Where to hard chrome a Ruger LCR cylinder

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tostada

tostada

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I have a new LCR .38. The cylinder has a dark finish on it, not plain stainless like the older ones. I think getting the cylinder hard chromed would look nice and be easier to clean.

Is this a bad idea? The trigger and barrel are stainless steel and pretty shiny, but maybe it would look funny if the cylinder was a lot more shiny and didn't match. Maybe I should get a different finish? Nickel?

I'd really just like the cylinder to match the look of the trigger/barrel and maybe be easier to clean as a bonus. Does anybody have suggestions for where to send it?

Somebody had suggested ccrrefinishing.com to me, and their prices look reasonable, but revolvers aren't even listed.

I'm also thinking I'd want to send them a Glock slide, too, if it's not too expensive.



Thanks!
 
I lived down the street from them for years. Unfortunately now I'm back in Ohio and I'll have to mail it in.

I was looking around and saw that NP3 is a very matte finish, and NiB gets a gold-ish tint after awhile. Is that true?

I know it sounds dumb, but I don't really want it to clash with the bare stainless trigger and barrel...
 
IMO you don't want anything shinny on your SD gun. Why give the bad guy an easy to see target? What's wrong with a black cylinder? It matches the rest of the gun other than the trigger.
 
I would leave it alone. The LCR looks great as-is. Plus, like ArchAngelCD said, I wouldn't want anything shiny on a carry gun.

Just imagine being out on the range practicing and having the sunlight hit the chromed cylinder just right, and reflecting into your eyes. You'll be thinking, I can't believe I paid extra money for this. Now imagine the same thing happens if the day comes when you need to draw that gun for self defense. What a PITA.
 
IMHO, any concerns over shiny carry guns are unfounded.

A nickel based finish like NP3 won't match stainless for color but properly prepped hard chrome will be a close match. It can be matte, satin brushed or bright polished. Hard chrome is much easier to clean than unplated stainless. Although I see no reason whatsoever to hard chrome a Glock slide. It's already impervious to corrosion and if you want it "silver", just remove the black oxide.
 
If its what you want do it. I wouldn't worry about it being too shiny. If something does go down its all going to happen so fast that the shiny cylinder isnt going to make any difference. Too much is made of shiny guns and bad guys. Look around your home and where ever you are there are shiny things everywhere. That being said I hate a glare on my guns at the range. The other thing is if it doesnt work out you can always get another one. I might suggest just buying another cylinder and if you dont like it after getting it chromed you still have the original.
 
Ruger put an "Ionbond Diamondblack" finish on the cylinder. I don't know what that means exactly, though I'm aware that there are some pretty advanced industrial coatings out there.

In my experience with firing a fairly high number of rounds (>100) out of the LCR and Smith revolvers, the spent casings drop free from the LCR when they start sticking in the Smith. New cartridges still drop in cleanly from a speedloader. It's an advantage the LCR has for fast reloads. The Ruger cylinder is easier to clean too.

I consider the cylinder finish to be a feature of the LCR and would not want to ruin it.

edit: see here for a description...
http://www.ionbond.com/en/coating-services/decorative/luxury/diamondblacktm-adlc/

Note: "The coating is also used for mechanical components in watch movements due to its low friction properties. It reduces the need for lubrication and extends the time between services."

Also: "Coefficient of friction < 0.1"
 
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The cylinder in my S&W 360J was coated with NP3 by Robar, it was around $80 5 years ago.
SDC10023.jpg

This S&W M10 was hard chromed by Mahovsky's 6 months ago, I had it bead blasted before it was sent. The cost was only $150 plus $18 return shipping to do the whole gun. Call and ask how much for just a cylinder. If you don't want it shiny have them bead blast it first if it needs it.
SDC10427.jpg
 
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It's not worth the time or the expense to hard chrome the cylinder. It's actually fine as it is and it's beautifully machined. If you get a ring around the cylinder, you can easily buff them out withb buffing pad. Hard chrome is mostly for stopping wear and tear, so unless you really like stainless look, just keep it as it is.
 
"Why give the bad guy an easy to see target?"?

Because I like the way it looks. No, really. That's important to me, and I think the current LCR with a stainless trigger and stainless barrel looks kinda weird without the stainless cylinder. I like the way the original LCR looks. I want my gun to look like that.

The "give them something to aim at" argument is ridiculous. The gun also has a shiny barrel. Should all LCR owners paint the whole gun black? And what about the rest of me? Isn't a shiny belt buckle also horribly unsafe? I'm actually wearing earrings, a necklace, and my glasses have a little shine to them. I'm basically telling everybody, "Here's my face! Open fire!"


"Just imagine being out on the range practicing and having the sunlight hit the chromed cylinder just right, and reflecting into your eyes."

Very few places do a mirror-shine finish. NP3 isn't reflective at all. Even the hard chrome from Accurate Plating & Weaponry says their Brushed Hard Chrome Finishes have a very low reflectivity.


I guess it is a little silly if the "Ionbond Diamondblack" finish has "Coefficient of friction < 0.1".

NP3 says it's 48-51 Rockwell with a friction coefficient of 0.07 - 0.1. Accurate Plating's Hard Chrome says 65 Rockwell and a friction coefficient of 0.1, and lower if polished. I guess it's all about the same. But from looking around for as many opinions as I can find, I think the NP3 is a better finish, but the chrome is harder and match the stainless parts better.

Although WC145's Smith looks really nice! I saw pictures of it from the other side on 1911forum :D


Thanks for all the replies, even if you're just telling me I'm silly...
 
CraigC said:
IMHO, any concerns over shiny carry guns are unfounded.
Click to expand...

Agreed. Make it black so they don't know you're carrying a gun in the first place, make it silver so they're sure you have a gun if you point it at them, it's all a wash.
 
I got the bright chrome from Accurate Plating & Weaponry. I like it :)
 

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Yeah ... Either make the trigger black or make it chrome, but it's a pretty bad blah finish as it is. I suppose next time I send something in.
 
If you really want it hard chromed, Mahovsky's is a great place to have it done. But, and this is important, you have to tell them to polish it or you'll get it back in a matte finish like WC145's Smith M10 above, which you don't want.

If they polish it, it kooks like stainless steel.


Beretta_06.jpg
 
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