Anyone removed the finish from a 10/22 receiver?

D

DougB

New member
I'm probably going to buy a used 10/22 tomorrow. I have three to pick from, but all are blued. I'd prefer stainless, but I've been watching for one for a long time and they just don't seem to show up used. I'm going to put a stainless barrel on it, so I'm considering having the aluminum receiver bead or sand blasted - or maybe just trying to strip the finish with a wire brush on my drill or something. Anyone tried this? Do the "stainless" 10/22s have any finish on the aluminum receiver, or is it just bare metal (which I suspect)? Thanks.

Doug
 
They have a clearcoat of some sort to protect and keep the alloy from turning grey. Darn stuff is as bad as silver plate for turning dark. The Black finish is some sort of tough spray coat that paint stripper hardly touches.
 
I refinished a 10/22 years ago that had a specific types of stock they don't make anymore. Since I was redoing the wood I decied to make it "different." I had the barrel deep polish blued and jeweled the bolt. The reciever was turning grey and It looked bad compared to the rest of the gun. I decided It would look very distinctive witha brushed stainless look . I basically sanded down the reciever until I took off all the black and then with fine steel wool I made it look like brushd S/S. It took allot of time to do but it turned out great.
 
Doug, The 10/22 receiver is alloy and the stainless receivers you've seen are actually nickle plated alloy. AMT makes a clone receiver of the 10/22 in stainless which is used for custom rifles.
The blued finish on the receivers is an anodized coating which also hardens the surface of the alloy. You can probably have a finish shop or gunsmith re-anodize the receiver to the color of your choice for about $60. Hope this helps. Mark / FL
 
Thanks for the advice and info. I bought a used 10/22 today for $85. About $30 less than I expected to pay. It is about 12 years old, but in good shape. I'll have to decide what to do with the receiver. I'd prefer the bright metal look (I'm installing a stainless barrel), so I may try to use some chemical stripper and then get a brushed finish with fine sandpaper. I'm still not sure. I've heard conflicting reports about whether Rugers "stainless" receivers (which I know are aluminum) have some finish applied. I wonder how just plain aluminum will hold up? Anyway, thanks.

Doug
 
Doug, By stripping the anodized finish from the receiver you are exposing the bare alloy which is softer than the anodized finish. That will accelerate wear on the exposed parts. And even though it's alloy, you can expect to see oxydation after a short time. While it won't rust so to speak, it will darken. I'd either leave the black anodized finish in place or have the receiver re-anodized to match the stainless steel of the barrel. Mark / FL

[This message has been edited by Mark King (edited November 01, 2000).]
 
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