The preferred finish

Status
Not open for further replies.
but you really cant even argue that NP3+ isnt the absolute best finish for longevity
Click to expand...
There was a time I would have agreed...until I bought some magazines which had been coated in NP3 which were peeling. I did some checking and it looks like it was a batch that had been done, along with the guns, for a LEA...it looked like the surface hadn't been prepped correctly. Granted it was only one magazine out of a batch of 10
 
NP3+ is different from NP3

and it sounds like something just got messed up in prep - its not the actual finish that failed, just the employee who prepped it....i believe it carries a lifetime warranty, so perhaps you could send it back and have them redo it for ya?
 
I'm not a huge Glock guy, but their tenifer finish is ridiculously resilient. I wish I could have a 1911 finished the same way.
 
^ HK's HE finish is similar....one member on HKPro had his HK45c stolen and it was tossed in a river...it was recovered after 2 months under water and although the finish was wearing off, it was not rusted

those finishes are very tough
 
wh!plash said:
I'm not a huge Glock guy, but their tenifer finish is ridiculously resilient. I wish I could have a 1911 finished the same way.
Click to expand...
You can, just have in finished in Melonite or one of the other trade names for molten salt bath ferritic nitrocarburizing. It's just a chemical metal treatment.
 
I'm not even sure how the Tenifer or Melonite processes are even relevant. It is not a finish and even on a Glock, the slide is the only part so-treated. It is not suitable for all the small parts within a firearm, anything that isn't steel and probably not the barrel either. It is certainly not applicable to revolvers. Whereas the various platings such as hard chrome, electroless nickel and hybrid finishes like NP3 can be applied to any metal firearm part.

I think many believe the black finish on Glocks and XD's is a Tenifer or Melonite "finish" when it is really black oxide. As stated earlier, they are surface hardening treatments. They add nothing to the surface but hardness.
 
Robar has some really good finishes. NP3 is a good one. There may be one finish that is better than that but I can't recall. Awerbuck did a reivew on Robar in the latest SWAT magazines and spent a few paragraphs talking about the various finishes including the one he had put on his range dummy gun.
 
CraigC said:
I'm not even sure how the Tenifer or Melonite processes are even relevant. It is not a finish and even on a Glock, the slide is the only part so-treated. It is not suitable for all the small parts within a firearm, anything that isn't steel and probably not the barrel either. It is certainly not applicable to revolvers. Whereas the various platings such as hard chrome, electroless nickel and hybrid finishes like NP3 can be applied to any metal firearm part.

I think many believe the black finish on Glocks and XD's is a Tenifer or Melonite "finish" when it is really black oxide. As stated earlier, they are surface hardening treatments. They add nothing to the surface but hardness.
Click to expand...


Blueing is a form of rust, parkerizing, bead blasting, and polishing are all considered finishes because that is how the gun is "finished" they protect the metal from damage. How can you not call it a finish? It may not be a coating, but it's a finish and better than raw metal.
 
It may not be a coating, but it's a finish and better than raw metal.
Click to expand...
Because it isn't one. It's not meant to be. It's a surface hardening process. Not a finish. Tenifer and Melonite change NOTHING at the surface but the hardness. Bluing is a surface treatment, platings and coatings cover the surface. Tenifer and Melonite do none of these things and as stated, is not applicable but to a few select parts. The black oxide that is typically applied over Tenifer or Melonite treated slides IS a finish.
 
gun finishing

There is a new kid on the block, electroless COBALT. It is even harder than hard chrome. You can look it up on the web. I make sights with things bought at the hard ware store. Bronells oxypho over electrogalvenized gives a dark bluebiack durable finish. I like oxypho for older rescued guns because it looks like an older taken care of finish and it works.
 
For those of you talking about 1911s with a tennifer-like coating. Here's mine done with atranite:

SAleft.jpg
[/IMG]

Most everything was coated (no springs, FP, etc.). Unfortunately that pic was taken with a flash. It's very matte in person.

The cast iron stove it's sitting on was obiviously not coated with anything ;).
 
Hard chrome on top of stainless steel is probably the ultimate combination. It has the bonus of negating any worries about galling (not that modern stainless steel guns have much of a problem with that anyway.)
 
Electroless nickel happens to be my favorite finish in terms of looks (it has a slight shimmery appearance) and low maintenance. I have both my K9 and Kimber with this finish.
EABCO is where I sent my Kimber for their "French Gray" finish. The turn around time was a bit lengthy at about 8 weeks, but the work as excellent.
The K9 arrived from the factory this way, back when the only choices of finish from Kahr was blued or nickel.

The Kimber hasn't been carried, but I carried my K9 nearly exclusively over 10 years (my wife now uses it) and I don't see any holster wear yet. I'd say that says a lot for the wear characteristics. It's not nearly as hard as chrome, but it will hold up fine to regular use.
 
CraigC said:
Because it isn't one. It's not meant to be. It's a surface hardening process. Not a finish. Tenifer and Melonite change NOTHING at the surface but the hardness. Bluing is a surface treatment, platings and coatings cover the surface. Tenifer and Melonite do none of these things and as stated, is not applicable but to a few select parts. The black oxide that is typically applied over Tenifer or Melonite treated slides IS a finish.
Click to expand...
really. then why does a glock NOT rust? must be a little more to it than mere surface hardening.
 
wh!plash said:
I'm not a huge Glock guy, but their tenifer finish is ridiculously resilient. I wish I could have a 1911 finished the same way.
Click to expand...
I think you could if you wanted, but you'd have to want to really bad. Look up tennifer finishes... It is actually called "nitroferrocarbeurizing" or some such. My spelling on that is probably way off. But the tennifer name is something I think Glock uses. The other thing about this treatment is that it may be illegal in the US now, it uses very nasty chemicals. It may have to be sent off... Like overseas. The treatment treats the metal itself, it isn't the finish at all, it is the rust preventative and is what aids in surface hardening the metal.

Anyway, I agree, nothing, nothing at all, beats that metal finish on a firearm. And it really isn't a finish, it is a metal treatment that turns the metal slightly gray. Almost invisible really. The black Glock finish is actually applied after the tennifer treatment. And as far as that goes, I liked the old black park looking finish better than the newer slick black paint looking stuff.
 
From Smith & Wesson's Website (demo), bold italics added for emphasis:
When it comes to the slide and barrel, we machine both parts from solid bars of stainless steel that are through-hardened and Melonite finished for the additional strength, corrosion and scratch resistance.
Click to expand...

These words could create some confusion. Does the Melonite process (which I previously understood as similar to Tenifer) impart something that appears to be a finish as a side benefit or is the finish on M&Ps something that is applied later, having absolutely nothing to do with the Melonite process?

I found it strange when I bought my M&P40c that the slide, in addition to being stainless (which is already more resistant to corrosion than ordnance steel) was also listed as being "Melonite finished". It makes more sense to me that the Melonite process simply hardens the surface of the stainless and doesn't serve as a rust-preventative finish.
It would have been less confusing to me if they simply stated this. However, I suppose explaining the specifics in detail isn't conducive to effective marketing.

I'm under the impression that whatever the actual finish is on the pistol is more for aesthetics and to reduce light reflection than to provide protection from rust.
 
Last edited:
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top