Thanks!
In fact it may be a question of me just re-doing it a few times. The guy at the gun show where I bought it said when he had a shop he would do 3 or 4 apps with it before he got the best results.
Like I said, I’m just trying it because I like to try new things and be able to do a halfway decent job. Or at least not do a half-azzd job!
That could be. You will want to “card” the finish with a .005” bristle wire brush between coats.
Here’s what is going on in all blueing processes: You’re rusting the gun.
There are two types of rust on steel: “red” rust (Fe02) and “black” rust (Fe03). You’re causing black rust to happen, and black rust is complete oxidation of the outer layer of steel, which cannot progress any further.
When you get a “light” blue, it means that the oxidation didn’t happen as easily on the light areas as on the dark areas. Something kept the metal in the light area from oxidizing as completely. That “something” could be oil, it could be finish, or it could be that you didn’t apply the chemical wet enough in that area, (ie you applied the cold blue solution unevenly).
This is where carding comes in. You card the surface of the steel, getting rid of any loose oxidation, stirring up a little surface fuzz, and then you apply the chemicals again.
BTW — when blueing, you really do need to disassemble the gun to get a good result. The cold blueing chemicals work well when you’re going to do touch-ups on scratches and such, but for a whole-gun job, a complete break-down is necessary.