Rust Bluing

[sheepherder]

A little bit off-topic, but what solution/brand is best to get the brownish-"patina" finish that all old guns seem to end up with??? I have an old gun with some patina on it; I'd like to do it all in that worn brown coloring...

[Olle]

Originally Posted by postino

A little bit off-topic, but what solution/brand is best to get the brownish-"patina" finish that all old guns seem to end up with??? I have an old gun with some patina on it; I'd like to do it all in that worn brown coloring...

You probably want something like the browning you see on some antique guns. Browning and rust bluing is actually the same process. When you're bluing, you boil the parts in water to convert the red oxide to black oxide so the only difference is that you don't boil the parts.

Brownells and Pilkingtons formulas will usually give me a mix of red and black oxide (some parts turn black already when I apply the formula), so I would try somehing less agressive. You could possibly dilute it a bit as well to avoid the black oxide.

Once you're happy with the finish, you rinse in water and oil the parts. Some say that you also have to neutralize in baking soda, but I'm not so sure that this is necessary as long as you rinse good.