Ordering new handgun soon - can't decide on finish

[The Wiry Irishman]

I've always found anything silver in color to be the most pleasing to my eye, so no blue, or tennifer/melonite, etc. I've got it narrowed down to brushed hard chrome, bead blasted hard chrome, or stainless. I'm leaning toward hard chrome of some sort, but have never seen the difference between the two. If anyone could post pics of bead blasted or brushed hard chrome, that would be great. The type of gun doesn't really matter, I'm just concerned about how the finish looks.

Thanks!

 

[woad_yurt]

Hard chrome is the bee's knees!

Here's a very well used and abused hard chrome finish on my CZ 52. This stuff is very, very scratch and ding resistant and I am 100% satisfied. I'll even go further than that; I'm impressed. The gun once slid on concrete and there's not a blemish to be seen.

 

[Rangegod]

Satin (mat, bead blasted) hard chrome:

JAC

 

[bannockburn]

The Wiry Irishman

No pix, but SS Chromium Metalife turns out looking pretty much like what the other members previously posted. A very nice satin chrome finish that appears for all intent to be stainless steel. Add in the fact that it's incredibly durable (my oldest hard chrome finished pistol is over thirty years old and looks as good as the day I got it back from the shop), and will not show the slightest indication of wear or tear on the plated surfaces.

 

[JZ06]

another vote for hard chrome!! it is stunning in person!

 

[geronimo509]

I say bright stainless steel or a shiny chrome

You could add some custom grips too!

 

[pogo2]

Chrome is excellent

Hard chrome is a great finish - looks good and resists scratches and corrosion. I have two Glocks with hard chrome slides - one is shown below. But good old stainless steel is hard to beat and probably costs less than hard chrome. My stainless Sig P239 is shown below the Glock.

 

[Oro]

For good looks and functionality, I like bright stainless or a shiny hard chrome. It's not "tacti-cool," but it is easier to maintain by a large margin.

Matte hard chrome can be difficult to keep clean. It wears very well and resists dings great. But the irregularities to "dull" the finish create lots of little places for powder residue to cling. I had a revolver done in matte hard chrome by APW about 15 years ago. Eventually I sold it because it was such a bear to clean (and I was way into 1911s at the time). This is less of an issue with an auto, but still a consideration. If you don't care too much about some powder stains lurking around, it's no biggie. But I like to keep my guns really clean when not actually on the range. So if you are a clean-freak it is not for you. But not everyone is a clean-freak!

Another aspect of a shiny gun, according to many old-time beat cops I've heard make the point, is it ends arguments faster. The storyline is that a big shiny gun makes more of a point upon presentation than a big blue or black gun, and the confrontation ends with fewer bad outcomes. I can't say if it's true, but I've heard it a few times from long-time beat cops to think there might be a grain of truth to it.

Here's a stainless gun that has been polished. I like the look and functionality quite a bit. And it's probably going to be cheaper than getting a custom hard chrome finish applied to a blue gun.

1) Polished stainless 686-4