"Antiqued" another Brasser

[Stantheman86]

I picked up a $220 round barrel Brasser from Midway.....

And I honestly just prefer them in the white. I just think they look better, to me, with a "field worn" look. Once the brass starts darkening from handling and powder residue, they look great.

A quick breakdown with the Grace screwdrivers and into the vinegar bath. 4 hours later, wipe off with a sponge. Clean with Action Blaster and reassemble. Boom.....instant " salty veteran " sidearm look.

So , my .44 "Leech & Rigdon " joins my .44 "Schneider & Glassick" in my rig, that I bought for a pair of Uberti 1860 Armies that will probably never arrive.

The new .44 is from 2022, and it looks like they're putting higher front sights on , using a blued hammer and finally stopped using grip frames cut for a shoulder stock. The loading lever catch is just a hair too far up on the barrel, allowing the lever to rattle around but I'll find some way to fix it.

The blued hammers are probably just another step to "streamline " production and get post-pandemic guns out to catch up with demand.

This gun, like my other Piettas, has a properly fitted arbor.

We know .44 brass frame Navies never existed , they are fantasy guns but they're all Italian repros so I'll just use my imagination. In my mind they're rare "prototypes " that made it out into the field and saw hard use by a Confederate Cavalryman. It is now 1875 and they are heavily worn from over a decade of holster carry. I have an active imagination.

However, here's a pic of a pair of .36 "Schneider & Glassicks" that are more HC.

 

[Stantheman86]

They did well today, the Schneider is a little too tightly fitted, and the hammer drags inside the frame after a little bit of powder grit gets down in there. I polished the sides with m
Mag Polish after cleaning it today and hopefully it breaks in .

Pietta does a good job with these, the new one didn't hit as high as it looks like they use a higher front sight to put them on at 25 yards. Very accurate guns. I was just kind of fun popping today but the one shot I carefully aimed hit dead in the face of my bad guy target.

I learned that the T/C U-View flask is junk and it leaks, so none of my charges were consistent. The gun didn't seem to care.

There's really not a better budget fun gun than a $220 Pietta brasser. It's not a family heirloom , or a BBQ gun, it's a fun range plinker that you don't have to stress about every nick and ding.

 

[B P Arn]

I tried to not like those 44 brassers, but I failed. They is Kool!!!

Nice holsters, too.

 

[Stantheman86]

Thank You

It takes a few range sessions for me to really "bond " with some Brassers and the brass has to get good and tarnished for that seasoned look....people polish them up when they clean them, I'm like nooooooo let them patina up nice and pretty

 

[B P Arn]

I'm a "shine and polish" kind of guy for the most part, but your thread is inspiring.

 

[JohnnieT]

Those look pretty sharp “in the white”. I don’t own a brasser right now, but I suddenly feel the urge to go shopping lol!

 

[Stantheman86]

I'm a "shine and polish" kind of guy for the most part, but your thread is inspiring.

View attachment 164920

Those are nice looking guns, if I found another .36 Griswold & Gunnison I'd keep it blued.

I had a Uberti Leech & Rigdon back when they put plain cylinders in them and I wish I'd have kept it

 

[Stantheman86]

Those look pretty sharp “in the white”. I don’t own a brasser right now, but I suddenly feel the urge to go shopping lol!

The pics of originals inspired me, I wasn't so much looking to really "antique " them but make them look like they've seen some hard use in the field

I figured in 1865 when the war was over, there were guys carrying guns that looked like these

I'd imagine they were blued or browned originally

I just love the in the white look, I vinegar bathed my Uberti London Navy after it rusted over after being forgotten in a range bag after I moved 2 years ago, I like how it came out

If I ever found a neglected Dragoon or Walker I'd probably antique it, I'd never do it with one of my pretty new ones. I bid on a rusty ASM Dragoon a while back but it went too high

 

[Mica]

We're soulmates on this topic, Stan. I'm going to give this a go. Vinegar. I've been scoping for older ASMs and FIEs on GB that are coming in at $160 to $200 for this process. But are you thinking it makes more sense to get a new one and avoid unseen mechanical issues with the older ones?

Also, I wonder if there is a suitable process for antiquing the wood (other than just dragging it behind the lawn tractor or something).

I'm a guitar player, and this reminds me of the interest in old Fenders that have seen a gazillion nights in smoky, rowdy nightclubs and roadhouses. People will pay seriously big money to acquire a Strat with that relic look. Fender will actually make one that is already relicked in the factory.

 

[TDM]

Both your revolvers look great! I like them a lot!

 

[Stantheman86]

Both your revolvers look great! I like them a lot!

Thank You Sir

There's just something cool to me with the Brassers when they get that dark brass patina and the gunmetal starts to patina from powder residue .

Lodgewood charges good money to defarb a Pietta Griswold & Gunnison to make them look well used, I just kinda do it myself and don't worry about the stamps on the barrel

 

[Stantheman86]

We're soulmates on this topic, Stan. I'm going to give this a go. Vinegar. I've been scoping for older ASMs and FIEs on GB that are coming in at $160 to $200 for this process. But are you thinking it makes more sense to get a new one and avoid unseen mechanical issues with the older ones?

Also, I wonder if there is a suitable process for antiquing the wood (other than just dragging it behind the lawn tractor or something).

I'm a guitar player, and this reminds me of the interest in old Fenders that have seen a gazillion nights in smoky, rowdy nightclubs and roadhouses. People will pay seriously big money to acquire a Strat with that relic look. Fender will actually make one that is already relicked in the factory.

I'd just get a new one, that way you know it's tight and it has the better brass alloy, and CNC fitting.

The brass and gunmetal will patina all on their own just from shooting them , the powder residue will give the brass a nice dark patina and the steel will darken in some spots. Plus they come out of the vinegar already looking like well-used originals . I would never shine them up or "brighten " the gunmetal, I just let them get "experienced " with range shooting and keeping them in leather holsters like they would have been.

My goal wasn't so much to make them look like they're 160 years old, but like they saw 4 years of hard use in the field and a few campaigns in the holster, getting rained on, cleaned with coffee grounds and pond water

The grips on mine already have dings and scratches just from use. Unlike stuff like my Walkers or Dragoons that I carefully lay down on the range table making sure there's no dirt, or popped caps under them, I'll just kinda put these down wherever with no babying them, like they would have actually been handled. The grips on my .36 Brassers already darkened up and are starting to look aged.

 

[Mica]

Thanks. Are they real rust magnets after de-bluing? What do you use as a rust preventative during storage?

 

[springfield art]

I picked up a $220 round barrel Brasser from Midway.....

And I honestly just prefer them in the white. I just think they look better, to me, with a "field worn" look. Once the brass starts darkening from handling and powder residue, they look great.

A quick breakdown with the Grace screwdrivers and into the vinegar bath. 4 hours later, wipe off with a sponge. Clean with Action Blaster and reassemble. Boom.....instant " salty veteran " sidearm look.

So , my .44 "Leech & Rigdon " joins my .44 "Schneider & Glassick" in my rig, that I bought for a pair of Uberti 1860 Armies that will probably never arrive.

The new .44 is from 2022, and it looks like they're putting higher front sights on , using a blued hammer and finally stopped using grip frames cut for a shoulder stock. The loading lever catch is just a hair too far up on the barrel, allowing the lever to rattle around but I'll find some way to fix it.

The blued hammers are probably just another step to "streamline " production and get post-pandemic guns out to catch up with demand.

This gun, like my other Piettas, has a properly fitted arbor.

We know .44 brass frame Navies never existed , they are fantasy guns but they're all Italian repros so I'll just use my imagination. In my mind they're rare "prototypes " that made it out into the field and saw hard use by a Confederate Cavalryman. It is now 1875 and they are heavily worn from over a decade of holster carry. I have an active imagination.

However, here's a pic of a pair of .36 "Schneider & Glassicks" that are more HC.

View attachment 164665View attachment 164666View attachment 164667View attachment 164668View attachment 164669View attachment 164670View attachment 164671View attachment 164672

I agree! Nice photo spread! Great work!

 

[Stantheman86]

Thanks. Are they real rust magnets after de-bluing? What do you use as a rust preventative during storage?

I wipe them down with Eezox the same as my in the white rifles and muskets.

I honestly find my "bright" or gunmetal firearms no more susceptible to rust than my blued firearms.

When the parts come out of the vinegar they will sometimes turn orange from the air hitting them. This easily wipes off. I wipe all the parts down with Action Blaster then Eezox.

The Schneider & Glassicks in my pic have been in those leather holsters for almost a year in a room with no dehumidifier, and haven't rusted at all. And all I do is wipe them down with Eezox after I clean them.

Any good non-petroleum oil will work. I wiped my ArmiSport CS Richmond down with liquid Wonder Lube patch lube and it hasn't rusted.