bluing steel with a torch
If you need to use a blow torch, focus the flame tip on the area you want hardened. Initially case hardening was used but did not offer any aesthetics. 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. Remove any previous finish. Next you hold it in front of your heat source until a blue oxide layer covers the whole blade edge. When polishing something like the above rifle/shotgun, youve got a pretty light coat of rust, without severe pitting. 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. Black iron wire You will need black iron wire to tie around any object you Fill the tank with a suitable amount of water then add in the bluing salt using the correct ratio. Dont touch the metal with your bare hands since it could cause severe burns. Both ingredients are super cheap. The reason why blued guns rust is that something was allowed to attack the surface blueing and get through it to new steel or the blueing job wasnt deep enough to complete passivate the surface from red rust. 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. (You say the rod was heated, but it couldn't have been, as it was on the inside. It is also used by machinists, to protect and beautify tools made for their own use. "logo": { Mess. When everything is set up, put on your protective gear and then get down to business. Alternatively, you can press the pad of steel wool between your hands over the container of acetone, and then put it on some paper towels to dry. . However, the chemicals from the bluing process can accomplish uneven staining on aluminium and polymer parts. It is usually inadvisable to use cold bluing as a touch-up where friction is present. With. Ive used this method in a pinch to make a tap from a cheap mild steel bolt to chase out galled female threads. 6 years ago. 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! 35% Potassium nitrate (aka saltpeter), http://castboolits.gunloads.com/archive/index.php/t-36054.html. 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). Use it to try out great new products and services nationwide without paying full pricewine, food delivery, clothing and more. Steps to Hot Blue Steel with a Torch That doesnt happen easily or by accident. I really appreciate you taking the time to share it DG. Your 700F temp is too high, IMO. Every true outdoorsmans dream! Free shipping for many products! It is named after the blue-black appearance of the resulting protective finish. Bluing is also used for providing coloring for steel parts of fine clocks and other fine metalwork. 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. However, there are certain characteristics differences between the materials so knowing clearly how to blue stainless steel is really important. If the solution is still boiling vigorously, then you can expect the bluing to happen naturally. This signifies that the steel is tempered. Reply Old school smiths use something called washing soda to strip oil off guns. 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. 3 years ago. Add 5 lbs of regular table salt to the water. Besides those, you must also have water displacing oil and cleaning solution (Dicro-Clean 909). That would be a hot salt blueing mix. These include hot bluing, cold bluing, niter bluing, and so on. Safety notes: Dont use an aluminum pan. Spray down the whole barreled action with copious amounts of WD-40, inside and out. All blued parts still require oiling to prevent rust. I don't understand why you are submerging it in oil? 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! Below is a link to a video I found on YouTube that shows the process. It turns out I have. I plan on doing this on a couple of older beaters first. Thank you all who had a part in the production of this important information! It takes practice. Hot. Battery acid is childs play compared to blueing salts. Dont. Should something happen, seek medical help right away. Just take them from the comments he posts. Hot blueing salts attack soft solders on guns, so it isnt to be done on old shotguns and some older rifles. Tenifer get's up to (1077F) last I checked and was the 5th step in Glock heat treating after that they Pakerize it. Blow torches only heat a small concentrated area. 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 Just use distilled water. But the article was very informative. "https://theshootingmystery.tumblr.com/", Bluing is also used in seasoning cast-iron cookware, to render it relatively rust-proof and non-stick. Then you have to heat the metal. If the magnet doesnt stick, its ready to be pulled away from the heat. 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. | 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. "url": "https://shootingmystery.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/Shootinglogo.png" You wouldnt need salts. Youre a gunsmith who has a lot of nice guns! Keep heating the steel until you notice a blue color form on the metal. Make sure the piece is chemically clean, sandblasting followed by power wire brushing is good then stop heating when you hit purple because the heat will travel. This step should be done before heating the steel, as the steel should be quenched immediately after removing from heat. What is your opinion of the 2 to 1 lye and potassium nitrate bluing solution? A couple bottles of aged bourbon minimum. At least one of the cold bluing solutions contains selenium dioxide. He has more than three years of experience writing for and working with wikiHow. You have entered an incorrect email address! These work by depositing a coating of copper selenide on the surface. If you have a wood or phenolic handle, use a propane torch to heat the blade only for about two minutes. Dont mess with hot salts. Drop a piece of hot charcoal in it and it will burn in the absence of any atmosphere as the nitrate provides the oxygen for the reaction. } 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. This is how Colt made their rifles and pistols prior to Civil War you can read all about the process. it would appear these sights are drifted into dovetails. http://cdn.spectrumbrands.com/~/media/Spectracide/Files/MSDS/SpectracideStumpRemoverGranulesSDSApr15.ashx. For more information on using a blowtorch and protecting the steel, scroll down! By the time I was done it looked like it was a beat up 5 year old gun rather than a 1930s bolt .22 that came from a scrap yard. Once you strip the blue & rust, then you can see what youre dealing with. - Ballachy", "Bluing of Steel by Heat Treatment: Why and How it Happens? The mixture is heated to 310 to 321C (590 to 610F) and the parts are suspended in this solution with wire. Friction, as from holster wear, quickly removes cold bluing, and also removes hot bluing, rust, or fume bluing over long periods of use. "https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6dwEQfHK1tk_ZeaA4PniOA/", It's easy to get it too hot, too quickly - especially with an O/A or oxy-propane torch. Its durable and wears well. It does provide good rust resistance, which is improved with oil. Its a good process for processing lots of guns, but I simply cannot recommend it for people who just want to do a gun here or a gun there.. 4 years ago 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. -something to hold your object with i.e. The parts are then boiled in distilled water, blown dry, then carded, as with rust bluing. Then you pull it out and scrape off the oil along the blade edge. Referring to the post that started all of this; Dyspeptic Gunsmith says: Bluing is a passivation process in which steel is partially protected against rust using a black oxide coating. I think I was drinking heavily (and likely doing stupid things in my shop with high heat and flammables at the time, possibly while juggling chainsaws) at the time I made that comment - without reading carefully. Be careful since considerable heat might be generated in the process. Theres nothing wrong with your method, but is is very hazardous, especially to people who have never done anything like it before. They melt at, oh, somewhere about 280F. Always wear goggles and gloves when operating a propane blow torch. I dont have that much blueing to do in my shop, so I dont use hot salts. (Its Crystalline Potassium Nitrate 100%) $6.18 I pulled the temp off the top of my head. They should send you a stipend for your time. Then remove it from the degreaser, don't be tempted to wipe it off with anything. COPYRIGHT 2021, THETRUTHABOUTGUNS.COM. 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. "width": "1500", 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. Its essential to keep stirring the tank to prevent the forming of hot and cold areas. 4 years ago Once the solution reaches its boiling point, turn down the burner to about one-third of the boiling temperature and let it stay there. Once the steel is clean, you can begin heating it up. Very true. 2mm wire has a circumference of ~0.25in. 2 years ago The differential cooling causes patterns of colors to appear as well as hardening the part. It is named after the blue-black appearance of the resulting protective finish. 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. ", https://mgs.edu/making-chisels-skips-newsletter/, http://www.technologystudent.com/equip1/heat1.htm. *700F is very close to the heat treatment temperature of some steels. 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. "headline": "How to Blue Stainless Steel in 5 Easy Steps: Complete Guide", 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 ")You're ABSOLUTELY right. Both refer to the same chemical process for providing true gun bluing.[1]. Follow the instructions. The parts can often be put together with little or no forces need and friction lock together and the one parts shrinks and the other part expands. They should start gassing up approximately 2 to 3 minutes after exposure. OK, now with the sights out and the trigger group off, you can put on the rust/blue remover on the barrel/action. His enthusiasm for handling firearms and hunting gear inspired him to create the Shooting Mystery blog. 'Browning' is controlled red rust Fe2O3, and is also known as 'pluming' or 'plum brown'. Cold blues will References Apply heat to your object and heat up gently and equally. Once you get the colour you want, go outside to your oil container and fully quench your object into the oil! 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? A Pocket Sundial From a Broken Pocket Watch! Do this outside, so you can do this next part: Just whip the steel wool at arms length to extract the excess acetone. }, I like 1.5 wide shop cloth myself). 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.. The bottom of the crucible is opened allowing the contents to drop into the rapidly bubbling water. So you will get a shinier finish. Salts. "I have very limited knowledge as to how metal can be manipulated for different applications. I can't stress how important the degreasing step is! Although the steel parts, such as anOrdains watch hands, are near enough miniscule, each Wait for 10 15 minutes and then take out the components. Youll want to clamp on the barrel directly under the sight youre about to drift out. Wear thick gloves and a face mask before you quench your steel so the water or oil doesnt splash onto your hands. 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. If I remember right they then heated them up a bit and applied fish oil orignal and I think latter switching to linseed oil to protect the finish and give it that wet look. "I am nearly 16 and can not wait until I have my drivers license. Keep posting like this. In my case I drilled/threaded the metal piece and made a holder with a threaded end. Heating will make the metal better in absorbing the bluing liquid. 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. The List Price is the suggested retail price of a new product as provided by a manufacturer, supplier, or seller. Quenched steel is harder, but it becomes more brittle. "publisher": { 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. You risk a big fire that is self sustaining by the reaction itself. 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. When the liquid stops bubbling, remove the metal from the container and wipe off any excess liquid. wikiHow is where trusted research and expert knowledge come together. It would be a good idea to get some gloves on. You are a fantastic resource for all of us here. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Pull it out of the tank and place on a drain rack. Keep them in that state while you heat them but be sure to not boil up the tank. 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]. 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! Technically speaking, bluing is more or less a conversion of red iron oxide (Fe2O3) to black iron oxide (Fe3O4). If youre using acetone to de-oil, dont be afraid to do it more than once. 3 years ago The parts are then oiled and allowed to stand overnight. it washes off with water. On another thread, we can go into nitre blueing, which is basically heating pins/screws/bits/bobs to 600F in a molten salt bath. 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. WebThe gun bluing process Start with 1 gallon of water and add it to a deep fryer that has been thoroughly cleaned. Cold blueing solutions usually just dont wear well. 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. Then, use a pair of tongs to carry the steel to a container filled with water or vegetable, and submerge the hot metal in the liquid. 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. Cold blueing is OK for touchups, at best. I've never done anything like this but want to try.