There are many methods you can use to blue the steel. The ideal setup is a pair of long sleeve gloves along with splash goggles and a face mask. I ended up with some spots where the browning did not take, and a few dull spots, most of which I was able to buff out with steel wool soaked with gun oil. Safety is the number one priority so protect your body as much as possible. You can make a Caustic Soda KNO3 water bath: 65% Lye (aka sodium hydroxide) You can reassemble the gun after. Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered. Brownells has steel tanks, and there are some steel/stainless long/thin tanks available from other sources. The blue appearance of the oxide film is also used as an indication of temperature when tempering carbon steel after hardening, indicating a state of temper suitable for springs. The steel will pull some of the carbon out of the oil while quenching and harden the outer portion of the metal. It will first turn gold, then orange, then red, purple, blue and then dark grey! 'Browning' is controlled red rust Fe2O3, and is also known as 'pluming' or 'plum brown'. { Then you can express blue it with a propane torch and a tank of boiling water. A non-linear resistance property of the blued steel of razor blades, foreshadowing the same property later discovered in semiconductor diode junctions, along with the ready availability of blued steel razor blades, led to the use of razor blades as a detector in crystal set AM radios that were built by servicemen (as foxhole radios) or by prisoners of war during World War II.[8]. Fill a heat-safe container with water or oil deep enough to submerge your steel. Stand on end over some paper towels to drain. Not only does it give you an alchemical feeling of satisfactionbut it also gives the metal a finish to stop corrosion. 84 or Du-Lite 3-0. 1/16-inch pivot wire has a circumference of ~0.2in. Thermometers and stirring tools are also needed, as well as something to heat up the tanks. Free shipping. Your tanks better be tight, your stands for the tanks better be rigid, youd better have top-of-the-line fire extinguishers (NB the plural) available to you. It is vastly appreciated even by those of us who will probably never use it. If you havent done it before, wait until I mention some items about it. (And taking, out of *your* hide). I had to sand and restain the stock, and sanded the barrel from 120 down to 400 grit the pitting was so bad. He started the site to explore the ethics, morality, business, politics, culture, technology, practice, strategy, dangers and fun of guns. Whats the difference between Brown Express and Blue Express? "@type": "Article", Prepare the components of the metal surface before you attempt to blue using your tools. I pulled the temp off the top of my head. Please note: As you are working with heat, please be smart, use your common sense, do the bluing process in a well ventilated area and keep a wet towel to hand. The parts are then boiled in distilled water, blown dry, then carded, as with rust bluing. Its nice when something can be re-used a time or two, especially when used in diversified ways. Premium fencing blades are often offered with a blued finish. fascinated with blacksmithing, but have not had an income to even get it started. What is your opinion of the 2 to 1 lye and potassium nitrate bluing solution? In my case I drilled/threaded the metal piece and made a holder with a threaded end. Many older browning and bluing formulas are based on corrosive solutions (necessary to cause metal to rust), and often contain cyanide or mercury salts solutions that are especially toxic to humans. For the color change to be uniform you have to remove the grease, oil, paint etc or it looks blotchy. Safety is the number one priority so protect your body as much as possible. But since this was my first project, with an inexpensive kit as a learning tool, and as I intend to do this again with a much more expensive kit, my trials and errors and your voice of experience will be very useful the next time around. There is something really rewarding about this technique. After If there is any finish left on the metal, it will interfere with the bluing pr I used Express Blue #1 on lots of guns, where I want something less labor intensive than slow rust blueing (which I wont describe here): most steel wool isnt oil-free. Wait for a day to let the bluing properly cure before you do anything else to it. You should put the brass drift (which you can make out of a piece of brass rod about 1/4 in diameter) on the sight base, and then start tapping the end of the drift with a small hammer. When you add water to a hot salt tank, you get an explosion of steam, and you need to develop some skill in adding the water with a very fine copper pipe on your water hose to prevent steam blow-outs spattering salts all over you. Is the torch used to heat metal ..ONLY.with Cold bluing? "I have very limited knowledge as to how metal can be manipulated for different applications. I use a pickling paste. The potassium nitrate will liquefy at around this temperature and blue your items at a relatively quick speed. Heres instructions from Mark Lee Supplies on using their Express Blue #1. ", Then you sight down the barrel and you see dips and waves in the barrel profile. gas coverage is another big one. By using our site, you agree to our. "https://theshootingmystery.tumblr.com/", This is how Colt made their rifles and pistols prior to Civil War you can read all about the process. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. OK, Buffing wheels, which Im making their own break-out response from the blueing salt issue: Buffing wheels are useful things in a gun shop. Holy crap, did that reaction hurt like hell. [ There wasnt a whole lot of pain just yet until my buddy took the safety bottle of vinegar solution used to neutralize the alkaline NaOH salts, and then the pain was there. Dont pour water in to your bath! Youll get a dark spot right there. Cold blues will Rust bluing is also used on shotgun barrels that are soldered to the rib between the barrels, as hot bluing solutions melt the solder during the bluing process. Larger flames produce less heat while smaller flames produce a higher heat. It can soften up some paints and plastics. Learn more Steel is a common durable alloy, and while most steel used in tools is already tough, you can harden it even more to prevent wear and tear. I learned something slightly different than what you are teaching and that is I am willing to pay people like you to do this kind of stuff for me. In order to confirm the bank transfer, you will need to upload a receipt or take a screenshot of your transfer within 1 day from your payment date. I just had my first experience rust browning a barrel. Red rust is Fe2O3, and is incomplete rust it will continue allowing the surface to corrode over time hence the oil or wax. Some people might not have a tank long enough to contain a barreled action to boil out. Just remove the blue/rust, degrease, dry, then blue/card/boil-out/oil/drain. $3.59. 3 years ago. When Im polishing on barrels, I polish lengthwise. Your container should be relatively larger than your object. -An old container filled with your chosen degreaser (unleaded petrol), -Your desired polished metal object/s (very important! Modern home hobbyist versions of this process typically use a hydrogen peroxide and salt solution, sometimes with vinegar, for the rusting step to avoid the need for more dangerous acids.[7]. The de-greasing you do directly affects the uniformity of the browning or blueing. I wouldnt use this bluing method for these items. "url": "https://shootingmystery.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/Shootinglogo.png" Often it does provide an adequate cosmetic touch-up of a gun's finish when applied and additionally oiled on a regular basis. The reason I ask is that when you heat steel that is in the white to 600F, you get a brilliant blue all on its own. Also thanks DG! you may benefit from the use of a gas lense as well. Because so many people are trying to do this sort of thing on the cheap, thats when I start thundering in my warnings about safety. Note that it has to be a different tank from the one you used for Step 2. Theres a reason I didnt pursue a career in chemistry. Here is a video by Clevinger Customs illustrating it: I use the Brownells nitre blueing salts, which are a combination of sodium nitrite, sodium nitrate, and potassium nitrate. 1. polish it very well 2. clean very well 3. quick dip in dilute FeCl (4:1) is what I use 4. rinse in cold running water and pat Hot blueing is a good process, especially if you have a lot of iron to shove through the blueing process quickly. The hot washing soda tank typically used in gunsmith shops is caustic washing soda, and if you leave the gun in long enough, youll start to see corrosion on the gun before you get to the blueing step. [4], Bluing can also be done in a furnace, for example for a sword or other item traditionally made by a blacksmith or specialist such as a weapon-smith. Brownells has a product that will strip blueing and rust (Fe3O4 and Fe3O2, respectively) and not corrode the underlying steel.Remove the barrel & action from the stock. Brand: Logix. Oxides come after its been heated to a red heat and cooled. Higher carbon contents will take longer to heat. I really appreciate you taking the time to share it DG. You can improve your results by doing two things: 1. Again, dont mess around with these chemicals and only handle them with extreme attention. Depending on the manufacturers manual, youll have to prepare roughly 6 to 8 tanks to perform the bluing effectively and efficiently. Add 5 lbs of regular table salt to the water. To obtain oil-free steel wool, get some acetone in a container (say, an old, clean yogurt container you were going to throw away anyway). DG should receive a stipend for his valuable contributions to TTAG. After that, slowly and steadily stir the solution in, Step 2: Process the components of the gun, Wait for 10 15 minutes and then take out the components. Heating it again to a lower temperature will not introduce additional martensite. "https://www.facebook.com/Shooting-Mystery-110244180901951", "keywords": ["how to blue stainless steel"], "width": "1500", Though it may seem tricky at first, youll be glad to have figured it out because knowing how to blue stainless steel will come in handy from time to time. Similarly, stainless steel parts may be immersed in a mixture of nitrates and chromates, similarly heated. - Ballachy", "Bluing of Steel by Heat Treatment: Why and How it Happens? Mea maxima culpa - and I left my comment up rather than delete the thread (for now) just so I could reply and admit the My Dumb, rather than skulk away cleanly >;-), Question You work on nice guns! With a simple heating and quenching process, you can make your steel last for much longer! Referring to the post that started all of this; Dyspeptic Gunsmith says: I can keep a Krylon can always handy for touch-ups. You then oil or wax over the finish when youre done. Hunter Rising is a wikiHow Staff Writer based in Los Angeles. Heat the gun parts. Its durable and wears well. Knowledge is the power and fear is the opposite of power it cripples the mind and the body and almost always guarantee's a poor decision will be made. Only 3 left in stock - order soon. However, oil may spill and create a fire hazard if the steel is put into the oil too quickly. "datePublished": "2022-03-27", Usually they would pack the parts in crucibles and surround them with leather, wood, coal,bone etcThey would heat them up to 1200F to 1500F and hold them at this temp. Wait for 10 15 minutes and then take out the components. COPYRIGHT 2021, THETRUTHABOUTGUNS.COM. I don't understand why you are submerging it in oil? Excellent info. While I am certain that I could do it myself, you already have all the bits and parts and stuff so it is worth my dollars to buy a gunsmiths time to have this done for me. The salts will be a gooey caustic mess while theyre cold, and you MUST have covers on the tank when youre not using them, or the salts will climb over the edges of the tank and make a mess on the floor. The parts must be observed constantly for colour change. "@context": "http://schema.org/", You can use a heat gun, a blow dryer, or a torch for this. Last Updated: May 13, 2022 Ill detail why. References "sameAs": Fill the tank with a suitable amount of water then add in the bluing salt using the correct ratio. The differing rate of cooling for each area produced a different color creating that rainbow effect. Keep a grade B fire extinguisher nearby in case of a fire. Technically speaking, bluing is more or less a conversion of red iron oxide (Fe2O3) to black iron oxide (Fe3O4). $36.73. The only way to do that is to heat it until the metal de-magnetises, quench it again, and then temper to the desired hardness. Cold blues will react with steel at room temperature, but you get more aggressive reactions when you heat the gun to, oh, 150 to 200F. 2mm wire has a circumference of ~0.25in. The "turning blue" process has nothing to do with hardening of the steel, or its compression. When putting water in your boil-out tank, use distilled water if you have water with high mineral content. Why do you bother with all this crap?. It is slow rust blueing. All blued parts still require oiling to prevent rust. I wish this article had come out sooner, since I did not know that 0000 steel wool may have oil in it. You might need two applications to clean up more deeply rusted spots. While the rod may heat some by conduction, it wouldn't get hot enough to start the color-forming process. Its much cheaper anyways. Its the corrosive gift that just keeps on giving. So you said the polishing is key for the coloring process. Before you start, it might do you well to mark the sight base on each side of the dovetail with a Sharpie marker, so you can see when the sight begins to move. Large scale industrial hot bluing is often performed using a bluing furnace. You wouldnt need salts. It is one smoooooth profile, from one end to the other. Probably the main one is the content of so-called "carbon, "I was looking at making a set of plate armor and I wanted to see how to harden the breastplate. Ill go into parkerization later this week. NaOH is nasty stuff. Gun companies dont/wont do it because they want to make quick money, and today its all phosphates and bake-on appliance paint (you didnt think a guy who calls Glocks cheez-whiz was going to sing the praises of Duracote or Cerakote, did you?). Reply After that, slowly and steadily stir the solution in the tank to dissolve the salt. I think DGs method is a lot safer than mine. Oil-free steel wool is also sold by woodworking shops. Water is great for rapidly quenching the hot metal, but it could cause thin steel to distort or crack. Wipe them down with WD-40 on a regular basis. Be patient in the first few minutes as the metal needs to reach the temperatures where it changes colour! Put all the components into the tank and wait for 5 15 minutes. The List Price is the suggested retail price of a new product as provided by a manufacturer, supplier, or seller. The plate turned blue just like you ible and I was told this was an effect of compression fitting.the rod didn't change colour even though it had the heat applied to it so was it actually the compression fit that changed the plates colour. List Price: $18.64 $18.64. Keep heating the steel until you notice a blue color form on the metal. *700F is very close to the heat treatment temperature of some steels. . He has more than three years of experience writing for and working with wikiHow. on Introduction, Hello my name is Joe and Im doing a project where Im trying to achieve the same outcome. Then you pull it out and scrape off the oil along the blade edge. this article statement The melting point for KNO3 is 633F. Also buffing wheels pre blue. It turns out I have. Heat the area with a torch until it stops sweating. I heat treated a piece of carbon steel to make it less likely to wear (using its edge as a cutting surface in a wood turning application). It is named after the blue-black appearance of the resulting protective finish. So unless you have sufficient equipment and skill, its advised to let a professional perform the bluing for you. Rust bluing was developed between hot and cold bluing processes, and was originally used by gunsmiths in the 19th century to blue firearms prior to the development of hot bluing processes. Excessive buffing on stainless steel could result in a grainy appearance so do it with care. Stainless steel can only tolerate hot bluing and a limited amount of chemicals. You want to be in the range of 600 to 650F. 3D Printed Futuristic Space Age Wall Clock. When youre using polishing paper, you think that 600 grit is very fine, and it is taking you hours to polish out something to 600. Hardened steel prevents knife blades from dulling and tools from bending and breaking. Bluing only works on steel, cast iron, or stainless steel parts for protecting against corrosion because it changes iron into Fe3O4; it does not work on non-ferrous material. You need to adjust the boiling point of the salts for your altitude. Drift the sights back in from the right side of the barrel. My advice to people here: Unless youre a professional, and youre working in a shop with all the required safety gear (a cold water shower within a couple feet of the tanks, and an eyewash station next to the tanks, and someone working in the same shop every moment youre working on the salt tanks), DONT. "headline": "How to Blue Stainless Steel in 5 Easy Steps: Complete Guide", Get it Feb 25 - 27. It is not nice stuff. For modern uses of black oxide, see, Learn how and when to remove these template messages, Learn how and when to remove this template message, "How To Remove Rust From A Gun Without Damaging Bluing? That would be a hot salt blueing mix. Trust me, I'm speaking from experience :) ). The bottom of the crucible is opened allowing the contents to drop into the rapidly bubbling water. It is slightly caustic, so be careful you dont leave it on the gun for long. Hot NaOH is so alkaline it is great as dissolving organic materials. I have done a cold blue on a very rusted .22 for a friend. These include hot bluing, cold bluing, niter bluing, and so on. Bluing is most commonly used by gun manufacturers, gunsmiths, and gun owners to improve the cosmetic appearance of and provide a measure of corrosion resistance to their firearms. The parts are then oiled and allowed to stand overnight. . Keep a fire extinguisher near your workstation in case of a fire. Hes claiming that method is more durable than Blue alone. Even with safety glasses and a full-face shield, a rubber apron, rubber boots, etc it is possible to get salts into your eyes and all over the rest of you. It's easy to get it too hot, too quickly - especially with an O/A or oxy-propane torch. just fyi, the old school method of case hardening steel is to get the piece so hot that a magnet will no longet stick to it and quickly quench it in used motor oil. The part you want to place in the receiving part is cold often just placed in a freezer for a few hours. How to Blue Bluing Steel Using Oven Or Torch and Oil Method. Wear thick gloves so you dont burn yourself. Alternatively, You could store them in a hard case (like a pelican with a purge) and throw some desiccant packs in there as well. Thats one way to get dyspeptic to write articles! Black oxide provides minimal protection against corrosion, unless also treated with a water-displacing oil to reduce wetting and galvanic action. Black iron wire You will need black iron wire to tie around any object you I dont have that much blueing to do in my shop, so I dont use hot salts. Bluing involves an electrochemical conversion coating resulting from an oxidizing chemical reaction with iron on the surface selectively forming magnetite (Fe3O4), the black oxide of iron. Where/how did you think I got to the point I could make nice guns? These minerals (often calcium and magnesium compounds) tend to result in blotchy and uneven results. Then wipe off all excess oil and look at your beautiful finished object! After three coats, washing and drying, the finish was not too bad, considering I was (and am) a rank amateur. The colours range through straw, gold, brown, purple, blue, teal, then black. Craig, torch bluing is a real thing that has been use a lot in the custom gun world, mostly for screw heads but even for complete muzzle loader creations ( the vendor will be quite proud of his work it seems as cost increases considerably to a finished item). I found through my bluing adventure that different oils do act slighty different but ultimately everything I've used has done the job. However, there are certain characteristics differences between the materials so knowing clearly how to blue stainless steel is really important. How do I harden a steel hammer so that is lasts longer and is more durable? Its essential to keep stirring the tank to prevent the forming of hot and cold areas. 4 years ago Initially case hardening was used but did not offer any aesthetics. The inside barrel was saved by the fact it was so full of lead fouling. For more information on using a blowtorch and protecting the steel, scroll down! Hot bluing is the current standard[6] in gun bluing, as both it and rust bluing provide the most permanent degree of rust-resistance and cosmetic protection of exposed gun metal, and hot bluing takes less time than rust bluing. Submerge in water and scrape edge. 2. For the process your metal should be nicely polished for the best results.The more shinier the polish the more your end result will glow. I can' Hot. Further, I probably would have used a coarser wet-dry to prep the raw steel (this was a kit Kentucky long rifle) rather than the 1500 grit I used. THANKS DG. If you cant, just get them out of the case and allow air to circulate around them. Buffing wheels have their purpose, but they take real skill to use without making a mess of guns, starting with the selection of the wheel (theres, oh, at least six types of buffing wheel), choice of type of compound, choice of grit of compound, choice of wheel speed (many buffers have only one speed, and there are some jobs where you really want a 3-phase motor on your buffer with a VFD to adjust the speed down from 1800 or 3600 RPM) and so on. Hang the trigger group again, re-stock and you should be done. So As one newish to refined firearms ownership, what is the best way to store and protect a pistol or rifle from rusting, especially in areas like Oregon or Washington, Silicon socks, or ? Todos los derechos reservados. You need to constantly be adding in a bit of water to bring the boiling point back down into the range you need. It greatly helped me to learn how to blue a gun perfectly at home. "Rust bluing" and "fume bluing" provide the best rust and corrosion resistance as the process continually converts any metal that is capable of rusting into magnetite (Fe3O4). Many double-barreled shotguns are soft soldered (lead) or silver brazed together and many of the parts are attached by that method also. For most of the time, guns that utilize carbon steel components are the prime candidates for bluing but its totally possible to color stainless steel blue as well. the cost of the burners or heaters to heat up all these tanks really only practical if you have natural gas available Isn't the point of the acetone to degrease, why would i grease? I'm trying to be positive and constructive, and think this is: for an amateur to stick a very hot torch-heated metal object into a plastic container filled with oil is simply dumb (ok, more polite: "irresponsible") at best, highly dangerous at worst. If youre using acetone to de-oil, dont be afraid to do it more than once. Dont leave cold blue solutions around anywhere pets or kids could get at them. After the Civil War they switched to another process. That seems wasteful. The process isnt intended for bronze. Blacksmith products to this day may occasionally be found made from blued steel by traditional craftsmen in cultures and segments of society who use that technology either by necessity or choice.[5]. That can be a pen torch (pictured), a blow torch, a heat gun, a gas hob (which I am going use) or anything that will provide you with enough heat. Always back your paper when youre polishing over edges and up against features. A couple bottles of aged bourbon minimum. How to colour steel with heat (hot oil finish) is a simple but effective way of achieving a desired colour of choice.The colours are fantastic and often come out in a beautiful two-tone shine. FigureLLC. I have also had good results with 5w/30 motor oil, I've also used two-stroke oil with good results. Go on and start bluing! Use a backing block of wood or even a Pink Pearl rubber eraser. This method was adopted by larger firearm companies for large scale, more economical bluing. Soft, low-carbon steel was used, but strong materials were needed for the receivers of firearms. wikiHow is where trusted research and expert knowledge come together. Thanks for always being so willing to share, Sir. New guns are typically available in blued finish options offered as the least-expensive finish, and this finish is also the least effective at providing rust resistance, relative to other finishes such as Parkerizing or hard chrome plating or nitriding processes like Tenifer. It is caused by a layer of oxide that forms when the steel is heated. Depending on what solution you use, the tank temperature must be maintained somewhere between 240 and 310 degrees Fahrenheit. I like using acetone to strip the heavy oil on guns, because it lightens up the oils and makes them easier to strip with a water-based cleaner. It does provide good rust resistance, which is improved with oil. Hopefully these concepts suggest caution and diligence for what you are doing. Haha. Drill bits and gun barrels are common examples. It's worth noting that there can be some additives in motor oil that release hydrocarbons when burnt which is a known carcinogens to the body (in other words: Bad Stuff!). Sign up for wikiHow's weekly email newsletter. This finish allows them to be stored in high-moisture conditions, like sports bags, without rusting. When youre done, attach the thermometer to the tank and fire up the burner. 2 years ago, For the record The gentleman said multiple times that the plastic container shown in the pictures was just for the instructional photos and to be sure that the container is made of metal for this process, (Homer Simpson smacking his forehead: "DOH! Heating white, degreased steel to 550 to 600F results in brilliant colors. This article was co-authored by wikiHow staff writer, Hunter Rising. I can't stress how important the degreasing step is! Battery acid is childs play compared to blueing salts. Once the solution reaches its boiling point, turn down the burner to about one-third of the boiling temperature and let it stay there. Its easy enough to color metal with a torch, but it has always been a hit-or-miss process for me, and when it was a big hit, I was rarely able to re-create how it got that way. Oh mas oui.Express blueing, slow rust blueing, hot salt blueing, nitre blueing, carbona blueing all are better than cold blueing. Also remember, by adjusting the heat you can get whatever color you want. The cabinet is then sealed. Either that or the steel wool. Dont scrub the solution onto the gun, just run a patch that is not dripping wet down one complete run on the barrel/action in one smooth stroke. However, if the bluing effect isnt satisfactory, then you can try giving the components an acid bath (using Hydrochloric Acid). Do this outside, so you can do this next part: Just whip the steel wool at arms length to extract the excess acetone. Youll need some shop rolls, ranging from 180 to 400 grit (typical 4-packs are 180, 240, 320 and 400 grit, in 1, 1.5 or 2. DG thank you. 3 years ago Hot bluing should never be attempted on aluminium, as it reacts it usually dissolves in the caustic salt bath. WebStep 1: Preparing Your Materials You will need: -2x containers (one of them preferably being metal for the oil) -oil -unleaded petrol/Acetone/Terpentine/Rubbing alcohol or any good The steel is also used for producing great police flashlights with awesome durability. 99. Christopher Graham writes all the content and reviews on this site with the help of his team of hunters and shooters. Bluing also helps to maintain the metal finish by resisting superficial scratching, and also helps to reduce glare to the eyes of the shooter when looking down the barrel of the gun. (Its Crystalline Potassium Nitrate 100%) $6.18 They are still sometimes used by gunsmiths to obtain an authentic finish for a period gun of the time that rust bluing was in vogue, analogous to the use of browning on earlier representative firearm replicas. There can be different layers you have to apply. of the steel than do not even try this on something that is anything other than artistic in nature! Use a coffee can or similarly shaped container as your quenching chamber. Itll evaporate rather rapidly, but still, dont whip it at cars or house finishes. I wasnt planning on doing it for a few months. ", https://mgs.edu/making-chisels-skips-newsletter/, http://www.technologystudent.com/equip1/heat1.htm. Being prepared is important if you can not measure the temp. Fortunately, this is easily had at any hardware store: WD-40 is a water displacing product, not a lubricant (contrary to widespread advertising). On another thread, we can go into nitre blueing, which is basically heating pins/screws/bits/bobs to 600F in a molten salt bath.