Wait for 10 15 minutes and then take out the components. It is hazardous. Heat the gun parts. You should keep guns in a safe, if you can. First, let us go through a couple of bluing concepts that you have to know in order to achieve the desired result. 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. They melt at, oh, somewhere about 280F. You dont want to affect the hardness of your steel in critical areas like actions, bolts, bolt lugs, barrels, chambers, etc. I didnt drop outta my mommas womb being able to do this stuff. The differing rate of cooling for each area produced a different color creating that rainbow effect. 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 This signifies that the steel is tempered. If there is any finish left on the metal, it will interfere with the bluing pr List Price: $18.64 $18.64. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. 4 years ago Youll have a hot caustic degreaser tank (about 10 minutes), then a cold rinse tank, then into the hot salts for, oh, 15 to 20 minutes, then out into the hot rinse, then into a cold running rinse tank, then into a water displacing oil tank for 20 minutes or so. Share it with us! 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. "sameAs": Every true outdoorsmans dream! 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. As a small thank you, wed like to offer you a $30 gift card (valid at GoNift.com). This article has been viewed 914,567 times. "height": "800", 2. Keep posting like this. Heat source You will require at least one burner for bluing salts and two hot water burners. Could I use stainless steel earrings that I have got? It is slow rust blueing. It is named after the blue-black appearance of the resulting protective finish. How to Blue Bluing Steel Using Oven Or Torch and Oil Method. 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. Heat the area with a torch until it stops sweating. Dont drop or try to bend the steel once its removed. You can experiment ultimately what oils to use. They have their place, but doing a whole gun with them isnt that place. Heating will make the metal better in absorbing the bluing liquid. We use cookies to make wikiHow great. for 6-8 hours. Also thanks DG! $36.73. You have a degreased gun, and now you need to get the metal hot enough that the reaction will oxidize the steel as much as possible. Ive dealt with strong acids and strong bases in lab work, and I fear the strong bases more. Just dont do it. "https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6dwEQfHK1tk_ZeaA4PniOA/", "Bluing" is the process of oxidizing steel to create a durable, corrosion-resistant layer. If you want it smoother/shinier, you can polish up to 600 grit, with wet-or-dry paper. I can then get the temp to be 600F spot-on in a lead melting pot. This process is also the only process safely used to re-blue vintage shotguns. Then you sight down the barrel and you see dips and waves in the barrel profile. Glad that there are folks like you around. Interesting and informative as always. Even a fingerprint will affect the consistency of the colour. 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. An ideal temperature is 180 degrees Fahrenheit but it also depends on the manual. 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. Battery acid is childs play compared to blueing salts. It is named after the blue-black appearance of the resulting protective finish. If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. Why do you bother with all this crap?. They should start gassing up approximately 2 to 3 minutes after exposure. The "turning blue" process has nothing to do with hardening of the steel, or its compression. Have proper ventilation and use proper modern safety gear! 5 years ago, I found that heating will turn steel silver ~> gold ~> violet ~> blue. Color case hardening is the predecessor of all metal coloring typically employed in the firearms industry. WebBluing is a passivation process in which steel is partially protected against rust using a black oxide coating. Also remember, by adjusting the heat you can get whatever color you want. It is generally employed on smaller parts such as pins, screws, sights, etc. Ive cut and pasted this to my notes on the cloud. 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! Even at room temperature, the salts are highly caustic and will eat into your eyes or skin in seconds not minutes. 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]. 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]. Depending on the manufacturers manual, youll have to prepare roughly 6 to 8 tanks to perform the bluing effectively and efficiently. The actual temperature of the steel depends on the carbon content inside. 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.. "publisher": { This process leaves a deep blue-black finish. Picture Information. Enjoy! It can soften up some paints and plastics. The practice of bluing steel takes time and an exquisite eye for detail. For the final step, we let the components cool down in water displacing oil. Here is a simple way to get a blued finish on steel. 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). 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. Remove any previous finish. "dateModified": "2022-03-27", Once the steel is clean, you can begin heating it up. on Introduction. Stand on end over some paper towels to drain. 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. Metal Finishing Guru. This article was co-authored by wikiHow staff writer, Hunter Rising. Hopefully these concepts suggest caution and diligence for what you are doing. If you havent done it before, wait until I mention some items about it. I want to add rainbow color to safety razor blades that would be used again, how can I do this? "keywords": ["how to blue stainless steel"], Prepare the components of the metal surface before you attempt to blue using your tools. This is all from memory so I might have left some stuff out. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Thats how vigorously we de-grease guns before starting blueing. 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. So basically, youll want the rifle in the vise with the muzzle pointed to your left. Although the steel parts, such as anOrdains watch hands, are near enough miniscule, each I have always wondered about storage in gun soft cases or the foamed Hard cases, and humid or dry, heat and cold. 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). I thought there was something that could help improve the colors but wasnt sure until I came across this. 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. I really appreciate you taking the time to share it DG. You then oil or wax over the finish when youre done. 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. In this case cooking oil, rather than gun oil, acts to displace water and prevent rust. 500F-600F is often all that is needed and the parts can be done over and over again you just have to clean between each attempt. 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. You can use a heat gun, a blow dryer, or a torch for this. 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. Ventilation is important. Submerge in water and scrape edge. This step should be done before heating the steel, as the steel should be quenched immediately after removing from heat. tighter your arc, the less the heat input will be. 4.3 out of 5 stars 242 ratings-30% $12.99 $ 12. Very helpful! Ferrari installs valve seats in their aluminum cylinder heads via robot. "name": "Shooting Mystery", "I am nearly 16 and can not wait until I have my drivers license. The difference is immersion in boiling water for bluing. Hot bluing should never be attempted on aluminium, as it reacts it usually dissolves in the caustic salt bath. 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!). Bluing is often a hobbyist endeavor, and there are many methods of bluing, and continuing debates about the relative efficacy of each method. | Alpha Detroit", "NRA Family | Gun Manufacturing: Browning vs. Bluing", http://mypeculiarnature.blogspot.com/2014/08/quick-rust-bluing-back-in-black.html, "Radio Kits and Designs for Old and New Styles", "Coating, Oxide, Black, for Ferrous Metals (MIL-DTL-13924D)", "Phosphate and black oxide coating of ferrous metals (MIL-HDBK-205A)", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Bluing_(steel)&oldid=1142351288, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles that may contain original research from October 2020, All articles that may contain original research, Articles needing additional references from October 2020, All articles needing additional references, Articles lacking in-text citations from September 2014, Articles with multiple maintenance issues, Articles with dead external links from July 2017, Articles with permanently dead external links, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 1 March 2023, at 22:58. A Pocket Sundial From a Broken Pocket Watch! That would be a hot salt blueing mix. If a bank transfer is made but no receipt is uploaded within this period, your order will be cancelled. Youll get a dark spot right there. You are a fantastic resource for all of us here. That means 50-60 revolutions to make a foot. And thats about everything you need to know about stainless steel bluing. Turn the heat on and give a good regular stirring until it gets very hot and starts to steam. Life is good. 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. 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. Just use distilled water. I wasnt planning on doing it for a few months. 5. Above you can see some example pictures of the colour shades that can be achieved with this techniques.Have fun doing it! Holy crap, did that reaction hurt like hell. Heat the gun parts. Metal parts that look black or blue-black are usually blued (rather than painted). 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 A couple bottles of aged bourbon minimum. Work on a metal or steel surface, such as an anvil, to avoid any fire hazards. 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. Slow rust blueing can take a week or more to accomplish, but it is a durable blue job like no other. Were committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Please be careful with the cold bluing solutions. 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. What is your opinion of the 2 to 1 lye and potassium nitrate bluing solution? Thanks, 8 years ago If youre using acetone to de-oil, dont be afraid to do it more than once. Mess. You heat the outside member only when you do a shrink fit.). Bluing is also used for providing coloring for steel parts of fine clocks and other fine metalwork. This crucible was heated to 730C (1,350F) for up to 6hours (the longer the heat was applied the thicker the case hardening). 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. YouTube - Nitre bluing a few gun parts. The tank of distilled water you heat with a camp stove, the kitchen stove (Im not responsible for marital discord and disruptions of conjugal relations) or some other much larger heat source to a boil. "https://theshootingmystery.tumblr.com/", Itll evaporate rather rapidly, but still, dont whip it at cars or house finishes. Then wipe off all excess oil and look at your beautiful finished object! Now you slide the cold rod in, and the plate cools, gripping the rod. Its for mild steel, which must be greased, oiled or otherwise coated with something to stop it from rusting almost immediately. 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. 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). Hot. NaOH will quickly and completely dissolve aluminum. I used Brownells Plum Brown, a product that requires that the barrel be heated to 275 degrees to activate the reaction. Safety notes: Dont use an aluminum pan. Most cold blueing agents contain some selenium dioxide in them to enable to them to react at room temps. Blow torches only heat a small concentrated area. I like 1.5 wide shop cloth myself). Use hemostats to hold a cleaning patch wetted with the solution and apply in nice, long, even strokes. Just remove the blue/rust, degrease, dry, then blue/card/boil-out/oil/drain. Still, you will find that cold blues dont last. Heating white, degreased steel to 550 to 600F results in brilliant colors. 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. Similarly, stainless steel parts may be immersed in a mixture of nitrates and chromates, similarly heated. For this Instructable I'm using thread cutting oil. Polish to at least 400 grit. The part that is to race the other is heated normally up to about 220 especially if it is an aluminum casting like a cylinder head. This method was adopted by larger firearm companies for large scale, more economical bluing. If everything appears good, then you can transfer the components into a hot water tank. All blued parts still require oiling to prevent rust. Next wash your piece in your chosen degreaser for a minute or so to get rid of all grease/fingerprints that was on the metal. }. 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. Theres a reason I didnt pursue a career in chemistry. I think DGs method is a lot safer than mine. You risk a big fire that is self sustaining by the reaction itself. Many double-barreled shotguns are soft soldered (lead) or silver brazed together and many of the parts are attached by that method also. highfour, case hardening is a bit different from what you describe.. Usually, the steel needs some time in a medium that will allow carbon to penetrate the surface, and we are talking 15 minutes to several hours. Nowadays, even mild steel does have a certain amount of carbon in the alloy, which can explain your observations, if you google "super quench," you should find a waterbased quench that is rumoured to do the same, but in my humble opinion, water can do just that as well. Ok you gotta help me out herewhen I was studying mechanical engineering a good few years back a project I done involved using a compression fit of 1/4" thick plate steel into 1" thick steel rod, both mild steel. This is an alternative method for creating the black oxide coating. You can get a IR non-contact thermometer for less than $20 at Harbor Freight. As mentioned, cold bluing can be done at room temperature with decent results. Follow the instructions. ", steel". 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. Usually, you can find the manufacturers recommended ratio in the product manual. If the sights need to be stripped & blued, follow the same procedure, but dont polish on them. WebThe gun bluing process Start with 1 gallon of water and add it to a deep fryer that has been thoroughly cleaned. Very true. I dont have that much blueing to do in my shop, so I dont use hot salts. One can generally use the same solution to brown as to blue. -A heat source. "https://www.facebook.com/Shooting-Mystery-110244180901951", This is not necessary as long as you can hold your item appropriately and not cover where it is to be heated. Alternitavely you can leave it in the oil bath to stabilize. Youre just using stump remover to do it. % of people told us that this article helped them. The steel is also used for producing great police flashlights with awesome durability. So, you start with a clean gun, in the white, you play a propane torch over the gun to get it to the point where the blueing solution just will readily steam, but barely sizzle, and then you brush on the blueing compound. I saw you reference a coleman stove and propane tank for heating solution. My first time wasnt a stunning success. With a simple heating and quenching process, you can make your steel last for much longer! Thanks for the lesson, DG. ", not only fun, but also profitable. "mainEntityOfPage": "https://shootingmystery.com/blue-stainless-steel-beginners/", After three coats, washing and drying, the finish was not too bad, considering I was (and am) a rank amateur. It's easy to get it too hot, too quickly - especially with an O/A or oxy-propane torch. By signing up you are agreeing to receive emails according to our privacy policy. The ideal setup is a pair of long sleeve gloves along with splash goggles and a face mask. You need to adjust the boiling point of the salts for your altitude. Brownells has steel tanks, and there are some steel/stainless long/thin tanks available from other sources. A Garden Gun Cultivates a Newfound Fascination, AZ Judge Dan Slayton Refuses to Reduce $2m Bail in Flagstaff Campus Self Defense Case, State Judge Issues Order Blocking Enforcement of Illinois Firearms Ban Act Statewide, Protecting and Serving: Springfield, IL Police Seized Homeowners Gun After Investigating Her Report of a Prowler UPDATED, Chicagos Failed Mayor Lori Lightfoot Loses in Reelection EffortBadly, http://www.lowes.com/pd_188198-316-HG-66420_0__?productId=4764059, http://cdn.spectrumbrands.com/~/media/Spectracide/Files/MSDS/SpectracideStumpRemoverGranulesSDSApr15.ashx. Never know when it will come in handy. Wear thick gloves and a face mask before you quench your steel so the water or oil doesnt splash onto your hands. There can be different layers you have to apply. Instead of applying the acid solution directly to the metal parts, the parts are placed in a sealed cabinet with a moisture source, a container of nitric acid and a container of hydrochloric acid. 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' I handed a buddy my wallet and cell phone, and stepped under the safety shower and got wet. 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. Go on and start bluing! Most knives, rifle receivers and barrels are heated to at least 1200F and cooled and drawn at 490F-700F. Woodworkers doing furniture finishing will use 000 and 0000 wool, and they hate oil on their wool for rubbing down oil finishes. 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. A few safety items: I use a pickling paste. Do NOT wipe/touch your metal with anything after degreasing as the whole purpose of cleaning was then for nothing. When everything is set up, put on your protective gear and then get down to business. Mea culpa. Hot blueing is a good process, especially if you have a lot of iron to shove through the blueing process quickly. 3. Now you can start.Apply heat to your object and heat up gently and equally. As I'm bluing round pieces I slowly and evenly rotate the piece over ", the wrong quality steel. Dang it all. This will remove all the traces of the bluing solution and other chemicals. Think big scars. I pulled the temp off the top of my head. Dont leave cold blue solutions around anywhere pets or kids could get at them. 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. http://cdn.spectrumbrands.com/~/media/Spectracide/Files/MSDS/SpectracideStumpRemoverGranulesSDSApr15.ashx. }, (And taking, out of *your* hide). Friction, as from holster wear, quickly removes cold bluing, and also removes hot bluing, rust, or fume bluing over long periods of use. Note: I know a plastic container is pictured but always use a metal one! For the color change to be uniform you have to remove the grease, oil, paint etc or it looks blotchy. In comparison, rust, the red oxide of iron (Fe2O3), undergoes an extremely large volume change upon hydration; as a result, the oxide easily flakes off, causing the typical reddish rusting away of iron. After If your barrel has heavier pitting, now were into filing to remove pitting, and thats something I cant teach people in mere text. (NaOH from Ebay soap supplies). [ "@type": "Article", Use a backing block of wood or even a Pink Pearl rubber eraser. Your 700F temp is too high, IMO. pliers, mole grips, -An old metal container (I know, a plastic container is pictured but always use a metal one) filled high enough with oil to completely submerge your steel object would be ideal. Keep a grade B fire extinguisher nearby in case of a fire. { "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). I use it, oh so cautiously in making my biodiesel. 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. Heating up a tank on the kitchen stove. You can not do this method with Aluminium because it won't reach the temperatures required for bluing, it will just melt. In the automotive world this is a common practice. If the magnet doesnt stick, its ready to be pulled away from the heat. When the first patch gets really funky, then drop that in your plastic garbage container (remember, these patches have been soaked in acid solutions! the cost of the burners or heaters to heat up all these tanks really only practical if you have natural gas available When youre done, attach the thermometer to the tank and fire up the burner. 3 years ago The downsides are: the safety issue, which I laid out above, and which youve made clear. Pull it out of the tank and place on a drain rack. $3.59. This article received 28 testimonials and 92% of readers who voted found it helpful, earning it our reader-approved status. You can improve your results by doing two things: 1. Apply heat to your object and heat up gently and equally. Dont touch the metal with your bare hands since it could cause severe burns. The List Price is the suggested retail price of a new product as provided by a manufacturer, supplier, or seller. The part you want to place in the receiving part is cold often just placed in a freezer for a few hours. Hopefully these concepts suggest caution and diligence for what you are doing. ", Oil binds with the metal and prevent it from getting air/chemicals to corrode. Ill wait for and look forward to your article! Reply Participated in the Explore Science Contest. } This answer was tested with a utility knife blade and it drilled through with ease. For more information on using a blowtorch and protecting the steel, scroll down!
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