Rust Bluing Chrome Moly...OR How to waste an entire day

Okay I'll admit it I'm somewhere between just stubborn as a mule or just plain stupid.

I have tried Radocy Rust Bluing on a variety of steel grades and have always had very good results on everything but CrMoly. Every time I've attempted a CrMoly the results were somewhere between Purple Mud and Blotch City.

But ever the optimist I decided to have one more go at a pile of HPA tubes. I tried absolutely every trick I know to get a decent colour and finish but as you can see.....

Attachment 947Attachment 948

IMHO Radocy does not produce satisfactory results on any 4130, 4140 (LW Barrels). You get results that are typical of oil contamination even with a 1 hour boil in detergent.

I've had good luck with Pilkingtons on CrMoly but the colour is very charcoal. Very even, uniform but lacks flash.

Those holes appear to be 78 configuration. :icon_mrgreen:

I've zero experience with real rust blue. I've had good success degreasing for cold blue though- even for the cheapie hoppe's cold blue. I use the yellow can of Ronson brand wick lighter fluid. The white residue it leaves is petroleum lubes being brought up to the metal surface. Wipe the white residue off, and the cold blue takes, with signs of good oxidization. It even works on Wrenchester bbls :P

Regards,

Doc Sharptail

I'm sure you've heard of these and more, but in the event....these are the more popular ones I came across during my research on the subject.

Aside from Pilkingtons, Radocy, Birchwood Casey brown, and the Laurel Mountain brown,

Gun Goddess..made up by a fellow Jim Baiar in the US.

Half Moon Rifle Shop
Columbia Falls, MT.
406 892 4409

Also Herter's Belgian Blue (also called Arts Belgian Blue), and Mark Lees Express blue.



Have my iron chloride almost ready. Still eating at the steel wool a little. Am on course for another week end yet and studying to do every evening...no time to play around with it.

If I come up with something reproducible that works well on 4130, will let you know. Have a couple tubes that need doing myself.


Al

I use Van's Gun Blue, I buy it online, about $35 a quart.... I have little experience, but I sure like it better than the Birchwood Casey stuff.... It works better if you warm the steel with a hair dryer.... and I apply it with a white (1500 grit) Scotchbrite pad.... that evens out the finish.... I hate using steel wool by comparison....

Bob

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Doc Sharptail

Those holes appear to be 78 configuration. :icon_mrgreen:

I've zero experience with real rust blue. I've had good success degreasing for cold blue though- even for the cheapie hoppe's cold blue. I use the yellow can of Ronson brand wick lighter fluid. The white residue it leaves is petroleum lubes being brought up to the metal surface. Wipe the white residue off, and the cold blue takes, with signs of good oxidization. It even works on Wrenchester bbls :P

Regards,

Doc Sharptail

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Yes you are correct they are QB tubes.....:awink:

The process for degreasing prior to rust blue can be tedious and involved but if you want a really good finish it's a must. A detergent boil after a sodium hydroxide to open the pores of the metal is fairly critical as minute amounts of oil...etc will release from the pores during the boiling process causing plum colour blooms in the finish.

I would normally use an industrial bluing agent like Oxpho because the finish is really tough but it has become a real PITA to get so I'm trying to conserve my stock.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Gippeto

I'm sure you've heard of these and more, but in the event....these are the more popular ones I came across during my research on the subject.

Aside from Pilkingtons, Radocy, Birchwood Casey brown, and the Laurel Mountain brown,

Gun Goddess..made up by a fellow Jim Baiar in the US.

Half Moon Rifle Shop
Columbia Falls, MT.
406 892 4409

Also Herter's Belgian Blue (also called Arts Belgian Blue), and Mark Lees Express blue.



Have my iron chloride almost ready. Still eating at the steel wool a little. Am on course for another week end yet and studying to do every evening...no time to play around with it.

If I come up with something reproducible that works well on 4130, will let you know. Have a couple tubes that need doing myself.
Al

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Hey on the subject of alternate suppliers. Do you have any experience buying from the independents? The trouble is shipping. Brownells is basically a bust now because of the ORM-D regulations in the states.

No...the only stuff I've purchased is the Laurel Mountain product from Track of the Wolf. Shipping total on two bottles was $10 US.

I imagine that you're more interested in an express solution, but...

If you have the "ingredients", you might want to give the copper chloride/hydrogen peroxide/sea salt solution a try on some scraps.

Have to watch the volume of copper chloride...too much in the solution will pickle the steel instead of rusting it. Don't rub...did that with a hot part and ended up with a shiny layer of copper.:icon_rolleyes:

The Laurel Mountain product warns against that as well....it must have some copper in it too.

Hoping that replacing the copper with iron (as in the Niedner formula) will resolve that issue....we'll see.:huh:

Al