Blued to Parkerized?

Z

zebulonsmith

New member
Hello experts. I've got a SA 1911 with a blued finish that's starting to show a good bit of wear. I'd like to remove it and go parkerized.

I'm pretty handy with tools and have not had good luck with gunsmiths in my area, so I'd like to give it a go on my own. Is this something best left to a pro, or would it be an easy process?

Thanks
 
Find a smith that does Parkerizing, and let them strip and refinish the gun.
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+1

Unless you are fully prepared and willing to live with a ruined gun ("ugly"-ruined), go with a gunsmith. Even if you have to find an smith in a different state, do your gun and yourself a favor and have it done right. You wont regret it...like you very well might if you do it yourself. And as you say this is a Springfield Armory 1911, I dont think you want that as a ruined gun.
 
It's not hard to parkerize your own, I have done it with very exellent results without any previous experience at the time. It's a matter of being totally clean and having the right supplies. You can order supplies from Midway and like I said make sure your parts are totally clean, park solution is the right temp, hot water bath afterward to keep the item hot so the water will evaporate and then while it's hot dip in oil for a while so it will not rust. In fact if you use burnt motor oil for your oil it will come out a little green tint like some like. I tried it because it is rewarding to do your own with great results.
 
Never done it myself but I do know the cost of setting up a rig (even making most parts from scraps around the shop) is way more than just having it done without the risk.

I wouldnt recommend it unless you plan on doing it a lot more than once.
 
Cost is a factor for sure, with that said a little brain power you can come up with some very ingenious ways of doing things. For instance a good thick plastic and card board will work for a tank if you are in a pinch or don't have funds for S S tanks. And yes this has been done even if it sounds half A$$, there are other trick's that can be used also, the main thing is clean.
 
I agree with above, make sure your process is very tight and parking is pretty easy. You can buy a kit from Brownells or go with a home brew. Home brews are more finicky to process and measurements so might go with the kit for ease of use.

It's a fun project. If you screw it up, no harm. Its just park. It can be redone or sent off. The fun is in the doing.


Ohh, to remove the blue, go with a short dip in 50/50 muriatic acid/water. Just long enough to remove the blue.

As for the park, again, up to you on which to go with. I have some links for home brew if you want.
 
"...a good thick plastic and card board will work for a tank..." No it won't. Properly done, parkerizing involves heating the solution to 190 to 210 degrees. Phosphoric acid is one of the ingredients. No plastic, and certainly no cardboard, will work.
 
You need a sandblaster.........
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Not needed if its to remove park. I've removed park with the proper grits of sandpaper. Flat surface like glass, bushings removed from grip, etc...

More work, patience and care needed, but not impossible ;)

You can preblast the parts for surface roughage but the solution still etches the parts in the reaction.

A blaster makes for quick work though - a great tool to have!


"...a good thick plastic and card board will work for a tank..." No it won't. Properly done, parkerizing involves heating the solution to 190 to 210 degrees. Phosphoric acid is one of the ingredients. No plastic, and certainly no cardboard, will work.
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+1

I always used 2 pots on the stove (take your proper precautions!). One with hot water to preheat/rinse the parts, the second with the solution. Those were the final 2 of 4 containers. First was a dish soap/hot water, second was rinse.
 
I have done complete handguns and alot of parts for mil. restoration. But I had access to a BEAD BLASTER, not sand blaster. For me, sand leaves a rough texture. Glass beads leave a nice satin texture that works excellent with home park. chemicals. Only flaws I have had is that sometimes steel with different types of surface hardening can result in different shades or even odd colors. Had a carbine bolt come out with a golden tint once. Had the slide of a Chinese Tok look darker at one end than the other due to uneven surface hardening. But generally I have had fine results doing it myself. Last .45 job I did was a frame-I stippled the front strap and then refinished the frame OK. It is also useful for bayonets, knives, tools etc. But follow the instructions. At this time I don't have access to a bead blaster for any large parts anymore so am limited in what I do. Have to pass thru security checkpoint so it has to be deniable as a gun looking part! No frames or barrels etc. :mad:
 
"...a good thick plastic and card board will work for a tank..." No it won't. Properly done, parkerizing involves heating the solution to 190 to 210 degrees. Phosphoric acid is one of the ingredients. No plastic, and certainly no cardboard, will work.
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Spelling and grammar count!
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For a Systems Engineer looks like you put your foot in your mouth and didn't do any rersearch what so ever as there are plenty of plastic materials that will work with this and cardboard is only to contain volume and as a insulator. I have allways loved goffy engineers that say it can't be done even with the right grammer. Besides with spelling and grammar you need a brain with a little common since to use with it. One thing for sure is I am not a liar and don't appreciated being called one. Before you go around calling someone a liar you need to understand more about what you are talking about. I will explain a bit on how it's done, first the item needs to be clean and solution need's to be heated to 205 deg's and also help's to heat item being parked, put item to be parked in heavy plastic in box and leave open enough to pour solution in, purpose of box it to contain volume so it doesn't take a ton of solution and hold heat, after pouring solution in keep a eye until you get results wanted. Main thing in doing any park is you have to clean and keep clean. Yes I know it's a back yard way of doing it and I have park tank but this will work in a pinch or someone only wanting to do it one time.
I also have done the stove top version with great results before investing in SS tanks.
If you can't say something constructive try not to say anything next time, it may come back and bite ya!
 
I use stainless steel containers myself. Most are used food service heating trays and tanks that I got dirt cheap. I had a shop weld up a long tank from stainless stock and leak checked it but that is not used very often. I also use pyrex beakers and casseroles for small parts as they are sufficient for boiling water temperatures. Heck, you gotta refinish some small gun parts, just use a appropriately sized glass beaker and you don't use very much chemicals or waste much. You need a glass thermometer or electronic thermometer with stainless probe that goes to at least around 250F. to monitor the solution temperature for home use.
 
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