Ruger 10/22 finish removal?

[ryanrichmond]

I just bought a Stainless Steel Ruger 10/22 today and really am not very impressed with the matte grey look the components are sporting.

Does anyone know if you can remove the grey coating from the components and shine it up? My buddy has a parts agitator at his place of business I was going to use unless someone else has a better idea.

 

[highorder]

I've never done it, but I bet acetone will strip that clear coat.

 

[ryanrichmond]

If I understand correctly, the barrel will clean up just fine. It's the receiver I'm concerned about.

 

[DBR]

I've used Sem XXX Aircraft Stripper. It takes the finish off almost instantly and it is safe for aluminum. I bought it at Bond Auto but any automotive store that sells Sem products should have it.

Here: http://semproducts.com/Catalog.asp?prod=263

When you strip the finish what you have is bare aluminum. The ones I have done do not look like they are anodized. You should plan on refinishing it with something. I used Brownells Aluma-hyde. It worked quite well.

http://www.brownells.com/.aspx/cid=0/k=paint/t=P/ksubmit=y/Products/All/search=paint

 

[CraigC]

You can certainly remove the finish from the receiver but be prepared to find some serious machine marks that will need cleaning up. The barrels are not coated, they are simply bead blasted so be prepared to do a lot of polishing to change its appearance. It would be better to just replace it.

 

[ryanrichmond]

Thanks guys.

 

[MistWolf]

Why don't you talk to a company that specializes in refinishing firearms? The barrel can easily be be polished and a variety of finishes can be applied to the receiver.

Before removing the finish on the aluminum receiver, find out what it is. If it's anodized, not only does the anodizing protect the aluminum for corroding, but hardens the surface as well. Removing the anodizing would be a bad thing

 

[ryanrichmond]

I think I'm just going to leave it alone. It's not hurting anything and, in fact, may be protecting the rifle.
I'll just buy an older shiny stainless steel 10/22 and stop whining about the finish

 

[xquercus]

An old beat up "stainless" 10/22 receiver I acquired really bugged me. Of course, the "stainless" receivers are aluminum with a lacquer-type clear coat. I used "Aircraft Remover" to remove both the clear coat and black finish. The black finish wasn't anodizing. It was some sort of paint. There were scratces in the aluminum which I removed with some sand paper. The receiver looks much better now. I tapped it for large screws as well to put on a Power Custom rail.

 

[CraigC]

Only the earliest blued guns were actually anodized, from 1964-1968. Then the switch was made to a teflon coating. Which is interesting because Ruger anodized other firearms parts into the `90's. In the last couple years, they switched to a heavy wrinkle coating. The stainless guns were clear anodized until the recent switch to the wrinkle finish.

 

[MistWolf]

Anodizing is a necessary step in manufacturing aluminum parts to add corrosion protection and surface hardening by promoting the formation of aluminum oxide. It does not have to add color to the aluminum.

Aluminum is "self healing" in that it naturally forms aluminum oxide on it's surfaces in a normal atmosphere. Anodizing takes that process a step further in that the protective surface is deeper. Polishing removes that layer.

It would be strange and disappointing if Ruger actually quit anodizing their aluminum parts altogether

 

[ryanrichmond]

anyway to tell what year my gun was made? I picked up an older one this morning at the gun show here in town. The first 3 digits on the serial number are #111

nevermind -- figured it out. 1972 and 1973 were the 111 code dates. Mine is a 1973

 

[CraigC]

It would be strange and disappointing if Ruger actually quit anodizing their aluminum parts altogether

Like I said, only the first four years of the blued models were anodized. Then they switched to a teflon coating. The "stainless" models were clear anodized until recently. Their single action revolver grip frames and ejector housings were anodized until sometime in the `90's when they went to the same coating they used on the 10/22's. Can't think of any of their parts that are anodized nowadays. Which is one good reason why when building a custom 10/22, one should consider an aftermarket receiver. Those from Nodak/Spud are not only better-made parts but have 8-40 scope mounting screws and a very well done anodized hardcoat.

 

[xquercus]

The "stainless" models were clear anodized until recently.

Are you sure? My "stainless" 10/22 did not appear to have any type of anodized finish on it. The finish was actually a clear coat. I chose to strip the clear coat, polish out the scratches with fine sand paper, and leave the aluminum bare.

I haven't seen anodizing on any of the "stainless" 10/22s out there. The newer ones have a gray coating and the older ones have a clear coating -- neither are anodized.

 

[MistWolf]

Like I said, only the first four years of the blued models were anodized. Then they switched to a teflon coating. The "stainless" models were clear anodized until recently. Their single action revolver grip frames and ejector housings were anodized until sometime in the `90's when they went to the same coating they used on the 10/22's. Can't think of any of their parts that are anodized nowadays. Which is one good reason why when building a custom 10/22, one should consider an aftermarket receiver. Those from Nodak/Spud are not only better-made parts but have 8-40 scope mounting screws and a very well done anodized hardcoat.

Do you have documentation to support this?

 

[Win1892]

I had a beat up silver receiver that I cleaned up with scotchbrite then buffed with my polishing setup. It has a mirror finish now and gets a lot of attention when out for a walk.

 

[webbee]

Aircraft stripper is also available at most Walmarts.