Rochatte a Paris Barrel

Howdy all,

I got a Rochatte a Paris, which I rescue from careless shooter.
It is a replica of an 19th Century French Pistol Caliber 45.
It has some issue rust in many places and with the bore,
it seems as it has not been clean properly and there are
residual stuff and rust.
Wondering if there is away that we can still save this pistol. Remove the rust and restore
it to working order.

A small clip
https://youtu.be/VMbjCJ__9zE

Thank you again

Fabrizio

looks good, good luck!

hrt4me said:

looks good, good luck!

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Hi, I just saw your incredible collection of Guns...
Congratulation!!!
I am going to read the whole tread, I saw you got more
pitting and rust to deal that what I got, I am going to read
all about it, lots of info, and good for the eyes...
Thank you

Dear Arquebuss try vinegar to remove much of the rested bore.
Rudyard

Rudyard said:

Dear Arquebuss try vinegar to remove much of the rested bore.
Rudyard

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Thanks, I will soak the barrel in white vinegar.
I have a friend who does metal works.. I will probably try to remove the chrome
which is not very inline with the period of the gun and bluing the whole thing..

Yes, their are barrel makers that can reline or cut a new bore for you if you are a shooter...c

I would recommend that first you, @Harquebus, do a good cleaning to remove the rust. Unsulfurated molasses would be my rust removing solvent of choice. Some minor pits won't necessarily adversely effect accuracy. So clean it up and give your pistol a rest on the range. Its not a hopeless cause yet.

Fabrizio, please tell us what country you live in, so that we can recommend things to you that you are able to find.

I'm guessing that sulphuretted molasses might not be so easy to locate in Western Europe.

That pistol looks like it would be a very attractive restoration project - please post some on-going pics of your restoration...

Grenadier1758 said:

I would recommend that first you, @Harquebus, do a good cleaning to remove the rust. Unsulfurated molasses would be my rust removing solvent of choice. Some minor pits won't necessarily adversely effect accuracy. So clean it up and give your pistol a rest on the range. Its not a hopeless cause yet.

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I found Unsulfurated Molasses, 1 Gallon around 100 $, probably able to find fractions of it for less.

TFoley said:

Fabrizio, please tell us what country you live in, so that we can recommend things to you that you are able to find.
I'm guessing that sulphuretted molasses might not be so easy to locate in Western Europe.

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I live in Italy, Pizza and Olive Oil are ready available but I doubt they can help de-rust the barrel...
If it is not much Molasses needed to remove the rust, I can buy a 32 oz for 10$.

Pietro said:

That pistol looks like it would be a very attractive restoration project - please post some on-going pics of your restoration...

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I will post the project as it evolves.. I am very excited to see it in action.

thank you all for the support.

Btw Do you think I should remove the Chrome Plating and Blue it or just leave it like this...
The Chrome plating seems having some rust and it was not yet invented in the 19 century,

First Option Hydro-cloric Acid

1. Mix 1/3 part hydro-chloric acid to 1 part water in a vat used for chemical mixtures (like a heavy-duty plastic bucket, etc.) to produce a 30% acid solution. ...
2. Submerge the chrome-plated object in the solution until chrome strips off.
3. Wash the object thoroughly in soap and water, and rinse before drying.

Second Option Acetone

1. You will have to submerge the plating in a bowl or bucket large enough to accommodate it.
2. Fill a bowl or bucket with acetone.
3. Place the chrome- or nickel-plated object in the bowl or bucket. Cover it.
4. It might take as long as 24 hours for the acetone to soften and dissolve the plating.
5. Remove the object from the acetone. Wipe away the plating residue with a rag or a worn, soft toothbrush.
6. Rinse the object with water and then wipe it dry.

any rust that is left in it will go with repeated shooting. I have seen a lot worse!. so shoot it and have fun. the bore will improve.

I'm not so sure that the pistol is chrome plated. It could be highly polished, in-the-white finish.

toot said:

any rust that is left in it will go with repeated shooting. I have seen a lot worse!. so shoot it and have fun. the bore will improve.

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Thank you

Grenadier1758 said:

I'm not so sure that the pistol is chrome plated. It could be highly polished, in-the-white finish.

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I will get to bottom of that..
I am going to bring it an old metal worker
Thank you

Hi Guys A shout from the cotswolds in UK. I have a pistol with the same mark on the barrel and have had problems researching the maker but now think my barrel was made by Rochette and sold to an Italian gunmaker calledP Bondini. The only difference on mine is the breach plug is not a hooked plug. My bore was very dirty when I first got it using a .45 jag with a patch smeared with "SolvoAutoSolv" (a metal polish used in the UK for motorcycles) and a drop of WD40 it removed all the marks and I had a nice clean polished bore which shoots exceptionally well.

The one I have was a P Bondini made repro of the Rochatte pistol