I recently acquired a S &W Model 37, pinned barrel in excellent mechanical condition. However......somewhere along the way the entire revolver was sprayed down with what appears to be black bbq grill paint. When I took off the side plate the action was good but looked to have been sprayed down with white lithium grease. Also, the wood grips show no wear but there is only the barest remnant of finish on them.
De-gunked the action and test fired it at the range. Accuracy good, lock-up tight single and double action. Routine cleaning after the range trip started the bbq paint off big time on the barrel and cylinder, revealing a little holster wear at the muzzle, a couple of shallow pits on the cylinder. Bore and chambers are good, no rust/pitting. Blueing on the barrel and cylinder is at the point you'd want to re-blue, but no significant corrosion other than the isolated, shallow pits.
I'd like to bring this piece back to decent appearance and possibly have the action checked (and paint spray intrusion removed) by an expert. Since I'm in S.W. Florida I'm not interested in a re-blue but a good finish that will bond to the aluminum and steel. For the grips, is it ok to clean with, say, Murphy's oil soap and then apply raw linseed oil? Any suggestions would be appreciated.
De-gunked the action and test fired it at the range. Accuracy good, lock-up tight single and double action. Routine cleaning after the range trip started the bbq paint off big time on the barrel and cylinder, revealing a little holster wear at the muzzle, a couple of shallow pits on the cylinder. Bore and chambers are good, no rust/pitting. Blueing on the barrel and cylinder is at the point you'd want to re-blue, but no significant corrosion other than the isolated, shallow pits.
I'd like to bring this piece back to decent appearance and possibly have the action checked (and paint spray intrusion removed) by an expert. Since I'm in S.W. Florida I'm not interested in a re-blue but a good finish that will bond to the aluminum and steel. For the grips, is it ok to clean with, say, Murphy's oil soap and then apply raw linseed oil? Any suggestions would be appreciated.