold blue and just dip your toothbrush into it and start scrubbing it over the metal. After several minutes what I like to do is just wipe the gun off with a clean rag and rub down with fine steel wool. If you want it a little darker go ahead and toothbrsh it some more. And again, when you are finished do not forget to oil it and leave it for several hours if not overnight! A good oil for this is diesel fuel and ATF (or motor oil ) mixed in equal parts. Or whatever other oil you have laying around.

If your gun is not disassembled use all the normal precautions not to get oil into the chamber, etc.

Now something about steel wool you should know- it is treated with an oil to prevent it from rusting, and if you were bluing with anything other than cold blue I'd say you should boil the pads first in soapy water then in clean water to get all the oil off so it does not contminate your blue job, but most cold blues do not seem to be affected by this so I think it is an unnecessary step with this method.

[Mark]

And I didn't answer your question!

Most likely between 3 and 7 coats to get a nice finish, but as they say beauty is in the eye of the beholder!

[Grumpy]

I still agree that Oxpho Blue is the most durable finish but its colour is horrible - a definite grey. I continue to rate Blue Wonder for its colour - but is does require the use of some heat......and if you can get the item to be blued somewhat hotter than the ubstructions suggest all the better. For all the messing about with multiple coats of two different types of cold blue you might as well do the job properly and use traditional slow rust bluing - OK, it`s even more work but gives a superior finish and colour to any of the bluing kits. I`ve just finished a couple of items on which I tried the technique for the first time and the results have been superb - had a customer very happy to pay up........always an unusual event !
Whatever technique is used the maxim `the secret of the finish is in the preparation` holds true. Thorough degreasing using detergent and warm water is essential and should be followed with a wipeover with pure alcohol. Rubbing down with 240 grit paper gives a finish......but 400 grit gives and even better finish. There`s little point in going above 800 grit though.
The amount of oil on wire wool is variable but all wire wool IS oiled. That oil can totally ruin the application of the bluing solution and leave you with a blotchy disaster. You can wash the wire wool in detergent and warm water - followed by a rinse in more warm water - but you have to air dry it using an active source of heat VERY quickly. `De-oiled` wire wool will oxidise to powder at a startling speed if allowed to get damp - even humid air will rust it away in hours. Keeping `de-oiled` wire wool isn`t so easy.

[mundaire]

Moved to the 'Gun Care & Gunsmithing' section...
Cheers!
Abhijeet