Are there any methods for turning stainless actions/barrels "black (blued)"? I like rifles in SS, but would like to have them dark like a blued rifle since I feel that SS sticks out too much, even when they're matt.
Naturally the process would have to be permanant and longlasting. Nothing that would rub off after awhile...

Any suggestions would be appreciated!

Erik D.

www.dunia.no

There are several finishes out there that will do this. Black-T is a teflon finish that is black and makes the rifle very weather resistant. Robar has three different finshes that will do this as well. The best one out there is Titanuim Nitride. It is a coating that bonds to the steel at a molecular level. It is extremely hard and will never wear off. You can read about it here: http://www.molecularmetallurgy.com/

Another option would be Falconcoat offered by Serengeti Trading Co. It is matte black and runs about 200.00 U.S. for a barreled action.

Joe

There was a post a while back about iron plating a stainless barrel and then doing a conventional rust blue or hot blue. I had never heard of that before and am not sure if was a joke or the real deal. Maybe one of our resident authorities can say which.

Tiggertate, I am the one who said it. That is my understanding of the process Winchester used with for their M70 SS barrels(pre-64) and I believe they also used it on their cast 94 actions, if I'm not mistaken. Prior to that, they were using black enamel or was it a lacquer.



That process would be beyond the capability of your average gunsmith, but there really isn't a need. There are caustic blue salts made specifically for SS now. Many gunsmiths have the capacity to blue SS as it's been around (the salts) for geneal use for about 20 years now.

Stainless Steel blueing is easy! Just use Brownells Oxynate #84 in your blueing tank instead of #7. It's not as easy as useing #7 and it takes a little trial and era but it does a super job of blueing Stainless. It will also do cast Iron and CM but it's best on Stainless.

I've been useing it for 2 years and am vary pleased with it.

My old .300 Win. Mag. has a Hart stainless steel barrel that was blackened by Robar Enterprises. This finish has held up well on some very punishing hunts, and has worn just as well as a first-rate blueing job. Robar is famous for its advanced metal finishes, and they lead the industry in this area. I can't recommend them too highly.

www.robarguns.com

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I have an address/phone number of an outfit near Milwaukee that does some very nice Black Oxide to stainless. Ihave had them do a few for me. Email me and I will get it for you or, I could post it here.

Thanks for the clarification, Roger. It seems worthwhile if the goal was to match a rust blued action in a hot caliber.

Can't say for sure, but I don't believe they ever rust blued those barrels. Could be wrong, though.

Maybe it's just me that's ignorant, but won't the Teflon and other simular coatings rub off / scratch off after a while? Like on frying pans!
I would think that the "dedicated SS blueing salts" would be more resistant. Or isn't there really much of a differance?

Is Xcylan (sp?) the same as Teflon?

Erik D.

www.dunia.no