It had a broken stock, broken mag spring, bent barrel and no finish left on it.
I fixed the stock with a cut-down pistol grip...think "Broom handled Mauser", fixed the mag spring, cut the bent portion of the barrel off and ended up with a pretty nice little "Snakerator" that I keep on my tractor or ATV when I'm out and about on my "ranch".
Problem is, it rusts immediately and I really don't enjoy keeping it buffed down and I don't want to slather it with oil every other day.
So I tried to cold-blue it...and it looks like the ass end of a jack ass, or Pelosi's face, whichever is worse.
But, no rust, so...
Anyway, any tips on cold-blueing?
This is my third or fourth try on various weapons, none of which had a real monetary investment in them.
I paid 20 bucks for the 183T back in 2004 or so and it is legal, as far as the "sawed-off shotgun" aspect.
Just paint it.
You can try warming it up. I got the results you describe when I did a Winchester 21 that someone had “ polished. “ Maybe try Birchwood-Casey’s bluing paste. Sounds like a good excuse to experiment with Duracoat, or some of the other finishes, though.
I tried it on two occasions over the years..., a total waste of time in my opinion!
What product did you use?
I have had good results with Van’s Instant Gun Blue, but never on a complete firearm, just small hardware, screws and the like.
There’s an old thread on FR which might be helpful.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2613367/posts
Use the paste, not the liquid. Works great for me.
I’ve done it a few times. for cosmetics. You still have to oil the surface afterwards to protect against rust.
I have an older 870 wingmaster with a rust issue. I had the barrel sandblasted then used derusto high temp flat black. No flaking, no rust, looks better than the original bluing.
Have you tried this method?
The Best "Cold Blue" Method There is!
"After years of experimenting with different cold blues, and trying to match the results of a hot blue, I came up with a method of achieving results similar to a hot blue. You know cold blue only chemically turns the metal black, it doesn't offer any protection whatsoever. Now this is something that will do that. Order Mark Lee's express brown and Oxpho blue paste from Brownells."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X-CDOJF-TmY
I used a high temperature epoxy engine paint on one of my CZ82s and it worked pretty well.
Just sand and spray. (It can take a number of days to completely cure/harden.)
Cold blue is for spot fixes.
If I were you, I would completely disassemble it; de-grease it; sand blast it and Cerakote it yourself. Very easy to do and a variety of colors to suit your fancy. I usually use the H series when I am doing a customers rifle or pistol.
Have not had a problem yet.
If you do go the Cerakote route, just a tip. After de-greasing (waiting 12-14 hours to dry) and sand blasting; heat the metal parts up to 375 degrees (you can use your oven; I did when I was starting out) for about 30 minutes. If there is any oil left in the pours of the metal, they will show up when heating. Literally, rinse and repeat if you spot oily spots.
After that. You can use an airbrush kit to apply the Cerakote if you don’t have a a good paint sprayer. I recommended a decent first coat and letting it set up for 20 minutes then a good second coat. Let the parts sit for an hour or so depending on the ambient temps at your location. After that, follow the directions for the grade Cerakote you purchased and cure it in your oven.
I do not work for or have any affiliation with Cerakote. It’s done well by me and I choose it over and over and customers seem to really like it.
If you have any questions, feel free to reach out here or freepmail me.
Best of luck...
I have cold blued, hot blued and painted firearms. IF the prep job is crap the finished product is crap.
I did on an old Ruger standard pistol, looked like crap. Later, used my dryer motor-powered aluminum polishing rig, and it got real nice. Everyone thought it was mirror-polished stainless. I learned polishing doing all the a!uminum on my ‘83 KZ750. Not that I’m a perfectionist or anything, but I don’t like my toys ugly... :)
I’ve had very good luck with “Oxpho-Blue” from Brownells.
Its really a “graying” solution but works well. I also use it like a “shoe polish” on used firearms to blend in any scratches or wear spots. Follow directions on the label.
I did a shotgun barrel completely with it after a bead blast and it worked very well.
No success. Got moisture rust on the bluing of a Makarov pistol years ago. Several attempts to refinish it were futile. Finally gave up.
I refinished a .22 rifle whose barrel had a good deal of surface rust. I used steel wool and a mild sandpaper, oiled it occasionally and went over it repeatedly over a period of weeks. I blued it, hit it with the steel wool, and blued it again until the finish was like I wanted.
I’m a big believer in just thoroughly cleaning with solvent, then washing with a good detergent and thoroughly drying.
Then painting with engine paint.
The metal must be CLEAN.
Some would advise primer.
But you’re looking for function, not pretty.
No terrible luck, found a guy that did traditional bluing cheap, came out great and still looks good 25 years later.
If it is just a “knock-about” gun, I would use Duracoat. Anytime I reblue a gun, I completely remove all old bluing. I’ve had great success with the Duracoat Rust and Bluing Remover.
The last gun I blued, I stripped the bluing and reblued with cold-bluing. Turned out great!
Go old school rust blueing. Brownells has it. Takes patience. You lightly clean it down every few days with 0000 Steel Wool, degrease and reapply. Takes weeks, but is a nice finish as long as you prepped it well enough. Ceracote is an option, too. I like the bake finish, I find it more durable. I use the cheap airbrushes from Harbor Freight, work great.