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