Black Shoe Polish as Inletting Black?

[Spikebuck]

I've been playing around with various alternatives to commercial inletting black. I know many here use candle soot...not sure what kind of candles are used, but the ones around my house don't put out enough soot to do the job. I've tried various other methods mentioned from time to time in this forum.

Today I tried two different kinds of shoe polish. First I tried the liquid kind with a foam applicator pad. Kinda worked, but I think it dried too fast to be very effective. Then I tried plain old Kiwi Black shoe polish. It wiped on really nice and seemed to do a good job as an inletting black. It wiped right off the barrel I'm currently inletting with Hoppes #9. I'm sure many other barrel cleaners would remove it as well.

Has anyone else used or experimented with black shoe polish? If so, I'm interested in hearing any pros or cons from your experience.

 

[Stophel]

Jerrow's Inlet Black is the nastiest substance known to man. I despise it. I would not want to use anything greasy or oily for inletting marking. Anything oily or waxy is going to soak into the wood. So I quit the greasy kids' stuff years ago.

Never could get candles to work. It takes FOREVER to build up enough black on the part, and you'll burn your fingers trying to hold it that long. Maybe if you had a carbide smoker or something...

I have been using simple pigments mixed up with some paint thinner, making a paste of sorts. Smear it on the part, put it in place, and it leaves a nice mark on the wood. It is easy to simply wipe off the part, or scrape off the wood (if desired). When the paint thinner dries, all that is left is the original dry powder pigment. No fuss, no muss. No black mess all over your hands, clothes, tools, stock, and everything else.

I've used whatever Sienna or Umber pigment was within closest reach (and would show up on the wood). On this last gun, I used Prussian Blue! You could even simply grind up some charcoal into powder and use it just fine.

 

[Spikebuck]

Stophel, can you expand on "pigment." As in pigment for what kind of "usual" purpose, brand and source? I like the idea, just not sure what kind of pigments, specifically, you may be referring to. Thanks.

 

[necchi]

Get yourself an oil lamp from the dollar store.
Fill it with the paraffin based lamp oil they sell at walmart.
Remove the chimney, light the wick and turn it up high, you'll get plenty of soot. Then turn it down for no soot, turn it up to get soot, repeat as needed.
Keep a damp wash cloth handy for a simple wipe on the areas you don't want soot so the whole thing, your hands included don't get messy with soot.

 

[Stophel]

Pigments are dry powdered coloring agents, added to oils to make paint. "Earth pigments" are mined and are basically ground stone/dirt. Siennas and Umbers (and the generic term "Ochre") are earth pigments. Black pigment was usually some form of charcoal (lamp black, vine black, bone black, etc). Pigments can be had from any artist's supply house (like www.kremerpigmente.com). They're not expensive at all, but again, you can basically make your own with charcoal. If you had a little pile of dry rust dust, even that would work fine.

What I am NOT referring to is the mulled artists' pigments in tubes. These are basically "concentrated paint", already mulled into an oil vehicle.

 

[Archie]

I tried the ground charcoal method and it was too dry to stick to the metal but might have been doing it wrong. I have used the side of a pencil lead with good results.

 

[Stophel]

That's what the paint thinner is for. You make a sort of paste. :wink:

 

[MSW]

I've done OK with the inletting black, but it can get all over everything unless you're super careful

tough to get out of your hair

... when it runs out (which shouldn't be very long) i'll get a lamp ... candles just flat don't work - we have pretty good paraffin which doesn't smoke well enough to get the job done.

 

[rmatt]

+1 on the oil lamp

 

[Lock Nut]

That's what the paint thinner is for. You make a sort of paste. :wink:

Just curious. Why paint thinner and not just water?

 

[Brad Foust]

This has been a problem for me also.
I was using lipstick, which worked well with a round steel barrel.
But when I tried it with smooth polished brass as on the butt plate and entry RR thinble, they seemed so smooth that the lipstick didnt stay on well enough.
So I tried the candle and just bot enough soot. I will try a lamp but am worried about the oil getting knowched over on my messy bench.
I once tried some heavy military grease used to lub M1 Garands actions and it worked well. But was afraid of the grease staining the wood.
Try different lipsticks. Soem seemed to work better than others.

 

[dlgraley]

An oil lamp works well for me. I also sometimes use Prussian Blue.

 

[Razor62]

Get yourself an oil lamp from the dollar store.
Fill it with the paraffin based lamp oil they sell at walmart.
Remove the chimney, light the wick and turn it up high, you'll get plenty of soot. Then turn it down for no soot, turn it up to get soot, repeat as needed.
Keep a damp wash cloth handy for a simple wipe on the areas you don't want soot so the whole thing, your hands included don't get messy with soot.

Couldn't agree more!!! This method works like a charm.

 

[Vol423]

Don't waste your time. Get an ounce of Jerrow's inletting black from Brownells for 7-8 bucks. It doesn't dry out and it readily removes from metal.

 

[Zonie]

IMO, black shoe polish would make a rather poor transfer medium for inletting parts.

It dries too fast and once dry, little if any will actually transfer from one part to another.

Personally, I'm a fan of the inletting black that Vol423 mentioned.

It doesn't dry out. It easily blackens whatever it touches and it seems to last almost forever.

The little bottle I bought 19 years ago still has some left.

I've read about folks getting the stuff all over themselves, their furniture and probably their dog or cat but obviously, their using too much to do the job.

I've found that a small model painting paint brush that's just "touched" to the surface of the medium is all it takes to "paint" the metal part and end up with a good transfer.

 

[fusil de chase]

A felt tipped marker works very well, neat tidy and transfers nice. Could be staining if it hits the wood wet? I have been using it after giving it a second to dry on the metal and does not seem to penetrate beyond the surface.

 

[tenngun]

I use the cheap pink "survial"candles, smokes well. I get it smoky,lay on wood resmoke and let cool while removing the black. As soon as Im done repeat. the part is always cool by the time I try it agian

 

[Patocazador]

Your method is the oldest there is. Usually referred to as "carbon black", it is simply soot. Craftsmen have been using it for centuries. Dentists even used it into the early 20th century for adjusting dentures, crowns, etc.

 

[tbarnes66]

I've tried several different methods and brands and I also like Jerrow's the best.

One thing I learned to keep it only where you want it to go is to put on a handle. I have a brass lug that came off a trigger guard that I super glue to whatever I'm inletting to hold on to. You also need some blocks of wood arranged so that you can set it down on your bench without the inletting parts touching anything.

Also, I don't know whats in Birchwood Casey's Gun Scrubber, but a short blast dissolves it, making cleaning quick and easy. You dont' have to worry about it on the stock. By the time you get through sanding and whiskering, it will all be gone.

 

[Spikebuck]

Good conversation. Thanks everyone.

I've used Miles Gilbert inletting black and it works extremely well. I like to apply it with a Q-tip which I can just throw away after the job is done vs having to clean a brush. My understanding is that particular brand is not going to be made anymore (per the mfg). It was 1/2 the price of Jerrow's. Actually, same price for twice as much in the bottle. The only place I could find it recently was Midway USA and they are now gouging at almost double the retail price!