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Tips for Air Gun Bluing
First off ---> WEAR GLOVES!!! Use Nitrile Gloves (they feel kinda like plastic)
NOT Laytex. Laytex has natural oils in it that will cause blotchiness.
After cleaning, polishing and degreasing the metal, pour BOILING water over it.
It opens the pores & gets any other oil out that may be trapped inside. Start
applying the bluing when the steel is still warm
to the touch.
When applying the bluing, apply only in ONE
direction. Avoid trying to Scrub it in. Use a CLEAN toothbrush or foam brush.
Cotton balls, old T-Shirt material, Paper towels etc. ALL have traces of lanolin
in them that will cause a streaky appearance. Try not to let the
bluing dry!!! If it goes dry, it can't react with
the steel and darken it.
Once it's been on the steel for about 2 minutes of so, wash the steel with cool
water and dry it off. Use a piece of Degreased #0000 Steel wool and buff the
steel. You'll see that allot of the Blackness has rubbed off, but you now have a
nice piece of bluish-grey steel. Apply the bluing
AGAIN and repeat with the washing & buffing process until you come to a shade
that you like. Once you get the steel to your desired darkness, wash & buff it
again THEN pour boiling water over the piece. Wipe ALL the hot water off & apply
a good oil IMMEDIATELY.
If you can immerse the piece in oil over night, then DO IT. As the piece soaks
in the oil & neutralizes the bluing compound, the
steel will actually get a couple shades darker. I've used Pieces of Rain Gutter
with the ends closed off to form a trough and filled it with Automatic
Transmission Fluid for overnight immersion for rifle barrels etc. Works GREAT.
Once the oil soak is done, clean it off and WAX the barrel. Yup, use a good
Carnauba based car wax. Water won't penetrate it. Remember, Oil FLOATS on water.
Tip for Degreasing Steel Wool: Soak it in Acetone, Lacquer thinner or just use
the cheap .99 cent Carburetor Cleaner you find at the parts house. You can also
use Non-chlorinated Brake Cleaner. Just make sure you THOROUGHLY degrease it.
Otherwise you'll get oil on the piece and the bluing
will streak!
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