Any Bluing Experts?

[James K2020]

I recently purchased this Colt Officer’s Model Target 38 at auction for a decent price. It is not collectible because it was re-finished and polished and the Colt stamps are missing. However, it has an excellent bore and rifling and fantastic trigger pull. I was looking for a good shooter and think I found it.

The only issue for me is a couple of nasty scratches and scrapes on the right-side frame that go down to the metal.

I do work with wood and leather making western grips, belts, holster, etc. but not much in metal work.

I watched Larry Potter and others on YouTube using the Perma Blue paste. I degreased the area with plenty of dish soap liquid and alcohol and pretty confident it was grease/oil free. Borrowed Wifey’s hair drier and heated the gun. Used a toothpick to fill in the scratches with the Perma Blue.
Spread some paste on the scratch areas. Rinsed with cool distilled water and dried with paper and cloth towels.

Did this about 6 times cleaning with alcohol in between each application. The Perma Blue did get spread across the area but for some reason there his a ‘halo effect’ immediately surrounding the scratches/scrapes. The question is, do I keep adding more Bluing to blend or is there a chemical reaction going on that can’t be reversed?

I can live with the way it is right now, but of course not satisfied. I wanted the bare scratched metal to be protected but was hoping the bluing would blend better. Also, the pictures of how it looks now are exaggerated because I wanted to highlight the issue. It does not look nearly as bad in person, only when it positioned in the bright light.

Any comments or help is welcome. If I screwed up that’s OK but just want to know what happened.


As bought



In Bluing process



Finished bluing and oiled




As it looks now

 

[Jim Watson]

Have to think the selenium dioxide is not compatible with the old Colt furnace blue.
In the absence of expert advice, I recommend applying the leaver.
As in that is what you have now, just leave 'er alone; more tinkering might look even worse.

 

[Pat Riot]

Curious; have you tried wiping the gun down with a silicone impregnated cloth? It might blend a bit.

 

[Heir Kommt Die Sonne]

Scratches or not that's one good looking Colt.

 

[James K2020]

Curious; have you tried wiping the gun down with a silicone impregnated cloth? It might blend a bit.

Yes I did. I gave the Perma Blue one more try but same results. It does apply but its a very light blue and still leaves an aura. Even tried using 0000 steel wool with some oil for blending but no luck.
I have subsequently read that Perma Blue may not work well on all metals and may never get deep blue, so I bought the Dicropan T-4 which claims to be the best and darkest. Won't get till 8 Sep so I'll have to wait.
Will post any results.

 

[Speedo66]

I've used Van's Instant Blue with good results. They give very complete instructions for removing contaminants before using, more comprehensive than you would think. They say common items you might normally use to apply, i.e., cotton balls or Q-Tips, don't, and explain why.

Might give it a try and see if it works better in your case.

 

[James K2020]

OK, here's the latest and greatest. The Dicropan T-4 came yesterday almost a full week earlier than originally scheduled. No late USPS mail problems with this important order!

Right now I'm very pleased with the T-4. It took quite a bit of work and I probably applied it 30 times with cleaning in between but it finally got the color close to matching. I tried a bunch of different processes but settled on heavy cleaning first with mineral spirits and then alcohol. I did heat the gun with a hair drier a couple of times earlier on but then dropped that part.
I think the key for this re-blue was cleaning with alcohol between each application, apply the T-4 with a small folded paper towel until almost dry then use another clean/dry paper scrap to dry the area. I then used 0000 steel wool and gently rubbed the blued area and across to the unaffected area. Once the bluing started build up I began using a small dab of Simi-Chrome metal polish on the steel wool to blend for just a bit. After the steel wool treatment it was back to cleaning, mostly with just the alcohol. It became a very repetitive process but I could see gradual results. I also used a silicon wipe-down cloth which helped blend the color but you really have to clean hard if you want to blue after doing that.
There still appears to be a rough area in the metal but that may require a real polish down and start over.
I'll think about it. I need to shoot it first!

The camera really accentuates the finish and any flaws. I looks much better in person, thankfully.

 

[wiscoaster]

I prefer using Birchwood-Casey Super Blue, I think it produces a deeper bond to the metal and therefore more resistant to wear blue, but can't say why. Also, I heat the gun in the oven at about 140 degrees and the blueing liquid for about nine seconds in the microwave before applying with a cotton ball, then rinse with hot water about a minute after application, then back into the oven to dry fast and stay warm, then when it's dry I #0000 steel-wool off the excess residue before the next application. One average sized handgun can usually be done using one full retail-sized bottle of Super Blue for about eight to ten applications. The secret is doing a good polish in between applications. If you're not removing about half what you applied then you aren't polishing deep enough When the blue is where I want it I polish one last time with Mother's, let the gun sit overnight, then oil liberally.

Edit to note: the above refers to a fully de-blued and stripped gun, not trying to cover up and blend some scratches. I honestly have never to able to do that so it looks like there's nothing there. You can probably get to where the casual observer doesn't see it, but not to where it looks perfect.

 

[drband]

OK, here's the latest and greatest. The Dicropan T-4 came yesterday almost a full week earlier than originally scheduled. No late USPS mail problems with this important order!

Right now I'm very pleased with the T-4. It took quite a bit of work and I probably applied it 30 times with cleaning in between but it finally got the color close to matching. I tried a bunch of different processes but settled on heavy cleaning first with mineral spirits and then alcohol. I did heat the gun with a hair drier a couple of times earlier on but then dropped that part.
I think the key for this re-blue was cleaning with alcohol between each application, apply the T-4 with a small folded paper towel until almost dry then use another clean/dry paper scrap to dry the area. I then used 0000 steel wool and gently rubbed the blued area and across to the unaffected area. Once the bluing started build up I began using a small dab of Simi-Chrome metal polish on the steel wool to blend for just a bit. After the steel wool treatment it was back to cleaning, mostly with just the alcohol. It became a very repetitive process but I could see gradual results. I also used a silicon wipe-down cloth which helped blend the color but you really have to clean hard if you want to blue after doing that.
There still appears to be a rough area in the metal but that may require a real polish down and start over.
I'll think about it. I need to shoot it first!

The camera really accentuates the finish and any flaws. I looks much better in person, thankfully.

View attachment 940036 View attachment 940037 View attachment 940038 View attachment 940039

You did well!

 

[commygun]

Wow! Good job! Given the overall good condition of the revolver, I can understand why the scratches bothered you. Thanks for sharing your process.

 

[Jim Watson]

The T4 did a good job. I would not give it a second thought.

 

[Pat Riot]

It looks really nice @James K2020
Nice job.

 

[James K2020]

Finally got to shoot it today at an indoor range. Took a few cylinders to get use to the height. Its a tall front sight to get at the right level. After that it was a joy. Super nice pull and the double action was so smooth. I'm no marksman but I surprised myself with DA results- very consistent. I'm going to really enjoy this guy.