Fix It Or Part It Out? Long

[Art]

Fire blue is easy! Do it in kitchen oven roaster oven----or easiest way is: Clean part of all oil and crud with acetone. Do not touch with oily fingers afterward. Hold part with needle nose pliers and heat with small propane torch. Keep part moveing and turning just beyond tip flame to distribute heat evenly as possible. Straw color will appear first then darker straw and finaly start to turn purple. Remove part from heat briefly occasionally since color is a bit behind heat(temp) being applied. After purple the bright blue(fire blue occurs). Go slow in final stage. Once fire blue color occurs---just lay the part on the vise or some metal surface and let it cool. when oil is applied after cooling the color will be a bit darker. If you continue to heat the part it will finally turn gray/bright and stay that way. You can continue to heat red hot but straw or blue will not reoccur unless you repolish the part. Final color of fire blue and straw depend on the polish job. Don't be afraid to do this----it will not damage the part(unless you heat it red hot) even then you will not ruin a grip screw. I used ovens for years to straw and fire blue parts. Past several years I have strawed and fire blued perhaps 200 parts just using the little ole propane torch. Practice on small pieces of scrap metal or any small gun part. Remember the poish job makes the difference. Notice that a trigger for instance still has some tool or polish marks. If the part is not pitted---some 220 wet or dry held around a small metal block to maintain sharp edges will usually clean up the part and still leave a hint of polish marks. Take care to leave these marks in same direction as original. Final polish with crocus cloth will brighten metal but still retain the finish marks. A fine carding wheel as used in rust bluing will clean up back side of parts and brighten appropriately. It will not be original looking-----but if you want some pretty straw----put a safety lever on the buffer and make it mirror bright. I could go into temperatures of each color etc---but that is covered in a chart somewhere in this forum. You will not care about the temp----it is color you want. Now my secret is out and my straw business of 20 years is gone!!! Of course there is nitre process etc. Don't matter color comes out same---just practice. Hold parts with smallest needle nose pliers you have then with just the tip and on very tip of a non exposed(when assembled)part. Grip screws work best when pliers held(carefully) arround the threads and heat from the bottom of the screw.