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Apr 29th, 2024
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Joined: Aug 2006
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Sidelock
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Sidelock
Joined: Aug 2006
Posts: 266 |
Is there a method to apply faux case colours to the action
of a gun? I don't know how you would copy the tans, oranges,
reds and blues that are on English rifles and shotguns. I
was told that there are ways to do it, but nobody seems to know
how it is done. I also heard that sometimes guns are recoloured
and then the colors are muted in certain "wear areas" to mimick
an old original case.
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Joined: Nov 2005
Posts: 4,598
Sidelock
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Sidelock
Joined: Nov 2005
Posts: 4,598 |
Back in Sept of 2006 Miller posted this: I received a private request for more complete details on this method I described in a recent post, so thought I would just put it up for all. This is copied directly from an Ithaca Service manual of about 25yrs ago.
To Repair or Restore Color Case on Perazzi's
1; This is a serious problem on guns that have been used extensively.
Equipment Required:
a. Cold blue (we use 44-40)
b. “Q” tips (cotton swabs on a stick)
c. Torch or other heat source
d. Paint remover (we use “Kwick”)
e. Fine steel wool
2; Procedure:
(1) Remove everything from the receiver.
(2) Remove lacquer from the receiver using “Kwick” or other liquid paint remover
(3) Wash receiver in a good solvent or boil with detergent.
(4) Using your heat source, heat the receiver to
a point where liquid cold blue will dry almost
instantly, (about 160°F)
(5) Using a “Q” tip, draw squiggly lines or
whatever is necessary to match existing color
hardening.
Note* If you have polished the receiver to bare
metal, space your lines about ¼” apart on the
first pass, then fill in on a 2nd pass.
(6) Using fine steel wool dipped in oil, remove
the oxidation from the receiver. Be careful
not to remove the color.
(7) Wash in good solvent. Do not touch before
applying lacquer.
(8) Spray with acrylic plastic from “Koloid”
(9) Reassemble gun & return to a satisfied
customer.
Note** This procedure does not affect the case
hardening. It only restores the color.
A few things of note; I also tried Brownell's Oxpho blue & found it worked same as 44-40. I do not recall the brand of Acrylic I used but don't recall Koloid being available where I purchased mine. Also note that though a "Torch" is listed as a heat source, it is used to heat the part to an overall temp of only about 160°F, not enough to bring about any change of color, not even the faintest straw or yellow, much less blue. No concentration of heat is applied to bring about a color change in the metal (A simple propane torch is suffecient heat for the job). Outside of a genuine bone/charcoal case-hardening by knowledgable professional, this is the only procedure I am currently aware of to produce a semblance of case colors with no damage to existing heat-treatment.
Miller
PS; this is applicable to guns other than Perazzi's and can be simply polished off should you decide to go with another finish later. Later in the same thread the suggestion was made to also try some Plum Brown for a bit of color variation. Muted case colors. After the metal has been case colored, some toilet bowl cleaner is applied and rubbed with scotch-brite pad to give the appearance of age. Pete
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Joined: Dec 2001
Posts: 3,588 Likes: 91
Sidelock
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Sidelock
Joined: Dec 2001
Posts: 3,588 Likes: 91 |
Cyanide is the easiest that I know of. But, the colors usually turn out a little gaudy.
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Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 9,469 Likes: 335
Sidelock
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Sidelock
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 9,469 Likes: 335 |
Yeah, cyanide is just a bit Las Vegas over-the-top  
Last edited by revdocdrew; 01/05/08 05:29 PM.
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Joined: Dec 2001
Posts: 2,961 Likes: 9
Sidelock
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Sidelock
Joined: Dec 2001
Posts: 2,961 Likes: 9 |
A friend visiting Fabbri to be fitted swears that they were using iodine in the small shops in Italy to case color actions??
bill
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Joined: Dec 2001
Posts: 999
Sidelock
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Sidelock
Joined: Dec 2001
Posts: 999 |
Bill- Oscar and I had short conversation on this method several years ago on SSMBBS. He and i agreed that this wouldn't match properly done color case hardening but was acceptable on a gun valued at less than enough to make recoloring worth the cost. I quit posting the method because every time I mentioned a torch people assumed high temeratures and sent Chicken Little in screaming "The sky is falling and your going to blow up your gun. O My God, rush out and meaure the chambers first".
Iodine or a salt brine applied with a Q-tip will give you a dull red, pink if you buff it with 0000 steel wool.
Cary
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Joined: Dec 2001
Posts: 12,743
Sidelock
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Sidelock
Joined: Dec 2001
Posts: 12,743 |
Note the Cyanide process is "Not" a Faux color hardening, but a form of true color case hardening. The part is put into molten Cyanide at a temperature sufficient to harden the case which is acquired from the carbon content of the Cyanide upon quenching. Normally the Cyanide does not produce as deep a case as the bone/charcoal process & "In My Opinion" not a beautiful colors. The process I listed will "Indeed" "Never" be mistaken for real charcoal case hardening, but is certainly preferable to sticking the tip of an oxy/acetelene torch to a frame in spots & heating to red heats in areas & oither heats in others, with no concern for the resulting temper of said piece.This method in no way damages the part & is cosmetic only. I have applied it to sng bbl frames as well as a few hardware dbls. I would not necessarily recommend it for even a Perazzi, though Ithaca "Did".
Miller/TN
I Didn't Say Everything I Said, Yogi Berra
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Joined: May 2004
Posts: 615
Sidelock
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Sidelock
Joined: May 2004
Posts: 615 |
2-piper is correct, cyanide case colors are in fact real. Cyanide case coloring produces very "unique" colors and can usually be instantly identified from a traditional bone charcoal case color job because of the way the cyanide process is performed. When the actions are dipped in the cyanide they are usually put in very carefully, causing the infamous "tiger stripes". A traditional bone and charcoal color case creates different coloration because the action falls into the aerated quench randomly. The bubbles in the quench cause the action to be unevenly cooled, sealing in the carbon absorption in random areas and creating unpredictable and beautiful colors. Colors differ between the two processes simply because the two processes are not the same. Traditional bone charcoal case hardening creates certain colors because of the calcium phosphate in the bone. Im not exactly sure why or how the cyanide process produces colors. Im sure someone here can explain it in detail. Obvious cyanide colors http://www.pugsguns.com/content/pictures/07112M.jpgTraditional (original) Process http://www.pugsguns.com/content/pictures/07332M.jpg
Last edited by CMWill; 01/06/08 05:49 PM.
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Joined: Apr 2002
Posts: 6,812
Sidelock
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Sidelock
Joined: Apr 2002
Posts: 6,812 |
Wonder what process Ruger is using on the frame of their Blackhawk Vaquero revolver? I assume that the color is the main event rather than an artifact of case hardening so it would qualify certainly as "faux" but perhaps not as "diy". Do I recall that Dr. Gaddy stated that the characteristic colours could be created below a temperature which would case harden? Can some aspects of the old process be applied to steels which do not require the hard shell to produce only the "facsimile" colors. Please, I am not asking for a rehash of the critical temp. and Martensitic hardening as applied to case-hardenable steels. We're talking about quote/unquote false colors and perhaps someday we'll run across someone conversant with current facsimile processes which are perhaps unduly complicated and also expensive but at least provide a clue beyond stenciling with "quick rust".
jack
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Joined: Aug 2006
Posts: 266
Sidelock
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OP
Sidelock
Joined: Aug 2006
Posts: 266 |
Thanks for all of the comments. What does re color hardening a gun do to the value of it? I have had a few double rifles re hardened. Every one of them had to be adjusted afterwards due to slight warping.
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