Engraving? Is there a way to get it off?

[possom813]

I was wondering if there is a way to properly remove an engraving on a gun. I'm not talking about the fancy scroll work, just a name. I bought a single six used and it has the previous owners name engraved on the grip rail? I guess that's what it's called, if holding the pistol it would be what's in the palm of your hand in between the grips.

Anyways, is there anyway to fix that. It wasn't a deal breaker, but it would be nice if it wasn't there.

-John

 

[MASTEROFMALICE]

You coul take it off with buffing, the greater the depth of the engraving the more buffing it would take, of course.

Even if you couldn't get it all off you can actually buy new grips for it. If it"s a blued gun you'l have to either have it refinished or reblue it yourself.

If it's a brushed-type finish you'll have to polish the whole thing so you don't have a polished streak running down the middle of an otherwise brushed gun.

 

[Henry Bowman]

if holding the pistol it would be what's in the palm of your hand in between the grips.

That is the "backstrap."

 

[waterhouse]

You need to remove metal around the engraving until it no longer shows, basically taking the surrounding metal down to the deepest level of engraving. There are many way to do this, depending on your skill level. I've seen guns that people used Dremmels on and some that have seen some sandpaper.

If it's a brushed-type finish you'll have to polish the whole thing so you don't have a polished streak running down the middle of an otherwise brushed gun.

Another option is to take some fine grit sandpaper to the polished part until it matches the brushed part.

 

[WSM MAGNUM]

And don`t use a powered buffer for polishing.

 

[Hoppy590]

is there anyway he can fill in the engraving?

 

[Larry Ashcraft]

I've removed a lot of engraving, but mostly on brass, bronze or silver. The same principles would more or less apply to steel.

The engraving is most likely diamond drag done on a pantograph. Diamond engraving doesn't remove any metal, it just displaces it. Picture a V-shaped ditch, with the displaced metal as the raised "ditchbanks". The engraving will be about .003" deep.

First step is to burnish the surface to try and work some of the metal back into the cut. Xacto makes little burnishers that fit their knife handles. This works well on soft metals, but not so well on stee, but it's worth a try.

Next step is to remove the engraving. I would start with about 110 grit wet-or-dry and work up to maybe 600 grit. A block of styrofoam makes a dandy sanding block for irregular surfaces. Make sure all traces of the engraving are gone before polishing or final sanding. A buffing wheel will NOT remove engraving.

If the gun is stainless, just experiment with different grades of sandpaper until you match the finish. If the gun is blued, it will have to be repolished. You can either leave that to a gunsmith who does hot bluing, or you can do it yourself.

Use an unstitched buffing wheel, and probably white rouge (ask your jewelry supply, gunsmith or knifemaker). I use red rouge to start, and then white to finish, but I work with brass, and that won't work on steel.

When you get the frame highly polished, clean it thoroughly with mineral spirits or acetone, and then cold blue it. Hot bluing is much preferred, but cold blue will get the job done if your polishing job is good.

Moving this to Gunsmithing and Repairs.

 

[SaxonPig]

Legally change you name to match the one on the gun.

 

[rcmodel]

He's talking about a Ruger Single-Six.
It either had a black anodized aluminum grip frame, or a Stainless steel one.
Cold blue is not going to work on either one.

If it is a black anodized grip frame, a new one from Ruger only costs $34.50, and would be the preferred way to fix the gun.

If it is Stainless, a new grip frame costs $112.00, so polishing it out makes much better sense.

All you need is a flat sanding block made from a piece of 1"x4", several grades of black wet or dry paper, and lots of elbow grease.

Use 80 or 120 paper to remove all traces of the engraving, then work your way up through 240, 320, 400 and 600 grit until you match the finish polish on the rest of the gun.


rcmodel

 

[Larry Ashcraft]

black anodized aluminum grip frame

In that case, Birchwood Casey Aluminum Black should work. But aluminum is harder to work with, so I agree. At $34.50, I would just order a new grip frame.

BTW, Aluminum Black works on brass or steel, also.

 

[Jim K]

If it was put on by actual engraving, that is cutting into the metal, it can be removed as already mentioned. If it was done with a pounding technique, like some "electric pencils", the distortion of the metal may be so deep that it will show through even after considerable metal removal. In the latter case, replacement of the grip strap may be the only route, as removing enough metal to remove the "shadow" will create a "dish" effect that is obvious.

Jim

 

[possom813]

I should have mentioned that it's stainless.

-John

 

[tasco 74]

i guess you could tell people the name is the guns name.. have a mr.engraved before the name and when you show it to someone say "this is mr. JOE SMITH" or something....... or not..