[jeepmor]

All,

I'm the proud owner of a new 10mm Tanfoglio FS Witness in Wonderfinish. I plan on eventually having it dehorned for CCW use in rainy woods hunting grounds of the PNW for bear and cougar backup while deer and elk hunting.

I know this is not a tough task for a gunsmith, but I am curious as to whether or not the wonderfinish will be an issue. Is this a finish they can reapply/match to the gun when done or am I stuck with this blocky thing because I did not get a blued finish?

Many thanks, always good answers here,

jeepmor

[dfariswheel]

Once you break through the coating, bare steel is exposed and it'll rust.

You cannot "touch up" a plated finish.
All you can do is either keep lube on it to prevent rust, or have the gun stripped and re-plated.

[jeepmor]

Okay, is this something gunsmiths can do? Or is this too specialized?

I really like the wonder finish, suppose I'll be stuck with the blocky profile then. I did not think it was a blue type application, but you never know. Man, I wanted to dehorn this thing.

Oh well, thanks again folks,

jeepmor

[Cortland]

I've heard "Wonderfinish" described as a plating (like chrome?), a coating (like paint?), a finish (like blueing?) and a surface treatment (like tenifer?). I don't think anyone really knows what it is. I always assumed it was a tenifer kind of a deal.

[dfariswheel]

After de-horning, you can have your Witness stripped and hard chrome plated.
This looks like the Wonder finish, but is even tougher.

Here's some top platers who offer hard chrome, or you could ask EAA what they charge to refinish it.

http://www.apwcogan.com/Greetings.htm

http://www.techplate.com/firearms_pl.htm

http://www.trippresearch.com/

http://www.fordsguns.com/index1.htm

http://www.originalmetaloy.com/

[jeepmor]

I was told it is a plating process of some sort or another that cannot be quickly and easily touched up like a blued finish could. I'll just have to wait until later since it's not a quick and easy thing for a gun smith to perform. I prefer not to chrome it simply because I don't want a chrome finish. I realize it may be a superior treatment, I just have never been that fond of chrome on anything. And EAA has such a lousy "word of mouth" reputation that I don't think I'll take my chances on them until I start finding better reviews from folks in places like this about their customer service.

Thank you for all the information folks.

jeepmor

[asknight]

jeepmor, hard chrome is not like the chrome on a car bumper. A matte finish hard chrome is going to be very hard to tell from a Tanfoglio Wonder finish. It is indeed a very easy and quick thing for a proper gunsmith such as Tripp @ http://www.trippresearch.com to perform. He can handle the dehorn and refinish for you painlessly.

[Black Snowman]

Another option for re-finishing is Gun-Kote. It's a spray on finish that is then baked on and can been done from start to finish in a few hours with someone with access to a sand blaster, airbrush, and oven. It's available in a lot of differant colors and quite durable.

I've redone my Glock 24, Delta Elite, Desert Eagle, K31 and my Dad's Star M43 with Gun Kote and I've been happy so far.