Dickert rifle... Brown or blue?

[Kuckus]

I'm still working/carving on the stock of a Jacob Dickert rifle to give to my Dad on father's day. Would the barrel and lock have been finished brown or blue when it left Dicker's shop? This is my first build and I'd like to make it as historically correct (you didn't see the fiberglass in the barrel channel...LOL ) as possible.

 

Blued or browned either way is HC. Even left in the white would be HC for the earlier Dickert's. His career spanned the period from 1760's to 1822 when he died. During that long period of time, the browning became popular around 1785, all three finishes were used commonly on longrifles and fowlers.

 

[Swampman]

I would either blue it, or leave it "in the white."

 

[rich pierce]

Cooner's got it. Dickert worked through several eras. Because Dickert worked so long, the question is a little like asking, "would a Chevy have a carburetor or fuel injectors?" So you need to look at characteristics that point to a particular time frame.

If your Dickert has a buttplate of 2" or wider, and a sliding wooden patchbox or a simple 2 piece patchbox, it is an early style, and the barrel should be in the white or fire blued and of course the lock would have been color case hardened.

If your Dickert has a buttplate of 1 and 7/8" or so and a full daisy patchbox it is probably styled for 1790's and browning would be OK for the barrel. I'd leave the lock bright but browning it would be OK. In the white or fire blued is also fine- you have a wide open choice.

If your Dickert is full blown Golden Age with a narrower buttplate, any inlays, etc, browning would be most appropriate.

 

[Kuckus]

Thanks for the sage advice gentlemen :bow:! For the time being I'll contemplate this advice until the stock is complete. The rifle has a simple engraved daisy patchbox with one hunter's star inlay on the cheek piece. Baroque C-scroll on the left side with other carvings at the tang and entry thimble (beaver-tail/fleurdelis hybrid) round out the rifle... The butt plate at the widest point is 1 7/8". Mark (Swampman) I'll definiteley use your blue/chlorox recipe for my next rifle... Chambers Virginia! Anything else would be "uncivilized" :thumbsup:

 

[DrTimboone]

Rich,
Exactly how do you go about fire blueing a lock, say a Chambers round face or a Caywood Wilson with out screwing up the hammer/frizzen or warping the lockplate?? I have read about the beds of coals etc. but I am leary about putting a $125.00 piece of metal in the coals a having get screwed up??

 

[Swampman]

I think most, if not all blued 18th c. firearms were rust blued.

 

[dlemaster]

Most blued 18th century guns that were blued were charcoal blued it is a very old process. Rust blue shows up late in the 18th or early 19th centuries, IIRC. Unless your prepared for the amount of work involved in doing a proper charcoal blueing job you would probably be ahead to do a rust blue to approxamate the look. Another option you might consider is one of the cold blues such as Oxpho Blue from Brownell's
while not as durable as a rust blue or charcoal blue they are much better than the cold blues from years back and they do age well.

Regards, Dave

 

[rich pierce]

Rich,
Exactly how do you go about fire blueing a lock, say a Chambers round face or a Caywood Wilson with out screwing up the hammer/frizzen or warping the lockplate?? I have read about the beds of coals etc. but I am leary about putting a $125.00 piece of metal in the coals a having get screwed up??

I'd not do it. There is very little evidence for bluing of locks. Most lock plates were case hardened and that is also risky for warping. They likely would have case hardened the lock plate and pan and frizzen all together by heating in a box with bone charcoal, etc., then quenching in water. The experts who case harden lockplates use an iron bar attached to the back of the plate by spacers, screwed through the lock's screw holes, to hold it from warping during heating or quenching. If a case-hardened lockplate is then polished, the shine is pretty durable.

 

[CrackStock]

I am a fan of getting the metal parts to a highly polished finish. I have wet sanded to 1000 grit. Then aging them with whatever is available and then using steel wool or fine scotch brite pads to bring it back to gray with some black in grain or handling dings. It is not as pretty as that fine chocolate brown or fire blue, but I believe it to be quite correct for RevWar and ealier guns.

It is surely an underrepresented finish when I believe it was likely the most common finish.

CS