Gentlemen,

My beloved Tikka M690 ( I understand they were imported into the US as Ithaca previously to the US agency opening, this one is two models earlier than the current T3 ) has a rather tired barrel.

It's not shot out, rather that a period of storage before I got it, and I must confess, some neglect on my part have left the barrel a little fuzzy in places and worst of a a little patch on one side of the crown.

She still shoots well but not as well as it did 4 years ago.

I have an opportunity on a Lilja match barrel blank in 30 cal for a steal and so I'm wondering whether to rebarrel the old girl and treat her to a new lease of life.

My only issue is that the action is chrome-moly and I will be treating it to a reblue at the same time, can the stainless barrel be given a finish like blueing, I appreciate one cannot actually blue stainless, to if not match at least blend with the action?

With thanks in advance,

GH

Stainless steel can be blued with the right salts. Brownells sells Oxynate 84 for stainless. I use it mostly for Winchester 94 receivers and stainless pistols. Remington and Winchester both used stainless steel barrels long before the market demanded all stainless rifles. For example, all pre-64 Winchester .264 Win Mag rifles had stainless barrels. They would plate the barrels with iron and then blue them. I don't have enough demand to set up a large tank for stainless bluing but someone out there probably does.

If you don't blue it, I think painting it will be your best option. You could leave it two-tone which is what I've always done in the past.

The blueing process in use today is a "black oxide". There is a process for black oxiding stainless steel. I have used an outfit called "Unico of Milwaukee" to turn the stainless black. You could also try black teflon.

By the way, your byline, besides what uses you state, a very important function for a woman of substance: "someone to walk in front of you on thin ice."

I had an FN Mauser blued action rebarreled with a Stainless Shilen in 264Win a few or more years ago and the smith sent it to someone and had all metal teflon coated and it looked good.

Here's one toomanytools did for me.

I used a semi-gloss black KG Gunkote on my .25-06. It has a Lilja stainless barrel and blued receiver.







The only thing I'd do different next time is not to coat the extractor and bolt body. Other than that I'm very pleased with how it turned out.

Amir

Obviously lots of options but I really like a blued reciever with a stainless barrel, consider just not messing with Mother Nature.



SSR

G'Day Fella's,

GH, another option that I apply myself, is a spray on Ceramic product called Cerakote.
It is made by www.nicindustries.com and is a very robust finish and a Very Good means of protecting both Carbon and Stainless steels and other metal, synthetic and organic surfaces!
Cerakote, as you can see at the above web site, is available in a multitude of both practical and other colors!

Hope that helps

Doh!
Homer

You can blue stainless, I'll have an article posted about it in a few days and will link you to it.