Bluing a browned barrel

davem · August 31, 2013, 10:40 AM

I bought a used, beat up, side by side 16 gauge Stevens 311 a few years ago and re-did the barrel. I would have preferred to rust blue the barrel but I was worried about all the nooks and crannies between the ribs and if I rust blued there might be trapped water from boiling that would later cause rust. So...I browned the barrel. This was a rust brown using Laurel Mountain Forge browning solution. It looks okay but I always wished I had blued it.
Some guy told me I could lightly sand (#320) the browning and boil it and get a rust blue and not to worry about the trapped water.
Any thoughts or advise? Thanks.

**4V50 Gary** · August 31, 2013, 10:42 AM

Don't sand it. You're asking to work. Get toilet bowl cleaner. Go outside and using rubber gloves and standing upwind, apply it with a brush or sponge. It'll remove the finish. Then after rinsing in water, polish the barrel for bluing.

Dixie Gunsmithing · August 31, 2013, 01:20 PM

Any set of barrels to be boiled have to have a vent drilled, or it could blow the ribs out due to pressure rising inside the void from heated expanding gases. Generally, after bluing, the water is blown out with low pressure air, and the a water displacing oil is ran into the void. After that, the hole is tapped, and a set screw put in it to seal it off. This is generally drilled in the bottom rib, at the forearm, so it will not show. I also drill a hole between the muzzles, which is lead filled, then re-solder it at the end.

The toilet cleaner, in mention, would be something like CLR, if I see where Gary is going with this, which is a mild acid. Rust remover will do the same thing, such as Naval Jelly.

Anyhow, if you ever intend on putting a set of barrels in a boiling bath, they should be vented, unless you're willing to re-solder the ribs if the pop loose.

davem · August 31, 2013, 01:39 PM

Not to switch gears but I've always thought that a cold blue (Brownell's) would yield uneven results. I am assuming a cold blue might be okay on small parts but for anything as large as a barrel, the results would be less than prime. True???

**4V50 Gary** · August 31, 2013, 02:44 PM

Stay away from cold blue. Get express blue from Brownell's. You degrease, heat with propane torch to 200 to 220 F, apply express blue with a clean cotton swab (if it sizzles, it's too hot), then put the barrel in a tank of boiling water for ten minutes. Pull out, card with wire brush and degrease.

Repeat 3 to 4 times.

Apply oil and let it cure for 24 hours. Simple and yields great results.

lowbush · August 31, 2013, 10:34 PM

You need to worry about trapped water, the rail has to have a drain hole taped into it to rust blue it, if it does not already have one.

ebell46 · September 1, 2013, 12:30 AM

In my experience with rust blueing (2 guns, barrels and recievers) i found that the psrts get so hot during boiling the water evoporates once they are removed from the bath. I havent done a shotgun however so i cant speak for venting the rib.

**4V50 Gary** · September 1, 2013, 03:28 AM

Boiling them for ten minutes will hear up the barrels and cause any water to evaporate.

August 31, 2013, 10:40 AM	#1
davem Junior member Join Date: October 4, 2004 Posts: 458	Bluing a browned barrel I bought a used, beat up, side by side 16 gauge Stevens 311 a few years ago and re-did the barrel. I would have preferred to rust blue the barrel but I was worried about all the nooks and crannies between the ribs and if I rust blued there might be trapped water from boiling that would later cause rust. So...I browned the barrel. This was a rust brown using Laurel Mountain Forge browning solution. It looks okay but I always wished I had blued it. Some guy told me I could lightly sand (#320) the browning and boil it and get a rust blue and not to worry about the trapped water. Any thoughts or advise? Thanks.

August 31, 2013, 10:42 AM	#2
4V50 Gary Staff Join Date: November 2, 1998 Location: Colorado Posts: 21,829	Don't sand it. You're asking to work. Get toilet bowl cleaner. Go outside and using rubber gloves and standing upwind, apply it with a brush or sponge. It'll remove the finish. Then after rinsing in water, polish the barrel for bluing. __________________ Vigilantibus et non dormientibus jura subveniunt. *Molon Labe!*

August 31, 2013, 02:44 PM	#5
4V50 Gary Staff Join Date: November 2, 1998 Location: Colorado Posts: 21,829	Stay away from cold blue. Get express blue from Brownell's. You degrease, heat with propane torch to 200 to 220 F, apply express blue with a clean cotton swab (if it sizzles, it's too hot), then put the barrel in a tank of boiling water for ten minutes. Pull out, card with wire brush and degrease. Repeat 3 to 4 times. Apply oil and let it cure for 24 hours. Simple and yields great results. __________________ Vigilantibus et non dormientibus jura subveniunt. *Molon Labe!*

September 1, 2013, 03:28 AM	#8
4V50 Gary Staff Join Date: November 2, 1998 Location: Colorado Posts: 21,829	Boiling them for ten minutes will hear up the barrels and cause any water to evaporate. __________________ Vigilantibus et non dormientibus jura subveniunt. *Molon Labe!*

Thread Tools	Search this Thread
Show Printable Version Email this Page	Search this Thread: Advanced Search

August 31, 2013, 01:20 PM	#3
Dixie Gunsmithing Moderator Emeritus Join Date: April 27, 2013 Location: Ohio Posts: 1,923	Any set of barrels to be boiled have to have a vent drilled, or it could blow the ribs out due to pressure rising inside the void from heated expanding gases. Generally, after bluing, the water is blown out with low pressure air, and the a water displacing oil is ran into the void. After that, the hole is tapped, and a set screw put in it to seal it off. This is generally drilled in the bottom rib, at the forearm, so it will not show. I also drill a hole between the muzzles, which is lead filled, then re-solder it at the end. The toilet cleaner, in mention, would be something like CLR, if I see where Gary is going with this, which is a mild acid. Rust remover will do the same thing, such as Naval Jelly. Anyhow, if you ever intend on putting a set of barrels in a boiling bath, they should be vented, unless you're willing to re-solder the ribs if the pop loose.

August 31, 2013, 01:39 PM	#4
davem Junior member Join Date: October 4, 2004 Posts: 458	Not to switch gears but I've always thought that a cold blue (Brownell's) would yield uneven results. I am assuming a cold blue might be okay on small parts but for anything as large as a barrel, the results would be less than prime. True???

August 31, 2013, 10:34 PM	#6
lowbush Junior Member Join Date: August 20, 2013 Posts: 3	You need to worry about trapped water, the rail has to have a drain hole taped into it to rust blue it, if it does not already have one.

September 1, 2013, 12:30 AM	#7
ebell46 Member Join Date: June 4, 2011 Posts: 38	In my experience with rust blueing (2 guns, barrels and recievers) i found that the psrts get so hot during boiling the water evoporates once they are removed from the bath. I havent done a shotgun however so i cant speak for venting the rib.