Bluing with Drano Kitchen Crystals
- Thread starter Sharps40
- Start date
Relearning what I used to know about hot tank bluing. I need three pots, not two. Salts, hot water rinse, oil holding tank.
So....some light spotting cause I handled the parts with a damp towel, an oil holding tank would have eliminated that but a buff with 0000 and wd40 evened things up and I think I have a process that gives a very acceptable utility grade finish if not the potential for a much finer finish.
To the second test.
I controlled heat thru saturation. Started with extra water and the boil came on rolling at 260, carried it up and used saturation to maintain a 280 to 300 F range rolling boil for 40 minutes.
I need to keep parts off the bottom to prevent bronze tint too....hot down there on the bottom. But....
These parts were wire brushed then buffed on the cloth wheel with #2 stainless polish to a mirror shine. The black is mirror as well. It has the watery translucent look of highly polished and blackened steel. Cleaning the parts before hand will be a critical step to ensure the salts bite and blacken. But, no spots and I think if nothing else, this is a fine method for blackening small/hard to handle parts or ones with crazy contours that don't lend themselves well to rust bluing and carding.
The barrel stub received a wire wheel brushing only down to clean metal. The fine speckling and pitting remains. The front sight is harder, it greyed but did not blacken. The barrel blackened nicely and provides a great utility finish or better.
The cylinder received a wire wheel brushing to white. Then a 120 sandpaper polish around the circumference. Then a 220 sandpaper polish around the circumference.
Like the barrel, I am very happy with this finish. The sanding removed almost all of the freckles and the cylinder is a lovely satin black. I spotted it a bit but I believe adding a motor oil or light mineral oil soak after the hot water rinse will eliminate the handling that leads to spots! Of the parts, the cylinder looks the best, not because its blacker or shinier but because the freckles/pits went away in the preparation. I'll be anxious to try this process on a bead blast/sand blast finish as well.
I'm not ready to blue a whole gun this way......I'll reserve Slow Rust Blue as the Master Finish. But, I'm pleased to be a bit down the road to a blackening process that will save me several days engagement over rustbluing and save me having to polish, coat, boil, card and repeat all them small bits!
More to follow. I gotta find some more stuff to play with in the salts.
So....some light spotting cause I handled the parts with a damp towel, an oil holding tank would have eliminated that but a buff with 0000 and wd40 evened things up and I think I have a process that gives a very acceptable utility grade finish if not the potential for a much finer finish.
To the second test.
I controlled heat thru saturation. Started with extra water and the boil came on rolling at 260, carried it up and used saturation to maintain a 280 to 300 F range rolling boil for 40 minutes.
I need to keep parts off the bottom to prevent bronze tint too....hot down there on the bottom. But....
These parts were wire brushed then buffed on the cloth wheel with #2 stainless polish to a mirror shine. The black is mirror as well. It has the watery translucent look of highly polished and blackened steel. Cleaning the parts before hand will be a critical step to ensure the salts bite and blacken. But, no spots and I think if nothing else, this is a fine method for blackening small/hard to handle parts or ones with crazy contours that don't lend themselves well to rust bluing and carding.
The barrel stub received a wire wheel brushing only down to clean metal. The fine speckling and pitting remains. The front sight is harder, it greyed but did not blacken. The barrel blackened nicely and provides a great utility finish or better.
The cylinder received a wire wheel brushing to white. Then a 120 sandpaper polish around the circumference. Then a 220 sandpaper polish around the circumference.
Like the barrel, I am very happy with this finish. The sanding removed almost all of the freckles and the cylinder is a lovely satin black. I spotted it a bit but I believe adding a motor oil or light mineral oil soak after the hot water rinse will eliminate the handling that leads to spots! Of the parts, the cylinder looks the best, not because its blacker or shinier but because the freckles/pits went away in the preparation. I'll be anxious to try this process on a bead blast/sand blast finish as well.
I'm not ready to blue a whole gun this way......I'll reserve Slow Rust Blue as the Master Finish. But, I'm pleased to be a bit down the road to a blackening process that will save me several days engagement over rustbluing and save me having to polish, coat, boil, card and repeat all them small bits!
More to follow. I gotta find some more stuff to play with in the salts.
That was cool........I had no idea
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Came out pretty good for a first shot.
Once again brother, thanks for the block of instruction. You are the man!
I don't pretend to know much about bluing, but this is very interesting.
Most of what I've seen has been rudimentary flame bluing with propane and quenching in oil.
Could a combination of these methods possibly yield a better result? I wonder if a quick flame blue, cleaning, and then moving to the salt bath system would yield a further benefit without the flash rust. I have not noticed anything regarding rust with flame bluing, but I have not attempted it myself.
Eager to refinish some SKS parts...
Most of what I've seen has been rudimentary flame bluing with propane and quenching in oil.
Could a combination of these methods possibly yield a better result? I wonder if a quick flame blue, cleaning, and then moving to the salt bath system would yield a further benefit without the flash rust. I have not noticed anything regarding rust with flame bluing, but I have not attempted it myself.
Eager to refinish some SKS parts...
