[Olle]

Originally Posted by markbritt

I am sure there are a lot of comments that can be said about my process and hopefully you will add any ideas, suggestions and findings to this post.

Again, hats off to you for not keeping your findings to yourself!

There ought to be several members who have tips to share, so I’m hoping that this thread will be the “be all and end all” on this topic. I finally got some notes together and this is not necessarily the right or the best way, just the way I have found works best for me:

Originally Posted by markbritt

I prefer to use a wool dauber (again, available from ebay) to apply the solution directly to the part. For the frame and barrel/slide, I like the ¾” dauber and for the small parts, the ½” daubers work great.

These are also available at Hobby Lobby (look in the leather works isle). I prefer to rinse them well in acetone before use, as wool often contains a greasy residue. I actually rinse everything I use (tools, rags, brushes etc) in acetone just for good measure.

Rinsing the dauber in acetone will make it much more absorbant, and it will be easier to get it damp without any excess that can drip out of it as you start swabbing your parts. I have also found that some residual acetone in the dauber will have a degreasing effect, and reduces the chances of bare spots due to accidental fingerprints etc. Another nice side effect is that the solution seems to dry a bit quicker with some acetone present.

Do not use the synthetic daubers (like the ones Brownells sells)! They are not very absorbant at all, and once you start applying the solution it will get squeezed out of the dauber and make a big mess.

Originally Posted by markbritt

Once the part is coated, I hang it on a small hanger in my basement to dry.

I heat the parts with a hair dryer right before the application. This makes the solution dry immediately, and eliminates the chances of runs, puddling and other annoying mistakes. I heat to maybe 100-110 degrees, and if the coat is still wet I’ll heat it again immediately after the application. This seems to make for a finer rust coat as well.

If you apply the solution too wet there’s also a chance that it will dissolve the previous coat of bluing (like some instructions state: “The formula contains acid, and also works as a bluing remover”), but heating the parts will help greatly. They say that you should never try and touch up the spots you miss, but it can actually be done if the solution dries quickly enough. I don’t rub it around, but a quick dab on a bare spot seems to work just fine.

If you don’t have a good place to hang the parts, put two hooks in the ceiling and hang a piece of chain between them. This and some wire hooks (made of wire hangers) will keep the parts securely right where you hang them without sliding around, and out of the reach of children, cats and other critters that may roam your shop when you least expect it.

Originally Posted by markbritt

You now have 89.5 grams (almost two ounces) of my solution which is enough for one luger.

Some instructions state that you should pour a small amount of solution into a separate container, then soak the dauber (or whatever you use for the application) and dab off the excess until the dauber is slightly damp. This will waste a lot of solution, as you can’t (or at least shouldn’t) pour any solution back into the original container.

Instead, I use cheap, disposable pipettes to move a small amount to a container, and then I use the same pipette to apply the solution to the dauber. That way I won’t use more than I absolutely need to wet the dauber, and this will make the solution last much longer. I probably use less than ½ ounce for a normal pistol project.

Originally Posted by markbritt

I begin by taking the luger completely apart – I separate all coil and flat springs and place aside in a container.

I work on any gun I can get my hands on, and as a project can take a couple of months I’ll sometimes forget where all the pins, springs and other litte do-dads go. Labeled Zip-loc bags help tremendously, and they can’t be flipped over if one of our cats happens to make its way to my work bench.

Originally Posted by markbritt

Consider picking up at least three (3) pairs of leather gloves. Use one pair for buffing, one pair for solution application and other pair for carding.

If you have a small shop like mine, it’s almost impossible to have a separate and surgically clean work area for bluing. Leather can pick up oil and grease if you happen to touch that spot you missed when you cleaned the work bench, so I use good quality vinyl examination gloves instead (Kimberly-Clark or Walgreens brand, not the cheapos from Walmart!). If I happen to touch something greasy I’ll just get another pair, and sometimes I simply to go to the sink and wash them (Yes, I’m cheap). These gloves make it much easier to work with small parts as well.

Originally Posted by markbritt

I then soak all the parts in acetone for a few minutes and then let them air dry. The acetone removes all residual oils and leaves the parts clean and ready to be stripped of bluing.

Originally Posted by markbritt

Once your parts have the grey coating removed, you can then apply the first coat of “Mark D’s Rust Bluing Solution” (for lack of a better term)

I degrease after the polish as well, and I guess you do too. Again, my shop is far from spotless and you just never know. One thing about the acetone is that it will be contaminated with a certain amount of oil and grease after while, so I use two containers and the acetone in the second one is changed frequently to keep it clean. Tupperware, Glad and similar containers actually work great, acetone won’t hurt them and I have had them sitting in my shop for months without any problems. If you get quality containers with lids that seal well you won’t have much of a problem with evaporation either.

Also, when you pick up the parts you’ll usually see a few drops hanging underneath, and the oily contamination in the acetone will sometimes concentrate right there. On occasion, there has been enough to leave a bare spot in the bluing. Granted, there won’t be much oil if you just keep the second container clean, but you’ll reduce the chances of contamination on the parts if you shake or blow the drops off.

Originally Posted by markbritt

After 1 hour, give the part a second coat of the solution (this second coat only applies to this first application of solution). Place the part back on the hanger and let it dry for six (6) hours. In researching, I found that Mauser let their solution dry for six hours between applications, so if it worked for Mauser, it will work for me. Important point - I have let parts dry for longer than six hours (like overnight) and was not happy with the results.

With all due respect, I’d caution everybody to take this with a grain of salt. The time will vary greatly with the conditions in your shop, and what works for one may not works for others. My shop is in the basement, and even if it’s heated and has a dehumidifier running to maintain some form of crude climate control, I can still see a difference through the seasons. When you start out, keep the parts under observation and go by the rust development rather than a set time frame. Once you have a fine rust coat on the parts, it’s time to boil them. I use a cheap digital hygrometer and keep track of humidity, temperature and the time it takes to develop the rust under different conditions. This makes me feel much more confident leaving the parts hanging when I go to bed.

Originally Posted by markbritt

I use “0000” steel wool for the carding process. The key point here is the steel wool must be cleaned before using in order to remove the oil that the manufacturer sprays on the steel wool to prevent it from rusting. I use a glass jar, fill it ½ way with acetone, drop in one or two steel wool pads, cover and shake. I then remove the pads and let them air dry for a few hours before use. When I do a luger frame, I use one pad for each carding session. When I do a luger upper (barrel/slide and small parts) I use two pads per carding session.

I’d like to stress the importance of not being too stingy with the steel wool. The steel wool is not very abrasive, but the dust can be. Rubbing too vigorously with dirty and wadded up steel wool can damage the bluing.

Originally Posted by markbritt

I apply of 5 coats of solution in order to obtain the finish you see the pictures. I have applied up to 8 coats, but saw no appreciable change in the finish to warrant the extra work.

The finish will depend quite a bit on the steel quality, and if you blue other guns than Lugers you’ll find that some of them take up to 15, maybe 20 coats to get a nice color, and I have done some that only took 4. It’s not uncommon to see differences in color between different parts of the gun as well. I usually keep on going until it looks good, then I give it another coat of two for good measure. The color you get after the carding is not the same as you’ll get after oiling, so you might even want to oil a few parts to make sure that you really have the color you want before you call it quits. Bringing the parts out in the sun can also reveal flaws. Take your time to inspect the final coat. You want to find out before you quit, not after the gun is assembled.

I’m far from an expert, so feel free to comment on any of the above. Again, these are the methods that work best for me and not necessarily what works for others, so my best advice is to get some discarded gun parts and experiment a bit before you “go hot”. I had to go through a lot of trial and error before I finally was able to produce a nice rust bluing, but the frustration of this is just part of the process.