Finished my 8x57

[rdog]

Finished rust bluing my Parker Hale 8x57, its a time consuming & dirty process i learnt a lot along the way, Read all i could find on how to do it, tried 4 different acid & chemical mixes on old barrel picked
the best one & done rifle its not bad. if any body wants to know how to do it just ask this is a no gunsmith involvement rifle build, barrel fitting stock work did it all my self.

 

[Wyatt Smith]

Very nice!

 

[John Wasmuth]

Super job!!!

 

[sestoppelman]

Looks great, now send it out for checkering and sights and it will look complete.

 

[rdog]

I cant see open sights good enough to use them any more , i was in the Army rifle team in the 60s, the peep sight on the L1A1 7.62 Nato was all we used up to 500 meters but i was about 20 then.

 

[Tundra Tiger]

Well done sir. That is a terrific looking rifle.

 

[Whitebear995]

Beautiful wood.

 

[Strausser]

I’d love to hear your blueing recipe.
Nice gun,and in a caliber I’m thinking will be my next.

 

[marcosfal]

Rust bluing is a very rewarding process. I'm with ChrisG on the final sanding recommendations of 320 grit so the rusting solution gets a better "bite". After I'm satisfied with the number of cycles, I finish with a German made lamp black pigment mixed with linseed oil and baked on twice. It really evens out the finish and adds another layer of protection.

 

[rdog]

Bluing formula this is the best of 4 that i tried . 100mls distilled water, 20 mls of 70% nitric acid. 20 mls of Feric Chloride & 20 grains by weight pure copper sulphate CUS04. & 20 mls of mentholated spirits,
mix acid to water the rest of the chemicals give very little reaction when added.
other mixes tried 350 mls distilled water , 70 mls nitric acid, 30 mls of hydrochloric acid and 200 grains of pure iron powder, you get a very violent reaction when the iron is added of very toxic gas, gloves face shield & chemical respirator should be used & do mixing out doors be very careful. this mix worked ok but was not as black as the other mix. i tried 2 other mixes, water& ammonium chloride, and salt water from the sea did work but rust time was long. I built a humidity box out of scrap ply wood with a cheap clothes steamer from K Mart used this would produce rust in about 4 hours. to boil i built a steamer out of a cheap stainless steel pot & 1 meter of 100mm steel down pipe attached to the lid & hung the parts in the pipe & boiled for about 20 min, i purchased a
stainless steel carding wheel from Brownells when finished after about 6 applications soaked parts in a strong solution of washing soda to stop acid reaction & washed in clean hot water
blow off with compressed air & soaked parts in used engine oil for 24 hours i can post some pictures of humidity box & boiling tube if any body is interested.

 

[Strausser]

Thank you,much appreciated.
I`ve got the acids but not the coppersulfate,but that should be the easiest to get.
I have planned on trying the iron one,but I guess I`ll stay clear of it.

 

[rdog]

The iron mix works ok but is very messy to use & mix, its finished colour is not as good as the other one, its also claimed that the hydrochloric acid is much harder to stop the rusting process at the end than nitric. good luck. i think the finished colour depends on the type of steel the Parker Hale M98 bolt shrouds are hard to get right i bead blasted them in the end.
.

 

[hawkeyesatx]

That’s a beautiful rifle! Great job done!

I like the caliber myself!

Hawk

 

[Nhoro]

That looks brilliant ! I have an old beat up Brno Model 1 CZ that I need to blue. I will try your mix.

I am interested that the different mixes gave different depth of colour.

 

[Strausser]

I’m interested in seeing pics if your setup.

i can post some pictures of humidity box & boiling tube if any body is interested.

 

[rdog]

Pictures of bluing set up, all i did was copy the set up on Mark Novac (Anvil) U Tube video on rust bluing.
I think the end colour depends on the surface finish & steel as much a the rusting chemical .Do not use Pvc pipe as it will not handle the heat I used 100mm steel down pipe.

chemical

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

Finished rust bluing my Parker Hale 8x57, its a time consuming & dirty process i learnt a lot along the way, Read all i could find on how to do it, tried 4 different acid & chemical mixes on old barrel picked
the best one & done rifle its not bad. if any body wants to know how to do it just ask this is a no gunsmith involvement rifle build, barrel fitting stock work did it all my self.

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@rdog
Pretty good job for an old fella.
Seriously looks bloody good mate well done.
Bob

 

[Fallschirmjaeger]

So you clearly used steam to do the rust conversion...did you find it worked as well as boiling? I've been itching to try it this way and would love to hear your opinions regarding the steam rig. How long in the steam to convert the rust?

 

[rdog]

I believe that steam does a better job, about 15 to 20 min is all that is required and you can use tap water.

 

[Fallschirmjaeger]

Sounds great...thank you sir! Well done on the stock...I've been inletting a Mannlicher-Schonauer 1903 action and it is tough work.