August 2, 2009, 02:20 AM | #1 |
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Bead blasting
I have a Smith M60 no dash. I like the look of bead blasting but don't want to send my gun to Smith and pay the $145. Have any of you guys had your revolver bead blasted? How much and where did you go? Pics would be great. Thanks
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August 2, 2009, 02:21 AM | #2 |
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Don't mess up your No Dash.
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August 2, 2009, 06:36 AM | #3 |
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I did it on a snub but only because it was used and scratched up a little. Bead blast is not hard. Who the heck wants that much to do it? That is a ripoff. The only work involved is a quick clean/degrease and disassembly. Then at the end you gotta clean up any traces of media, relube and reassemble. I did it when I had access to a blast cabinet full of beads, for free. You might try a gunsmith that does parkerising on milsurps, as they bead blast pretty much everything. See if they would do it cheap. I went so far as to buy small rubber stoppers at the hardware to plug the barrel and chambers to blast the gun and keep those untouched. Maybe the shop would give you a discount if you stripped it yourself as prep. You do not need to have the insides, trigger, or hammer blasted! Frame, sideplate, screws, and cylinder and crane, cyl. release, is pretty much it. 150$? What a gyp.
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August 2, 2009, 09:08 AM | #4 | |
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Most places I've seen on the web charge in the $60 to $100 range to bead blast a revolver. That figure does not include shipping both ways. A local source is definitely the way to go if possible.
If you have access to the equipment you can get good results doing it yourself. I have done a few myself using a compressor, cabinet and media I bought from Harbor Freight. That's probably an outlay of about $200 to $275 (dependant upon sales/discounts/coupons). The compressor sees a lot of use for other jobs and is about half the total. I actually use the cabinet quite a bit for other projects. Tom2 covered much of the process. Let me add that you can mask off areas that you don't want blasted vice removing them. You can also use the masking and different media to produce a two tone look (ie darker sight rib). S&W revolvers are best disassembled using special cup tipped punches; they run about $20 at Brownells. Quote:
S&W Model 60-9 (glass bead) The sight rib/top strap on the 60-9 was masked and AO blasted Ruger Security Six (sand blasted and lightly buffed) S&W Model 63 (glass bead) Excuse the bottom feeder; my Ruger P90 that I converted to decock only (slide and controls are bead blasted using different air pressures) ALWAYS use the proper safety equipment if you go the DIY route! Regards, Greg |
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August 2, 2009, 09:19 AM | #5 |
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I have a model 64 that I am looking to have the same thing done to it. Are there any draw backs to doing this to a gun?
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August 2, 2009, 01:27 PM | #6 |
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The only drawback, other than ruining the value of a gun like the OP's No Dash, is that you have to make absolutely certain to clean the gun THOROUGHLY after blasting. Glass bead, aluminum oxide, and any other type of blasting media will find it's way into every nook and cranny of a gun.
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August 2, 2009, 03:38 PM | #7 |
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I don't see how it can really impact the value of a gun that is not a notable collectable as long as your results look good. Actually I did a better job than factory, I had a matte 60 and they did not bother to seal the barrel or chambers, they all had the same frosty look as the outsides. I did not do the extractor, either. Just the ejection rod. I took the guts out and then reattached the sideplate to get that and the screw heads. And you do have some work to be sure that you get the blast media out of it real well before lube and assembly. I guess you do need set of cup end punches if it has a detachable front sight that is black or something. Mine has the integral sight so I just painted it after blasting it. And proper screwdrivers to prevent scratching or worse on reassembly, any scratch will be shiny on a dull surface thereafter. I also polished the top of the cylinder stop to minimise a wear line appearing on the cylinder.
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August 2, 2009, 06:00 PM | #8 |
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FAIR WARNING:
If you're going to have a stainless or aluminum gun bead blasted, make very certain the bead blaster is either thoroughly cleaned out and refilled with new media, or make sure its a blast setup that's used ONLY for stainless or aluminum. If the blaster is used for carbon steel it will embed particles of carbon steel into the stainless or aluminum, which will RUST later, ruining the finish. I once had a customer who blasted an aluminum frame in an auto shop brake blaster, and was amazed that aluminum would rust. Also make sure to keep the blast out of the bore and chambers. Plug them with plastic or rubber plugs to be sure. DO NOT blast the hammer and trigger, these ARE NOT stainless steel, they're hard chrome plated. Only the very, very early models had real stainless hammers and triggers. |
August 2, 2009, 06:12 PM | #9 |
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I had a 686 done many years ago. The gun had been stolen from a gunshop and was recovered the next day when an arrest was made. After the gun was returned to the shop it was in sad shape. The thieves had thrown everything they could carry into a gym bag and they were all scratched up.
Got the gun cheap and spent $40 to have it blasted and thought it turned out pretty good. Not sure I would spend $145 though. A local smith would probably be cheaper than the factory. |
August 2, 2009, 11:03 PM | #10 |
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GB6491 thanks for the great pictures. Thanks for all the replies. Smith & Wesson Performance Center wants $145 to bead blast. I thought that was a very high price. I'll look around for a local guy.
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