Remove Blueing Salts "Bloom"

B

Boweevil23

Inactive
I have an old pump "take down" shotgun that was hot blued about 25 years ago and it appears that it was not rinsed well enough or not rinsed with the correct solution. It has "bloom" (I think that's the correct term) coming from around the barrel adjusting bushing in the receiver. This bloom has the bushing frozen and will not turn. I have had it soaking in Kroil for a couple of days and it dosen't appear to be having any effect. Any suggestions on what I could use to disolve this stuff without affecting the blueing??
 
I don't THINK it's "bloom" after 25 years and the 'smith probably wouldn't have blued it with the bushing in place anyway. I would suggest that you don't get in a hurry, use a 50/50 mixture of acetone and ATF (beats the heck out of anything else I have used) and use a heat gun to make the thing turn loose. It will probably take plenty of soaking and several applications of heat to get it to turn loose. Another thought, you can heat the bushing with the heat gun and then apply ice to the barrel next to the bushing--can help to make the barrel shrink away from the bushing and break the bond. When it comes loose clean the heck out of the parts and apply a little never-seize, end of problem. Goatwhiskers the Elder
 
Goatwhiskers. Thanks for the reply. I should have elaborated a bit more. The barrel is removed from the receiver. I have another barrel that I want to swap onto the receiver for quail hunting but when installed it has a small amount of loose motion side to side, so I need to adjust the bushing in a tad.
I struck and polished the whole gun many years ago and took it to the local "Smith" (I use the title loosely) to have him do the dip. (I had sold my hot blueing equipment at that time due to the fumes rusting everything in the neighborhood and safety concerns (nasty little blisters if it splattered on you). Anyway, when I picked up the gun, the bushing was in place, in the receiver, and I thought that he had removed and replaced it. The gun has sat in the back of the closet until recently. When I decided to change barrels and use the gun I found that the bushing was frozen in place with the bloom oozing out from the threads. Just a bit of explination, I suppose the cure would still be as you suggested?
 
Try the oil and acetone solution, see if it works. FWIW, the salts have crystallized in the threads and effectively locked the parts together, then rust takes over and helps make it worse.

Heat from a propane torch will break up the salt crystals and the rust, but be careful or you will discolor the bluing.
 
Your best bet is to go to your local health food store and buy a bottle of "100% PURE, NATURAL wintergreen oil." (Not the stuff at Walgreen's.) This has proven to be the most powerful penetrant I have ever used. The late Clarence M. Bates put me on to this. Use it sparingly, as a little bit goes a long way.
 
Common old brake fluid works very well, too.

I've heard guys swear by...

wait for it...

water. Swear to God, I've been told it's the bee's knees for getting rusted stuff out. Never tried it myself, but been told it by enough reliable fellas that I would try it.
 
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