Surface Rust on Slide

[jglenn]

go with cerakote .it will out wear either duacoat or parkerizing.

 

[SSSTANG]

So would it be crappy bluing or quality of steel that would be the reason for the slide to rust so easily? I'm comparing the Bersa that I carried for 3-4 days to a KelTec that I carried all summer while sweating like crazy.

BTW, I need to find someone in the area that can push the sights off this slide. Please let me know if you can help me out.

 

[BHJ]

I could have warned you about the scotch brite. Way too aggressive for rust cleanup on bluing. I use them to remove laser etching and pretty deep scratches in stainless, cleaning up dinged muzzle crowns etc. I have had pretty good luck with the Hoppes gun blue kit and have even done a couple of complete rifles with it. I use very hot water and it makes a pretty nice rust blue. Lots of prep and lots of coats give very good results. You might shoot Loadnplenty or Sharps 40 a PM as they have done some really nice pieces. I have met LNP and seen some of his work in person and it's really nice. I think LNP uses the Brownells rust blue. A re blue is going to look better if you strip it completely first and a scotch brite may be aggressive enough to completely remove the pitting with some elbow grease.
Here are a couple I did with the Hoppes gun blue kit. I did the barrel on the 1022 and the whole rifle which was painted black when I bought it on the No4 Mk1 the uneven looking area on the mag in the photo is where it was dented from going to heck and back before I got it. I used scotch brite to take the finish off of the 1022 action,barrel band and butt plate (aluminum) for the 2 tone stainless and blue looking finish.


Just my .02 but that slide looks a little more like pitted than surface rust.

 

[rtross]

I'm shocked that rusting can occur on a slide left in a holster for only 4 days! Luckily, I've never seen it on any of my guns.

 

[SSSTANG]

I could have warned you about the scotch brite. Way too aggressive for rust cleanup on bluing. I use them to remove laser etching and pretty deep scratches in stainless, cleaning up dinged muzzle crowns etc. I have had pretty good luck with the Hoppes gun blue kit and have even done a couple of complete rifles with it. I use very hot water and it makes a pretty nice rust blue. Lots of prep and lots of coats give very good results. You might shoot Loadnplenty or Sharps 40 a PM as they have done some really nice pieces. I have met LNP and seen some of his work in person and it's really nice. I think LNP uses the Brownells rust blue. A re blue is going to look better if you strip it completely first and a scotch brite may be aggressive enough to completely remove the pitting with some elbow grease.
Here are a couple I did with the Hoppes gun blue kit. I did the barrel on the 1022 and the whole rifle which was painted black when I bought it on the No4 Mk1 the uneven looking area on the mag in the photo is where it was dented from going to heck and back before I got it. I used scotch brite to take the finish off of the 1022 action,barrel band and butt plate (aluminum) for the 2 tone stainless and blue looking finish.

Just my .02 but that slide looks a little more like pitted than surface rust.

So the Hoppe's is cold blue. I just got a bottle of Brownells Oxpho Blue delivered yesterday. I wasn't and still not sure about cold bluing without streaking. Your rifles look good though.

After I stripped the L side I was surprised by the pitting. I wonder if it was something I hadn't noticed before.

This was after stripping with Naval Jelly.


This was after 1500 wet/dry sandpaper and 0000 steel wool.

I'm shocked that rusting can occur on a slide left in a holster for only 4 days! Luckily, I've never seen it on any of my guns.

I agree completely. I was using a new black Alien Gear holster. I wonder if chemicals in the leather dye could have caused it?

 

[Kyzrsoze]

White vinegar will completely remove the bluing. If you want to start with a clean slate, submerge the slide in a container of white vinegar and work it over with the fine 0000 steel wool. Save the more aggressive sanding/scotchbright to work the pitted areas.

Here is a pic of vingegar working on my Colt slide

And here is the end result

 

[Kyzrsoze]

Another thing to consider - all of the work you do to remove the pitting will leave sanding marks in slide that will be visible through the new finish. The easiest fix I have found is to use the fine sandpaper (400 grit) to create a 'brushed' finish. Pull the paper in one direction across the full panel to create the finish. Work slowly and do the minimum number of passes to get the finish right. No need to remove material from the slide.

 

[Hasselhoss]

^^ great advice here. You do good work my friend.

 

[SSSTANG]

Another thing to consider - all of the work you do to remove the pitting will leave sanding marks in slide that will be visible through the new finish. The easiest fix I have found is to use the fine sandpaper (400 grit) to create a 'brushed' finish. Pull the paper in one direction across the full panel to create the finish. Work slowly and do the minimum number of passes to get the finish right. No need to remove material from the slide.

But I have to remove material to get the pitting out, right?

 

[Kyzrsoze]

But I have to remove material to get the pitting out, right?

Yes you'll have to remove some material to get the pitting out. What you to avoid is sanding the whole thing overall and removing too much material. It's like trimming your mustache - you keep trimming to even out the sides until you've shaved it off. You just don't want to start sanding with good intentions and then find out your pistol is 1/16" thinner when you're done.