Which cold blueing....

M

Mike / Tx

New member
Ok ok I realize there ae a ton of post on this where touching up this or that with one or another product is mentioned. I'm not looking to touch up, but to more or less refinish my "pig popper" SKS.

I don't have the facilities nor the room to do powder coating nor do I want to spend that sort of money to haul it all in pieces to some shop to have it done, IF they would take it in the first place.

The insides are in grat condition, but the outside needs to be redone.

Would one of you more experienced folks recommend which one of the cold blueing products you have used that would hold up fairly well.

This rifle is a haul out in whatever weather, drag through whatever brush or muddy bottom, simply to go after feral hogs. Nothing more nothing less. It's just a beater in the full definition of the term. Thing is it shoots so darned well with just about any soft point ammo I really don't want to scrap it simply due to it rusting to pieces. Right now it only has very minor surface rust mainly from the humidity of sitting out in the barn. Like I said, it is just one of those beater rifles.

Worst case I will just get out the Krylon and go for it, but would rather reblue it instead.

Thanks
 
Brownells Oxpho-Blue but trying to blue the whole thing with cold blue is going to be disappointing.
 
I second the Oxpho-Blue, I buy it by the quart...

It's not ideal for an entire rifle, but I just "restored"- completely tore down, bead blasted, and cold-blued every part before re-assembly of an Israeli K98K . It's not as durable, nor as even in appearance as a hot blue would be for sure, but who's got a hot tank?

If bead-blasting isn't an option to remove rust and prep the surface be sure to use a rust remover first. Blueing won't remove rust...

Rubbing it down with fine steel wool while the blueing is on helps even out the finish, as does an additional application where needed in my experience.
 
It's been my experience that the version of cold blue is less important than the prepping and application.
True for any refinishing, come to think.
Clean, degrease, remove all rust, clean some more.
Apply the bluing smoothly and in thin layers, as much as needed, allowing thorough drying between applications.
And thick enough to smooth without showing thin spots.
Maybe covering with a suitable clear coat to protect and preserve it.
With patience and good technique it will turn out very acceptable.
 
Lots of good spray on finishes for firearms made now days . Alot of the painted AR crowd use regular spray paint and touch it up from time to time .
 
I agree with Gary.
When cold bluing, "degrease" and "repeat" are the key words. If it gets darker each time, keep degreasing and repeating.

If all else fails, try a different cold blue. Different steels like different cold blues. I have not proved that with a controlled experiment, but after many experiences, I still believe it.... high quality folklore.

I was getting terrible results once, and then I figured out the barrel was stainless.
 
There are a couple of really good Youtube videos of a guy that uses Oxpho Blue - sometimes to do whole guns. He's got the technique down to where it gives good results. Look it up and you'll see. I'm thinking of trying it with an old beater .22 that I would like to bring back to life.
 
Express blue is not the same as cold blue. Express is a form of rust bluing.
Cold blue is a thin plating of tarnished copper that wears off very easily.
If I were going to refinish a utility gun such as yours, I would just clean, degrease, and spray paint it. As long as the finish remains intact, the gun can't rust. If the finish is compromised, just give it a fresh squirt of paint.
 
oxphoblue is a cold Parkerizing chemical and its very wear resistant. Also it doesn't require as much cleaning as it will work thru a bit of oil.
 
I appreciate all of the advice. When I mentioned "cold blue" I simply meant I didn't want to try and set up any type of tanks or what not.

There was an old fellow who would do projects like this who had all of the tanks set up and ready. He did awesome work for little cash. Unfortunately time passes and so do folks.

I'll check into the mentioned product. Right now it is simply standing in the closet, so no rush. I have a couple of hundred or so loads to put together before I even start on it. Just figured I would start getting things ready.


Thanks again.
 
It's been my experience that the version of cold blue is less important than the prepping and application.
True for any refinishing, come to think.
Click to expand...
I agree.

I never had much luck with the crappy Birchwood Casey Perma-Blue. Sometimes, I couldn't get it to take, at all. But the last thing that I cold blued taught me that I wasn't degreasing well enough.

I needed to blue the raw metal an AR-15 A2 sight that I cut down and reshaped as a "lo-pro" gas block. Perma-Blue was the only thing I could find in my chemical supply, at the time, so I gave it another whirl. That time, however, I was much more thorough in degreasing the part, and I actually followed the instructions to a 'T' (imagine that :rolleyes:).

After degreasing, the bluing took like nothing I had ever seen before. And it took just 3 coats for the bluing almost perfectly matched the dark parkerizing on the rest of the gas block. ;)



I'm not recommending Perma-Blue in any way. I don't like it. I just couldn't find my Oxpho Blue at the time.
I just wanted to re-affirm that prep work is more important than chemical formula.
 
I've had good luck with Oxpho Blue. As far as cold blues go, it's definitely far and away the best I've tried both for ease of application and for durability.

It's not an ideal option for refinishing an entire gun. I've done it and the results weren't bad, but I still wouldn't really recommend it for that application.
Oxpho Blue is not a Parkerizing compound. It's a cold bluing compound.
Click to expand...
Brownell's states that it creates a "phosphate-like" surface under the blue finish. If true, that would lend some amount of credence to the claim that it's a "cold Parkerizing" compound.

I have no way of verifying that, but I can say that it is completely unlike any other cold blue I have tried. It can be applied with very good effect even if the surface has not been degreased and if one has the patience to polish the surface with 0000 steel wool after each application and to apply several "coats" an attractive finish can be achieved.

The only major problem I've had with it is that some rust preventive products (specifically Beeman MP5 oil) will cause the resulting finish to turn cloudy and brownish. It still provides good rust protection and durability in that state but it doesn't look very nice.
 
Express bluing is not cold blue. It's an old fashion blue finish that doesn't require an expensive set up like hot salt bluing operations. Depending on the polish, express blue can yield outstanding results.
 
I love the oxpho blue but realistically for a beat around
Rifle i just use rustoleum high heat black get it right at walmart for
6 bucks a can i just prep it quick and hit it witj a hair dryer
So it doesnt run in case i get over zealous
 
+1 for Oxpho-Blue. Use steel wool to apply. Wear gloves. I can't prove it but I think applying the solution with steel wool creates a harden surface. Been using it for the last 5 years after tinkering with a few different brands.
 
I've used Brownell's Teflon/Moly and Baking Lacquer finishes on beater
guns with OK success. Abrasive blast, warm up the part and spray it on,
oven cure. (do big parts in the kitchen oven when the wife isn't home!)

If you are willing to pay a bit more, find the local Cerakote guy.
 
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