Read your post about keeping the flash 45 to the side...good, but try diffusing it, too. Your shadows are hard-edged, which tells me you're probably using undiffused light.
If you don't have softboxes, try taping some tracing paper to the front of your lights. Or cut the bottoms out of a couple plastic milk jugs and put those in front of your lights to diffuse the light. Remember to open your shutter for longer to compensate for the slight light loss.
Also, even with your lights set at 45 degrees, what you're really after is light skimming across the surface of the gun.
I've attached a shot I made awhile back of my Kimber to show you what I mean. The angle of the light was low, and I used a softbox (with another on the opposite side, set to much lower power for fill light) for a nice, soft, gentle light.
If you don't have softboxes, try taping some tracing paper to the front of your lights. Or cut the bottoms out of a couple plastic milk jugs and put those in front of your lights to diffuse the light. Remember to open your shutter for longer to compensate for the slight light loss.
Also, even with your lights set at 45 degrees, what you're really after is light skimming across the surface of the gun.
I've attached a shot I made awhile back of my Kimber to show you what I mean. The angle of the light was low, and I used a softbox (with another on the opposite side, set to much lower power for fill light) for a nice, soft, gentle light.
