Black Chromed guns: i think i never saw one

GLADIO · May 12, 2009, 05:30 PM

I'm trying to figure out what a "black chromed" gun would look compared to a standard blued one. I mean the 1911 style of having polished flat sides and the rest sanded.

I've just seen some random household stuff at a shop today, and i remember Mercedes was using black-chrome finish on some of their bodywork parts, and i've always thought the ability to have that old "Royal Blue" mirror finish, togheter with some actual protection was cool.
i'm in love with the idea of having a rather wear-resistant deep-polished blue finish, wich in turn would discolorate into regular chrome ( wich IMO would look way better than worn-out blueing )...

i've read the thread about hard chrome/black chrome/stainless, and i know about the mechanical differences,
and i've been googlin' around to no avail.

so...
anybody got pics?

PetahW · May 13, 2009, 07:41 AM

Google the Winchester 1871-1971 NRA Centennial Commemorative Rifle or Musket to see what the finish looks like - as Winchester black chromed their receivers ILO bluing.

As a former owner of a few, I know the black chrome CAN chip out at sharp edges, like screw/pin holes, etc.

.

usaz · May 13, 2009, 11:55 AM

Ford's Custom Gun Refinishing, up until recently, offered black chrome. Now it seems that it has been replaced with black nickel. I'm not sure why.
There's some nice customer supplied photos of refinished handguns on their site ( http://www.fordsguns.com/ ).

RickB · May 13, 2009, 01:54 PM

You might also check into IonBond. It's harder than hard chrome, almost impervious to normal "handling" wear, and the metal can be prepped however you want, from matte to high polish.

drail · May 14, 2009, 03:57 PM

Black chrome is a beautiful finish but is not as hard as hard chrome. Almost every plater that has offered it has dropped it because of complaints of wear on customer's guns. I almost had a 1911 finished in black chrome but the plater talked me out of it.

crob241 · May 20, 2009, 09:46 AM

Black chrome is applied over a nickel base, like gold. It can also be done over a copper base but will get a more smokey look instead of black. It is not as hard as nickel but with the nickel base has all the protection of nickel but is black, either gloss or matte. We offer it in our shop and with a nickel frame and black chrome slide and gold controls gives a very custom look thnx [email protected]

May 12, 2009, 05:30 PM	#1
GLADIO Member Join Date: May 9, 2009 Location: Italy Posts: 24	Black Chromed guns: i think i never saw one I'm trying to figure out what a "black chromed" gun would look compared to a standard blued one. I mean the 1911 style of having polished flat sides and the rest sanded. I've just seen some random household stuff at a shop today, and i remember Mercedes was using black-chrome finish on some of their bodywork parts, and i've always thought the ability to have that old "Royal Blue" mirror finish, togheter with some actual protection was cool. i'm in love with the idea of having a rather wear-resistant deep-polished blue finish, wich in turn would discolorate into regular chrome ( wich IMO would look way better than worn-out blueing )... i've read the thread about hard chrome/black chrome/stainless, and i know about the mechanical differences, and i've been googlin' around to no avail. so... anybody got pics? Last edited by GLADIO; May 12, 2009 at 05:37 PM.

May 20, 2009, 09:46 AM	#6
crob241 Junior Member Join Date: February 17, 2009 Posts: 2	Black Chrome Black chrome is applied over a nickel base, like gold. It can also be done over a copper base but will get a more smokey look instead of black. It is not as hard as nickel but with the nickel base has all the protection of nickel but is black, either gloss or matte. We offer it in our shop and with a nickel frame and black chrome slide and gold controls gives a very custom look thnx [email protected]

May 13, 2009, 07:41 AM	#2
PetahW Senior Member Join Date: September 19, 2008 Posts: 4,678	Google the Winchester 1871-1971 NRA Centennial Commemorative Rifle or Musket to see what the finish looks like - as Winchester black chromed their receivers ILO bluing. As a former owner of a few, I know the black chrome CAN chip out at sharp edges, like screw/pin holes, etc. .

May 13, 2009, 11:55 AM	#3
usaz Member Join Date: August 1, 2008 Location: Northern AZ Posts: 50	Ford's Custom Gun Refinishing, up until recently, offered black chrome. Now it seems that it has been replaced with black nickel. I'm not sure why. There's some nice customer supplied photos of refinished handguns on their site ( http://www.fordsguns.com/ ).

May 13, 2009, 01:54 PM	#4
RickB Senior Member Join Date: March 1, 2000 Location: Boise, ID Posts: 8,518	You might also check into IonBond. It's harder than hard chrome, almost impervious to normal "handling" wear, and the metal can be prepped however you want, from matte to high polish.

May 14, 2009, 03:57 PM	#5
drail Junior member Join Date: February 2, 2008 Posts: 3,150	Black chrome is a beautiful finish but is not as hard as hard chrome. Almost every plater that has offered it has dropped it because of complaints of wear on customer's guns. I almost had a 1911 finished in black chrome but the plater talked me out of it.