Out with the new and in with the old

[Jamie C.]

I got tired of looking at a modern blue job on a gun that was basically designed almost 150 years ago. And we won't even talk about those "Uberti Red" grips.

So, having seen what a few others around here have done, I broke out the vinegar, sand paper, and some steel wool.

And this...



got turned into this:



Not bad for a couple hours work, huh?

Oh, and I should mention that I used a bottle of cold blue and steel wool to "age" the brass trigger guard.



J.C.

 

[Phantom Captain]

WOW!! Nice work!!

I think that looks incredible!! Fill us in on what you did please? I have really been thinking about doing that to the grips on my 51 Navy. Tired of the Uberti red too, although on my stainless NMA the red grips looks pretty nice.

Did you just steel wool the grips and oil them?

 

[Jamie C.]

Thanks, PC.

Wasn't anything to it, really.
The gun I just disassembled, put in a plastic pan, and covered with vinegar. After it had sit a while... 10-15 minutes maybe... I took steel wool to it and helped the bluing to break loose. Once that was done, I gave everything a good rinsing and drying, oiled it up and put it back together.

The trigger guard was degreased in alcohol, and left to sit in a plastic cup full of cold blue while I did the other stuff. After that, it was rinsed, then rubbed down with a piece of steel wool that was coated in olive oil. It was quite black when it came out of it's "bath".

The grips I sanded down 'til the lacquer and color were gone, but was careful not to over-do it and screw up the fit. ( You gotta watch the edges here. The middle parts of the grips you can go pretty deep with, but get too carried away at the edges and you'll be looking for new grips.)
I started off with 150 grit, then finished up with 400.

Once everything was smooth, I gave it a good coat of Minwax wood finish. The color code is "Provincial 211". You can get it at Walmart. Its in with the wood stains.

Once the stain/finish had dried for 15 minutes or so, I wiped the grips down and let 'em sit for another couple of hours, then put 'em back on the gun.

And that's it. No special tools or skills required. Just a little time and "elbow grease".


J.C.

 

[ArmedBear]

Did you unload it before you put it in the vinegar?

Looks loaded in the "before" shot.

 

[Jamie C.]

It was loaded in the "before" shot.

Then I went and shot it some.

Then I took it apart and worked on it.
( I figured that since it was going to get a good cleaning any way, it might as well be dirty. )

J.C.

 

[Phantom Captain]

Very interesting!

It's just that in the "after" pic it almost looks like you put a lighter blue or something on it. It just didn't look in the white to me.

Again, really nice, I think it looks amazing! I might just go on and give my Navy grips your treatment this weekend. Yours look "right" now.

 

[Jamie C.]

It's just that in the "after" pic it almost looks like you put a lighter blue or something on it. It just didn't look in the white to me.

Well, it's a light blue-gray now... not exactly "white".
I took the pic outside though, and the gun may look a bit more blue due to that, since it does look more gray than that under artificial light.


J.C.

 

[K.A.T.]

Looks Great

I like the look Jamie C. I would like to give a few tips on wood refinishing for anyone that wants to do this. There is nothing wrong in the way Jamie done his grips,using a finish stripper like"stripeze'' is a little less work.It is basically a liquid that will dissolve the clear finish on the grips,it can then be rinsed off with a solvent like lacquer thinner. Then just lightly sand the exposed wood with very fine sandpaper. There is several strippers on the market,just follow the directions,let the stripper do the work,only takes 10 or 15 minutes.After you have stripped,rinsed and let dry,sand lightly to smooth out the grain,then restain.Please be carefull not to go to dark in color,if you do you will probally just have to live with it,about the only way to get it out is sand it out,by the time you do that,your grips will not fit anymore. Jamie C,you need to put some type of clear finish back on the grips or they will absorb oil from cleaning and your hands and will be alot darker real soon.Unprotected wood is alot like a sponge and will soak up anything,all the stain does is give color,no protection.Don't be afraid to use the stripper,I have used it on antique furniture for many years.If you want the grips to look like the old guns leaving off the clear finish would be one way to acheive that look.

 

[Jamie C.]

K.A.T., I was gonna use stripper... but then when I went and looked, the can was empty.

Seems what was left dried up, oh...five, six years ago, probably? ( It was a new can... never opened. I think I bought it 12 or 13 years ago. )

As for the wood picking up oil and such... that's sort'a what I have in mind, and one of the reasons I hate sealers and such; the wood needs to age to be any good. Sort'a like me.

Remember, I'm not looking for a modern finish on a modern gun here. Had that already, and wanted rid of it.

J.C.

 

[Steve499]

It looks MUCH better after you worked it over. It has twice the character.

Steve

 

[Jamie C.]

Thanks Steve, I think it does too.

Still, it doesn't quite have that "somebody's used me a lot" look yet.

But I'll fix that. It just takes a bit of time.


J.C.

 

[Tommygunn]

Jamie C., what model Remington is that? I don't know of a Uberti model with that short of a barrel.
I have the Pietta 1858 with a 5 1/2" barrel I ordered from Cabela's but that barrel doesn't look as short.
Thanks.

 

[Phantom Captain]

Jamie C,

You totally inspired me. I didn't change anything with the factory blue on mine but really wanted to get rid of the Uberti red on my Navy.

I used Zipstrip to get rid of the lacquer, 400 grit sandpaper to just finely smooth everything and then some old sperm oil my dad has had for years. No stain or anything on mine, I decided to keep the natural wood finish. I am REALLY happy with them now too! This looks so much nicer than the Uberti red in my opinion and its a much closer match to my 2nd gen Colt Army. I am going to keep rubbing in the sperm oil for awhile every couple of days and see how they darken! Thanks for the tips!

 

[mike101]

Your Remmie turned out great. I like the blue/gray of the steel. If you ever want to go for the "in the white" look, try some Naval Jelly on the bluing. It comes right off. I wouldn't do it to that Remmie, though.

 

[Jamie C.]

Been busy the past couple'a days, so I've not had the chance to answer some of ya. Sorry.

Tommygunn: It's an Uberti with a 5-1/2 " barrel. Standard blue finish. I guess the slight angle in the pic makes it look shorter or something.

Phantom Captain: Good job on the grips. About a million times better than the "Uberti Red".

Steve499 And mike101: Thanks. However, not being able to leave anything alone , I've gone at it again. This time, I took a bottle of cold blue to it, let it stay on the gun about a quarter of the time I would've to actually blue it, then washed it off and buffed it down with steel wool.

I think it's finally starting to get that "Lived in/with" look.

The pic doesn't show it, but there's a nice patina of mottled blue/black starting, with a slightly olive tone underneath it all. Also, the grips look like they've already darkened up a shade or three, just from the oil and the gunk on my hands while working on the thing.

I figure I can probably stop there, and let time and use do the rest.

Anyway, here's the new pic. You folks think this is better or worse than the previous one?
( The finish, not the pic; It's an old camera and I'm no photographer. )


P.S. The cylinder isn't quite so much darker than the rest of the gun as it looks here.


J.C.

 

[Phantom Captain]

I think it looks GREAT.

I really like the light blue patina you have now and I do think it's even better than your last pic.

As I said in the earlier post it didn't look in the white to me and that's what I would avoid if I did mine too. The patina that is on there now is miles above the bare metal look. Very very nice job! Impressive!

I like how your grips are darkening a bit too. I took my Navy out this weekend and put a good 100 rnds through it. All the handling and then cleaning and oiling again is darkening my grips nicely!