In a search for more durable touch up blueing I recently swerved into a method to touch-up blue worn areas with a hot salts finish. My idea was to create a hot salts "micro-environment" at a specific spot using a steel wool electrode "wick" saturated w/blueing salts and providing heat energy from a 6 volt lantern battery.

I constructed my "wick" using a degreased pad of 0000 steel wool attached to the end of a wooden popsicle stick with copper wire. A 12" length of braided copper speaker wire was placed under the steel wool to provide an electrical connection. The other end was attached to the positive terminal of a 6 volt lantern battery. Another 12" wire was attached at one end to the negative battery terminal and the other to an alligator clip.

To operate the system, I dipped the "wick" into blueing salts till it was dripping wet. After connecting the alligator clip to the gun steel I touched the dripping blueing salts(not the steel wool)to the properly polished and degreased spot I wished to blue. Within a few seconds the liquid began to boil. I held it on the spot for 7-10 minutes.By moving the "wick" a diameter at a time I was able to cover larger areas. After rinsing and oiling I had a deep salts blue on the spot that matched the rest of the finish quite well and is every bit as tough.

Bobster that is a very clever idea! I'll have to fiddle around with that too at some point, what type of salts did you use?

P.S. Did you have to dip the pad at all or did it stay moist the entire time?

Mark,

I used "Formula No. 1" from a book by Traister I believe. It is as follows:

3 lbs. 1 oz. Sodium hydroxide(lye)
1 lb. 1 oz. Trisodium Phosphate(TSP)
3 oz Sodium chloride(uniodized salt)
5 lbs. 1 oz. Sodium Nitrate(fertilizer)
10 lbs. Distilled H2O

The listing said it was a rapid penetrating formula which takes only 10 minutes. That was the main reason I selected it because I knew I would have to hold it in one spot for a while. After blueing I scalded the piece, washed in detergent, rinsed and then oiled with Type F transmission fluid.

I did have to dip the pad in the salts every 2-3 minutes to keep it wet. All you need is about 1 oz. in a plastic medicine cup to work from.

[ 07-06-2003, 17:16: Message edited by: Bobster ]

A very good idea Bobster,

This one definitely goes into my collection of gunsmithing tips.

Sorry, I should have been more specific. The ends of the steel wool pad extend up the sides of the stick and the wire is placed under these "extensions". It does not come into contact with the caustic solution.
Soft steel wire would eliminate any possibility of contamination. Thanks for the tip.