8 years ago "@type": "ImageObject", Heres instructions from Mark Lee Supplies on using their Express Blue #1. 1/16-inch pivot wire has a circumference of ~0.2in. Degrease and heat the items to be blued in a steel pan to about 700F. Think big scars. It's easy to get it too hot, too quickly - especially with an O/A or oxy-propane torch. For this Instructable I'm using thread cutting oil. If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. I have to finish my M76 and Galil first and buy the materials. Use hemostats to hold a cleaning patch wetted with the solution and apply in nice, long, even strokes. Usually, you can find the manufacturers recommended ratio in the product manual. Thank you so much for sharing such a great article. 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. I pulled the temp off the top of my head. Often it does provide an adequate cosmetic touch-up of a gun's finish when applied and additionally oiled on a regular basis. for 6-8 hours. In colloquial use, thin coatings of black oxide are often termed 'gun bluing', while heavier coatings are termed 'black oxide'. 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. How do I do this? These include hot bluing, cold bluing, niter bluing, and so on. Trust me, I'm speaking from experience :) ). Any more advice is welcome SteelJunkee Joined May 6, 2018 Messages 891 Add the two together and you have what is akin to rocket fuel in your face a way of oxidizing almost any organic material with insufficient water for cooling into a furious flame. ", informative and did not use technical language and concepts that would have left me floundering and none the wiser. Just let any residual matter evaporate/dry. Theyll usually go in from the right, and be drifted out from the left (ie, drifting them from left to the right as the muzzle is pointed away from you). You'll probably be fine following these instructions - you'll probably be OK driving home a little drunk, too. In literally 10 seconds on a buffing wheel incorrectly applied, I could screw that up to a point where it might take be eight+ hours of hand polishing to recover my prior results. You wouldnt need salts. Most cold blueing agents contain some selenium dioxide in them to enable to them to react at room temps. The hotter the steel, the further the oxygen can diffuse through the oxide coating, so the coating builds thicker before it protects the steel from further oxidation. So I buffed down the barrel with steel wool and started over heating the barrel in the oven before taking it outside to add the solution (which is nitric acid). Is the torch used to heat metal ..ONLY.with Cold bluing? It is usually inadvisable to use cold bluing as a touch-up where friction is present. "@type": "Article", gas coverage is another big one. }. (And taking, out of *your* hide). High temperatures and dangerous chemicals mean that a moment of carelessness can make you pay a heavy price. Dont mess with hot salts. If everything appears good, then you can transfer the components into a hot water tank. There is something really rewarding about this technique. If you dont drain the barrel or action recesses properly before putting a barrel or action into a hot salt tank, then you will find out in a hell of a hurry as the water flashes to steam under the surface and again, splatters hot, highly caustic lye/nitrite salts all over you and your shop. How to Blue Bluing Steel Using Oven Or Torch and Oil Method. "I have very limited knowledge as to how metal can be manipulated for different applications. Process that partially protects steel against rust, This article is about the historical uses of black oxide. Oil-free steel wool is also sold by woodworking shops. This article was very, "I've been working with steel since I was a child, and reviewing these proper methods and skills makes my projects, "It surely educated me on several points. 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. After Sign up for wikiHow's weekly email newsletter. Use your torch to bring up When heat treating a forged blade you get the whole knife glowing, then submerge just the blade in the oil for 8 seconds. 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. "description": "If you want to find out how to blue stainless steel, then you've come to the right place. Work on a metal or steel surface, such as an anvil, to avoid any fire hazards. Heat the Steel. Safety is the number one priority so protect your body as much as possible. Were committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Note that it has to be a different tank from the one you used for Step 2. That surface rust on the barrel could be polished off easily. Its essential to keep stirring the tank to prevent the forming of hot and cold areas. "name": "Shooting Mystery", It is generally employed on smaller parts such as pins, screws, sights, etc. I think DGs method is a lot safer than mine. It takes practice. Rinse them in a cold water tank after. An ideal temperature is 180 degrees Fahrenheit but it also depends on the manual. Once you see it turn golden, the process has started and colours will change fairly quickly! Heating up a tank on the kitchen stove. Cooking off the more volatile hydrocarbons leaving the heavier ones produces a different effect yet again. I wore latex gloves, as Brownells recommended, but used a pot holder to handle the hot barrel, and that may have been the source. 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. One can generally use the same solution to brown as to blue. There are 10 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. 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. Once it's cooled down, take the object out of the oil and place it on a piece of paper/cloth and let it set for about 20 minutes. Ill be saving this for the future. Dont want to get any of the liquid on you its 700F. 2 years ago 35% Potassium nitrate (aka saltpeter), http://castboolits.gunloads.com/archive/index.php/t-36054.html. "keywords": ["how to blue stainless steel"], To shrink, I assumed you heated the steel plate only, to expand the hole in it. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. "height": "800", The practice of bluing steel takes time and an exquisite eye for detail. Frequent TTAG commenter Dyspeptic Gunsmith saw the gun above in our postA Garden Gun Cultivates a Newfound Fascinationand answered reader questions about blueing/reblueing a gun thusly: If the rust is very fine and there is still substantial blueing left on the gun, you might want to strip the blueing. However, if the bluing effect isnt satisfactory, then you can try giving the components an acid bath (using Hydrochloric Acid). the cost of all the tanks you need for rinse & boil-out I just had my first experience rust browning a barrel. Heat the gun parts. Robert Farago is the former publisher of The Truth About Guns (TTAG). : Make sure it is made from Mild Steel or Titanium. The process was to coat the gun parts in an acid solution, let the parts rust uniformly, then immerse the parts in boiling water to convert the red oxide Fe2O3 to black oxide Fe3O4, which forms a more protective, stable coating than the red oxide; the boiling water also removes any remaining residue from the applied acid solution (often nitric acid and hydrochloric acid diluted in water). It was left in a flannel gun case in the back of a moist closet for 25+ years. Pour in some acetone, and while wearing rubber gloves (dishwashing gloves are OK), put in a pad of 0000 steel wool, swish it around and pull it out. Commercial products are widely sold in small bottles for cold bluing firearms, and these products are primarily used by individual gun owners for implementing small touch-ups to a gun's finish, to prevent a small scratch from becoming a major source of rust on a gun over time. Still, you will find that cold blues dont last. Heating white, degreased steel to 550 to 600F results in brilliant colors. The blueing salt bath will be at about 286 to 292F, and as it is bubbling away, it is losing water, and the boiling point of the solution keeps climbing. Gas burners can usually do the job for this. 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 rod was heated and the plate 2" square was inserted and the rod shrunk onto it. Apply heat to your object and heat up gently and equally. Also: Do not allow the solution to run, drip or sag. -something to hold your object with i.e. Hunter Rising is a wikiHow Staff Writer based in Los Angeles. }, If you cant, just get them out of the case and allow air to circulate around them. Gee, Im thinkin Duro or cero coat maybe even Krylon might be a good enough.. The steel will pull some of the carbon out of the oil while quenching and harden the outer portion of the metal. After three coats, washing and drying, the finish was not too bad, considering I was (and am) a rank amateur. You need to adjust the boiling point of the salts for your altitude. Not every manufacturer puts bittering agents in the solution and as one poison control nurse told me: (t)here is nothing you can do and it aint the good death.. It greatly helped me to learn how to blue a gun perfectly at home. on Introduction. Vegetable oil has a higher boiling point, so the hot steel will take longer to cool and reduce the chance of it cracking. Check out the video:https://hackaday.io/project/21947-makers-vise/log/60914-coloring-steel-with-magnetism. They have their place, but doing a whole gun with them isnt that place. Degrease a pad of 0000 steel wool with acetone. This answer was tested with a utility knife blade and it drilled through with ease. Once the solution reaches its boiling point, turn down the burner to about one-third of the boiling temperature and let it stay there. It is vastly appreciated even by those of us who will probably never use it. Oil binds with the metal and prevent it from getting air/chemicals to corrode. Todos los derechos reservados. I used Brownells Plum Brown, a product that requires that the barrel be heated to 275 degrees to activate the reaction. "I am nearly 16 and can not wait until I have my drivers license. Keep a fire extinguisher near your workstation in case of a fire. If you need to use a blow torch, focus the flame tip on the area you want hardened. It is always essential to remove all oils from metals you want to blue, even if the cold blueing solution claims you dont need to do so. For more information on using a blowtorch and protecting the steel, scroll down! I've never done anything like this but want to try. "https://www.reddit.com/user/theshootingmystery" This article was co-authored by wikiHow staff writer. Just dont do it. 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. Also thanks DG! Color case hardening is the predecessor of all metal coloring typically employed in the firearms industry. These minerals (often calcium and magnesium compounds) tend to result in blotchy and uneven results. Quenching the steel rapidly cools it so the alloys inside harden together. When everything is set up, put on your protective gear and then get down to business. Your 700F temp is too high, IMO. wikiHow is where trusted research and expert knowledge come together. If you tempered the steel with a blow torch, set the metal on an anvil or another large steel surface to conduct the heat. Sorry for the misunderstanding. It is a difficult product to apply evenly, offers minimal protection and is generally best used for small fast repair jobs and touch-ups.[2][3]. The usual mistake on buffing wheels is using too coarse a compound, and then the wheel becomes quite aggressive in removing material. Another good test for determining when the steel is ready is seeing if a magnet sticks to its surface. Ferrari installs valve seats in their aluminum cylinder heads via robot. Take them out after a couple of minutes and then wipe them clean to remove excess oil. Im asking because theres a guy on YouTube recommending Brown Express first, then several layers of Blue over that. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. Ill detail why. Wipe them down with WD-40 on a regular basis. It also looks good on AK type weapons of which I have three to park. Old school smiths use something called washing soda to strip oil off guns. "url": "https://shootingmystery.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/Shootinglogo.png" I can then get the temp to be 600F spot-on in a lead melting pot. - Ballachy", "Bluing of Steel by Heat Treatment: Why and How it Happens? He started the site to explore the ethics, morality, business, politics, culture, technology, practice, strategy, dangers and fun of guns. They should send you a stipend for your time. *Potassium Nitrate is an oxidizer. With HSS you're looking for 2500-3000rpm, M35 or M42 cobalt bits 3000-3600rpm, and carbide 10k-12krpm. I really appreciate you taking the time to share it DG. Hot. The cross section and size of parts affect the outcome of the finish and time it takes to achieve. ", steel". How to Blue (Bluing) Steel Using Oven Or Torch and Oil Method OOMAN 2.28K subscribers Subscribe 872 112K views 4 years ago My apologies for the background 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. The use of stainless steel alloy varies a lot from one manufacturer to the other and thats why the bluing effect wont always be consistent. Once you strip the blue & rust, then you can see what youre dealing with. Some people might not have a tank long enough to contain a barreled action to boil out. Ventilation is important. Hi SteelJunkee Method is as follows: Fit rod into drill and set at constant speed Clean rods with acetone on clean rag Use butane and propane mix blow torch to achieve colour range Quench in water Dry The weird thing is that they look great for around 4-5 days then deteriorate. } BUT like so many power tools on guns, it is possible to create expensive screw-ups to fix on guns with power tools, and buffing wheels are no exception. That means 50-60 revolutions to make a foot. Every true outdoorsmans dream! When Im polishing on barrels, I polish lengthwise. So you said the polishing is key for the coloring process. Copyright 2023 Flixsterz. I have done a cold blue on a very rusted .22 for a friend. My current rifle builds are going to be parkerzied. In the nitre bluing process, polished and cleaned steel parts are immersed in a bath of molten saltstypically potassium nitrate and sodium nitrate (sometimes with 9.4 grams (0.33oz) of manganese dioxide per pound of total nitrate). 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 ? Shooting Mystery is reader-supported. Heat the area with a torch until it stops sweating. "logo": { "@type": "Organization", Brilliant blues. I handed a buddy my wallet and cell phone, and stepped under the safety shower and got wet. If you drop a piece of paper in there, or hydrocarbon compounds (like oil or grease on your part). You can then use a soft brush to gently remove all the residue of the cleaning solution on the components. Why do you bother with all this crap?. it would appear these sights are drifted into dovetails. Even at room temperature, the salts are highly caustic and will eat into your eyes or skin in seconds not minutes. Stand on end over some paper towels to drain. Hardening will cause it to be more brittle, which could cause the hammer to chip and cause injury. 'Browning' is controlled red rust Fe2O3, and is also known as 'pluming' or 'plum brown'. They melt at, oh, somewhere about 280F. For hazzalandy: carbon content has nothing to do with the color process, it is only the temperature you heat to, and to a lesser extent, the time spent hot. It can soften up some paints and plastics. I wish I had known more about the process, heating (I was working outside on a 60 degree day) I may have to check with my friend to see if it needs reblued again, Im sure he never shot it. All About Bluing Steel Stainless Steel Necessary Gears and Tools Procedure Step 1: Ready the bluing tank Step 2: Process the components of the gun Step 3: Suspend I can see my wife walking in and shaking her headabout as vigorously as when I asked if I could use the dishwasher to clean some tools. In my case I drilled/threaded the metal piece and made a holder with a threaded end. I plan on doing this on a couple of older beaters first. Should something happen, seek medical help right away. Brownells has steel tanks, and there are some steel/stainless long/thin tanks available from other sources. You can improve your results by doing two things: 1. 2. What is your opinion of the 2 to 1 lye and potassium nitrate bluing solution? I have cut and polished 4 pieces of mild steel to demonstrate different colour stages. When polishing something like the above rifle/shotgun, youve got a pretty light coat of rust, without severe pitting. He has more than three years of experience writing for and working with wikiHow. Soft, low-carbon steel was used, but strong materials were needed for the receivers of firearms. Please be careful with the cold bluing solutions. For the final step, we let the components cool down in water displacing oil. This is one of the reasons rust and fume bluing are generally more rust-resistant than other methods. For this reason, it is considered not to add any appreciable thickness to precisely-machined gun parts. "https://twitter.com/Shoot1ngMystery", That way, you can still use your oven for the rest of the evening. I wish this article had come out sooner, since I did not know that 0000 steel wool may have oil in it. JUST DONT. Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 914,567 times. The de-greasing you do directly affects the uniformity of the browning or blueing. When youre done, attach the thermometer to the tank and fire up the burner. Stainless steel can only tolerate hot bluing and a limited amount of chemicals. "Bluing" is the process of oxidizing steel to create a durable, corrosion-resistant layer. There are also methods of cold bluing, which do not require heat. Hardened steel prevents knife blades from dulling and tools from bending and breaking. Make sure to check every nook and cranny of the components so that you can find any discoloration or blemishes. How to Blue Bluing Steel Using Oven Or Torch and Oil Method. Brand: Logix. Thermometers and stirring tools are also needed, as well as something to heat up the tanks. you may benefit from the use of a gas lense as well. (NaOH from Ebay soap supplies). 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. 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). NaOH is nasty stuff. Dont leave cold blue solutions around anywhere pets or kids could get at them. Go on and start bluing! The higher temperatures of the other processes as well as their caustic nature could weaken the soldered joints and make the gun hazardous to use. Are you sure you want to heat the steel to 700F in that early step? 2. Its much cheaper anyways. Its a pretty straightforward process. Holy crap, did that reaction hurt like hell. Question I believe the change of color is due to a growing thickness of an oxide layer. http://www.lowes.com/pd_188198-316-HG-66420_0__?productId=4764059 Pour in There's also blued hardware available, like nuts, bolts, screws, and hinges. References Hot blueing is a good process, especially if you have a lot of iron to shove through the blueing process quickly. I use a pickling paste. Pull it out of the tank and place on a drain rack. Only 3 left in stock - order soon. Be careful since considerable heat might be generated in the process. Im not responsible for marital discord as a result of gun projects attempted on the kitchen stove. By using this service, some information may be shared with YouTube. When the first patch gets really funky, then drop that in your plastic garbage container (remember, these patches have been soaked in acid solutions! To remove pitting and keep the barrel profile intact requires skill with a file, and that requires hands-on training. 3 years ago. Free shipping for many products! WebThe gun bluing process Start with 1 gallon of water and add it to a deep fryer that has been thoroughly cleaned. If you have a wood or phenolic handle, use a propane torch to heat the blade only for about two minutes. [ "width": "1500", 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. Spray down the whole barreled action with copious amounts of WD-40, inside and out. If you want it smoother/shinier, you can polish up to 600 grit, with wet-or-dry paper. Then the crucibles would be removed from the furnace and placed over boiling hot water and air would be bubbled through the water and the parts would be dropped into the water. Youre just using stump remover to do it. When youre using hot blueing salts, youd better be on top of your game, or you can seriously injure yourself. 99. Colour case hardening occurs when soft steels were packed in a reasonably airtight crucible in a mixture of charred leather, bone charcoal and wood charcoal. Both ingredients are super cheap. Thanks for always being so willing to share, Sir. Seriously, this is interesting and thank you for posting it, but I hope to never be in a position where I need to use either of these techniques! This process was repeated until the desired depth of color was achieved or the metal simply did not color further. Ive learned a LOT. I like parkerization on some of my milsurps. For more information on using a blowtorch and protecting the steel, scroll down! ", the wrong quality steel. 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 differing rate of cooling for each area produced a different color creating that rainbow effect. Higher carbon contents will take longer to heat. 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. With a simple heating and quenching process, you can make your steel last for much longer! However, rust bluing small areas often match, blend, and wear better than any cold bluing process. Heat the gun parts. If a bank transfer is made but no receipt is uploaded within this period, your order will be cancelled. Bluing is a process usually used by gun owners and firearms manufacturers to improve the aesthetic value of their weapons. Follow the instructions. "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). Use ice cubes. Youll get a dark spot right there. It is named after the blue-black appearance of the resulting protective finish. Ive gotten hot blue salts on me splashed into my hair. Wear thick gloves so you dont burn yourself. This article was co-authored by wikiHow staff writer, Hunter Rising. Steps to Hot Blue Steel with a Torch Also Dont get the 275-300F bath on you. To temper the steel so it isn't brittle, place it in an oven heated to 375 F for 3 hours, and then it let it cool overnight. Then you sight down the barrel and you see dips and waves in the barrel profile. Similarly, stainless steel parts may be immersed in a mixture of nitrates and chromates, similarly heated. 84 or Du-Lite 3-0. on Introduction. You can blue heat-treated parts with no ill effects. 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]. Bluing, being a chemical conversion coating, is not as robust against wear and corrosion resistance as plated coatings, and is typically no thicker than 2.5 micrometres (0.0001 inches). For larger pieces of steel, you need to use a. Right now I'm working on excavator replacement pins! The easier of the two methods, hot bluing only requires some degreasing agent, a heating apparatus (a blow torch is perfect for this), and any kind of oil. Red rust is Fe2O3, and is incomplete rust it will continue allowing the surface to corrode over time hence the oil or wax. Premium fencing blades are often offered with a blued finish. 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. Accidental exposure to the chemicals could result in serious injuries. Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for 13 in 1 Metal Shell Welding Torch Nozzle Tip Cleaner For Welder Soldering at the best online prices at eBay! Water is great for rapidly quenching the hot metal, but it could cause thin steel to distort or crack. ", Hot bluing should never be attempted on aluminium, as it reacts it usually dissolves in the caustic salt bath. What I forgot to mention in all of this is a detail that seems mundane, but it critically important: Wear cotton gloves. YouTube - Nitre bluing a few gun parts. 2mm wire has a circumference of ~0.25in. A couple bottles of aged bourbon minimum. Dont just leave them on a surface that could corrode or burn), get a new patch into the hemostats, soak, wring out, and keep going. Shooting Mystery is an independent website that provides content for informational purposes only. Referring to the post that started all of this; Dyspeptic Gunsmith says: { This item: Special Blue Full Metal Butane Torch (Gold) - Refillable Flame Lighter- Culinary Torch - Welding Torch - Adjustable Dual Flame for Desserts, Creme Brulee, BBQ and Baking. With. Posted December 21, 2009. I wasnt planning on doing it for a few months. Hot blueing salts attack soft solders on guns, so it isnt to be done on old shotguns and some older rifles. "https://www.pinterest.com/theshootingmystery/", Put 600 grit compound on a wheel, use a little too much pressure and youll be gob-smacked at how fast it can cut material off the gun. 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. of the steel than do not even try this on something that is anything other than artistic in nature! Cold blueing solutions usually just dont wear well. Depending on what solution you use, the tank temperature must be maintained somewhere between 240 and 310 degrees Fahrenheit. "datePublished": "2022-03-27", The color is not oxides, when steel is heated at relatively low heats (300-600 degrees Fahrenheit) it changes colors from light yellow to a deep blue, after 600 it turns back to a steel color.