Metal polishing question

Strip then polish. I'd start with sandpaper and steel wool. The wool to work on the pits. And the paper easier to work in tight spaces and around contours. Ending up with #0000 and 2000 grit. You might find it polishes up so nice that you want to graduate to metal polish (Mother's) and buffing. By that point you're going to be tempted to forget Parkerizing altogether, I'm betting.

Polishing isn't all that difficult. You can start out with something quite abrasive like 220 or 320 grit and work up to something very fine like 1200, 2000 or even higher if you want a mirror type finish. Parkerizing requires a fairly rough surface so you won't need to go very high at all on the sandpaper. You can likely stop at the 220 if that is what gets rough parts out.

As a very easy alternative, blast it with glass bead or find someone who will.

An aluminum oxide blast will help camouflage pitting and other surface imperfections. I had to do just that recently on a USGI 1911 that looked like it had been left neglected in a tool shed for the last fifty years.

The professional methods are; Flat file it out (One needs a steady hand and a good eye for this) or machine it out. You will not be able to polish that revolver down and keep thing symmetric. I agree with earlthegoat2 and Steve; just sandblast it.

That type of handgun use lends itself to stainless steel instead of blueing. I have a Model 62-2 Stainless .38 that I usually carry whenever I go for walks, either along the road or down the haul roads, unless hunting with a long gun. I've had the gun for about 20 years, yet it still looks about new. It carries very nice in my pocket holster. I bought it "used" at the Waterville, ME gun show and got a great deal on it because the cylinder latch screw was loose and the guy didn't know what was wrong. (A couple of minutes to remove the screw, install Locktite, replace, and it's fine.) The DA-only trigger pull is really smooth and I never did anything to it. I also chose to install Pachmayr rubber grips to make the piece fit my somewhat large hand.


20 years and

I believe that I can read Smith & Wesson on the barrel. Parkerizing a nice old S&W is sacrilege in my my book but it's your book so do what you want.

Sand paper with formed wood blocks specific to the area you are sanding. It's a moot point to ask which to do first as the sand paper will do it both. The entire gun needs to be the same grit on the finish or you will have various levels of bluing brightness. If you do park it then don't worry about the mirror finish. that would be pointless as well. If you polish it to 2000 grit, you better plan on replacing both your elbows and being done next year some time. 320 is plenty fine for a field use revolver. This is what I do when I hot blue.

AZAndy said:

I do understand your objection. It's the reason I don't plan to do anything to do anything to my 1912 Colt Vest Pocket .25, even though it's got maybe 40-50% finish left, for example. This S&W is right on the edge of rusting and already has some pitting, though, and I'd like it to be protected well enough to actually carry occasionally.

I do have the advantage of living in Arizona, which is probably why it isn't worse than it is already. But we do have a humid period for a couple of months every year, so I'm always wondering if this will be the year it tips over the edge. I'm aware that the rule of thumb is to not refinish a piece that's over, say, fifty years of age, but if I want to use it, I really can't avoid a new finish of some kind. I haven't completely rejected the idea of rust bluing, but that would depend on how much stuff I would have to build. If I weren't retired, I'd probably hire a company to do a nice bluing on it, but that's out of my reach nowadays.

In other words, I don't think you're wrong, but my options are limited.

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Living in southeasten NM isn't a great deal different that living in most of Arizona except it doesn't get quite as hot and we also have those couple of humid months in late summer. Single digit or very low double digit humidity is the norm. What I started doing back in the late 1960's was waxing the exterior of my guns with Johnson's paste wax because of rust using oil which was about it back then. I only do this a couple of times a year. After a shooting session or just carrying them afield I squirt a little Pledge on a rag and wipe them down. I got the Pledge idea from a boat dealer I was acquainted with that told me to use it on my boat to keep the metal parts in good shape along with keeping the gel coat shiny. I have had no rust since I started using Johnson's wax and the Pledge wipe down. None.

I ran across an old Iver Johnson revolver late last summer that was well used. I posted pictures of it in the revolver forum. My first thought was to clean it up and cold blue it but after thinking about a while I decided it's an old, well used gun and there is nothing wrong with it looking it age so I cleaned and waxed it just like I do all the rest. It won't rust as long as I do this and it kind of preserves a piece of history and what it went through in it's 60+ year life. Whatever you decide about the gun, carry it and enjoy it. It's a nice piece of equipment.

Well there's hot bluing and there's cold bluing. I've had some modest success using cold bluing speeded up with some heat. Regardless of the method, they share two common traits if you want good results: time and tedium.

AZAndy said:

After some more consideration, I've come around to your view. Ordered some rust blue solution yesterday. My former hesitation was due to a Brownell's video where they had a big boiling tank and a custom steam cabinet set up and did the boil/steam/card cycle about a dozen times. After reading through the instructions for the bluing solution I ordered, it looks like the whole thing can be done in about a day. I have a big stainless pan for stovetop boiling, and the steam cabinet can be a big cardboard box with a one-room humidifier in it, and I have stainless wire to rig up hangers with. Thanks for making me think about it a little more.

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I did some rust bluing many years ago. So many years ago that I ordered the Belgian Blue from Herter's. It's labor intensive and doesn't give the same color as hot bluing but it's very durable. I still have one of the rifles I blued using that method and it still looks just as good as it did when I finished. The Belgian Blue did not require a steam cabinet and I could do a rifle in an afternoon. Of course I was much younger and faster in those days. Good luck with your effort and please post a picture when you get it back together.