i recently bought a blued rifle that has been hard chromed. It is too shiny for my taste. Can i paint it. If so what would be the best paint to use. thanks

I would have it bead-blasted. That should knock down the shine, and if you don't like it, at least paint will bond to the roughened surface. Just my 2 cents.

I'd go with Glen and try bead blasting, but a good degreasing and quality primer would probably work pretty well if you wanted to try the simplest approach first.

Another option would be an abrasive impregnated rotary brush chucked in a drill or even better mounted on a grinder, and go for a brushed finish.