| Trying your hand at minor refinishing of | | | | and instructional books and materials. |
| a favorite firearm, or sprucing up a | | | | The items selected for inclusion in this |
| newly purchased used gun, or even doing | | | | massive reference are proven |
| a bit of restoration on great-granddad's | | | | professional products that work. |
| muzzleloader can be a very relaxing and | | | | Brownells is the one-stop shopping spot |
| rewarding pastime. In fact, refinishing | | | | for all your refinishing and gunsmithing |
| gun metal or wood is an ideal | | | | needs. |
| introduction into the broader field of | | | | Another source of mail order refinishing |
| home gunsmithing. | | | | supplies is Midway, which recently |
| It teaches one the essentials of the | | | | grouped many of its products within the |
| disassembly, functioning, and reassembly | | | | pages of a new, specialized gunsmithing |
| of a variety of firearms. It requires a | | | | catalog. It's another great source. |
| minimum of tools, and given today's | | | | And when it comes to instructional |
| chemical miracles, the process has never | | | | videos, the American Gunsmithing |
| been easier to accomplish. | | | | Institute offers a variety of excellent |
| The Amateur's Advantage | | | | step-by-step tapes that illustrate and |
| One of the advantages an amateur has | | | | lead one through various refinishing |
| over the professional gunsmith is time. | | | | processes. |
| A full time gunsmith must complete a job | | | | Some Basic Choices |
| within a certain time frame or else | | | | Probably the easiest entry into the |
| he'll be looking for a new occupation. | | | | world of refinishing is to buy a bluing |
| The amateur can putter at bit. | | | | kit and a stock finishing kit. |
| For example, when it comes to polishing | | | | Birchwood-Casey offers both, and they |
| metal, the professional places a premium | | | | are well thought out, reasonably priced |
| on the use of belt sanders, buffing | | | | and readily available. The |
| wheels, abrasive compounds of all types, | | | | Birchwood-Casey kits contain all the |
| and with great skill, turns out a first | | | | necessary chemicals, application |
| class job. On the other hand, an amateur | | | | supplies and instructions. |
| can accomplish the same end with only | | | | Just as an example, their bluing kit |
| his hands, using nothing more than | | | | contains bottles of a blue and rust |
| files, stones, abrasive papers, possibly | | | | remover, cleaner-degreaser, and bluing |
| a Dremel tool, and time. | | | | solution plus steel wool, wet/dry |
| Even professionals will readily agree | | | | sandpaper, sponge, bluing daubers, |
| that polishing parts by hand is the most | | | | service cloth, Sheath (a fine |
| positive way to insure that corners | | | | preservative) and an instructional |
| remain square and sharp, lettering crisp | | | | guide. The stock finishing kit is |
| and legible, and screw holes clean and | | | | similarly complete. Birchwood-Casey's |
| not dished out. When you see custom | | | | instructional guides are detailed, |
| rifles costing thousands and possibly | | | | clear, well illustrated and easy to |
| tens of thousands of dollars, you can | | | | follow. |
| bet the professionals who crafted them | | | | As complete as these kits are, I would |
| spent countless hours at the bench | | | | recommend supplementing them with a few |
| polishing parts by hand, and their time | | | | items that have proven invaluable over |
| is reflected in the quality and cost of | | | | the years. |
| their product. | | | | One of the lessons you quickly learn |
| What has revolutionized the realm of | | | | when using cold blues is that all steels |
| refinishing is modern chemistry. No | | | | are not the same and react quite |
| longer do we have to deal with hot | | | | differently to various formulas of cold |
| bluing or boiled linseed oil. Cold blues | | | | blue. Similarly, when you are retouching |
| have improved to the degree that they | | | | worn spots on areas like floor plates, |
| can be used to blend imperceptibly into | | | | frames or barrels, the color of the |
| existing finishes or even blue a | | | | original bluing can vary greatly. |
| complete firearm. There are now hard, | | | | To handle these variations, I would |
| durable, epoxy and teflon/moly metal | | | | recommend adding three great bluing |
| finishes that can be sprayed on and bake | | | | solutions from Brownells to your basic |
| hardened in the kitchen oven. | | | | kit. They are 44-40, Oxpho-Blue and |
| Off-the-shelf stock finishes now range | | | | Dicropan T-4. Solution 44-40 has been |
| from fast drying linseed oil based | | | | around for decades and was originally |
| products to spray-on epoxies. There are | | | | sold by Numrich Arms. It has the |
| even ready-formulated oil finishes that | | | | reputation of being the most aggressive |
| duplicate the warm red-brown hues found | | | | cold blue on the market. It will blue |
| on pre-'64 Winchester Model 70 stocks. | | | | steels other solutions won't touch. |
| If you can imagine it, you can find it. | | | | Most of the bluing you will be doing is |
| Sources Of Materials And Instruction | | | | by nature "touch-up" work, and having an |
| The bible of the gunsmithing trade and | | | | assortment of solutions ready at hand |
| the wish-book of the amateur is | | | | will eliminate frustration and insure a |
| Brownells' 444-page mail order catalog | | | | quality outcome. |
| of tools, parts, refinishing supplies | | | | |