Have you experience cold bluing?

[SunnySlopes]

I'm cold bluing a scratch on a rifle barrel. The gun bluing is gloss. It's a Browning rifle.

The instructions say that after an application of bluing to rub the area with 0000 steel wool. Here's my concern.

I used 0000 steel wool to polish a high gloss butt stock. The result was that the steel wool made the wood look cloudy. 0000 is apparantly too coarse for high gloss wood.

Will 0000 steel wool similarly scratch the gloss bluing?

What might I use otherwise?

 

[788Ham]

I just finished using Birchwood Casey Dark Blue on an older pistol barrel, thats what I used. I used a heat gun, barrel came out completely from frame, held barrel with rag and heated. I had the bluing rdy to go in forceps, when bluing placed on barrel it sizzles a bit, rub all around barrel. Then take cold water and wash bluing off, dry barrel with rag. When cool enough, take 0000 steel wool and buff "lightly", old looking foam left on barrel will buff right off, I repeated 4 times, buffing in between bluing cycles. I then put some gun oil on the barrel and let it set for 15 -20 min., then wiped barrel with rag and re-assembled the pistol, barrel looks almost brand new. Try this.

No, steel wool will not scratch barrel or bluing, use a little oil on the wool if you like, you rub "gently", hardly any pressure!

 

[dak0ta]

I did my rifle, it looked good, smelled bad, and the bluing wore off if it rubbed on stuff. Decided to get a smith to do it properly.

 

[SunnySlopes]

I did my rifle, it looked good, smelled bad, and the bluing wore off if it rubbed on stuff.

May I ask exactly what you used? And what was your process?

 

[dak0ta]

I asked around on the forums and watched YouTube videos. I used the BC Perma Blue kit with the paste.

So basically polished the metal with increasing grits of sandpaper to remove the old bluing and rust. Then degrease, add the blue/rust remover, degrease again. Heat the metal in boiling water, dry off, apply blue in linear fashion. Put the metal back in hot water to neutralize the reaction. Dry off, buff with 0000 steel wool, let sit in boiling water. Repeat bluing process 3-4 more times. Buff with steel wool, and oil generously and let it cure for a few days. Man did it smell bad! And just sitting in the vise and letting it rotate against the soft rubber started some wear marks. So at that point I was discouraged with all the hard work and let a smith do it properly.

Also forgot to mention that Selenium Dioxide and the chemicals involved are extremely poisonous so do this outside and try to get fresh air otherwise the fumes can be really bad for you. It's a neurotoxin as well as a corrosive (gloves, goggles, mask over nose/mouth). Possible genotoxic effects as well. I wish there was a MSDS included with the kit. I looked it all up afterwards and was shocked, so the health safety was my main reason for throwing the kit out and stopping it!

So I thought I could get away with bluing for $15... but I learned the hard way and got the bluing done for $165 and kept my health.

 

[beag_nut]

I recently cold-blued a K98 Mauser barrel. I used Brownell's Oxpho-Blue, and it came out great. First I used the plastic pads (3M nylon mesh) which are impregnated with various grades of grit/polishing compound, and come in several grades. I used the next-to-finest, the dark gray/black ones. Then I (with scissors) cut the pads into long strips. Then I rubbed the strips, in a sawing motion (like the old-time shoe polishing method) with two hands over the barrel until I had removed every bit of surface rust and old WW2 blue. Now the steel was a nice bright satin polish. Then I put on nitrile gloves (more to keep my hand sweat off the steel than any other reason) and used cotton puffs saturated with the Oxpho to apply the bluing over the entire barrel. It looked kind of bad, but I did several coats, just like the directions say. Then I buffed the barrel with dry cotton puffs, and applied a nice coat of gun oil over the barrel steel. It came out so well that I was able to easily sell the rifle at a gun show a week later. And none of the bluing came off on a cloth, and looked quite professional, equal to hot-blue job.

 

[Drail]

Cold blue can be made to look very good. For a while. It is very thin and will wear off quickly. I have used it for years but only for touching up small spots. I have done complete guns with it but it's not worth the time involved because it won't last and offers very little protection. Steel wool and ScotchBrite pads will take it right off.

 

[BADUNAME37]

Clean all oil and grease down to bare metal.
I use a floodlight or heat gun on lowest setting to make the Bluing dry faster between applications.

REMEMBER, during application, what you see is not necessarily the "finished-product."

I think that, under most circumstances, wiping a good coat of oil back onto all the metal will really make the Bluing job you just did blend in to the point of not being able to see it unless one is looking for it and knows just where to look.

I use my guns, I treat them like tools. If there happens to be a small scratch or ding in the metal or in the wood, I don't typically get myself all wound-up over such things, they are like the first dings in a new car -- they are Beauty-Marks!