hawkin finishes

[john4645]

Were hawkins or plains guns (if they are the same thing) ever finished bright? I saw a picture of a gun with a blued barrel and the tang,lock and other hardware lef bright. I liked the way this looked and was wondering if this was ever down. Second question is how were they most commonly finished, were they blued or browned?

 

[faw3]

You need Cooner 54s imput here, or try the Hawken postings. He'll be on sometime soon. FRED :hatsoff:

 

I have seen some Hawken pictures that would lead one to believe that Hawkens were left in the white but I don't think that was the case. Most Hawkens I have handled has had blued barrels and cased locks and breeches and cased hardware. Only one original Hawken I held had all browned barrel and hardware and it was a 1840's Hawken. I have seen some later Hawkens with all blued furniture and barrels. I believe these to be slow rust then boiled blueing process. They have a grainy feel to the blue even where the blue still exist without rust build up from years of oxidation. I know this sounds kind of convoluted but the quick answer would be, commonly blued.

 

[Recurve]

What is "cased" and how do you do it? A google search revealed nothing. Thanks. I assume it is case hardening and will be raibow colored like most locks.???

 

Yes sir, that's what I meant by cased to save some typin'. :hatsoff: Only the old case clors wern't rainbow coloered or possibly the reds and oranges have faded all out over the years. I recall grays and blues and black mottled mostly.

 

[faw3]

Try 4 pages back page 2 at top of Hawken 2. I think that Hawken lock is what you mean. Fred :hatsoff:

 

[Clark B]

Cooner, one of my really good friends has had the oportunity to view the arms collection of the RSAF Enfield, and the color caseing on the 140 year old P.53 rifle muskets locks were rainbow colored. Old school CCH as done by Doug Turnbull and a few others is the same process tht has been used for at least 150 years and the colors that result are the same as the old times. Someday I hope to be able to do bone and charcoal CCH.

Glad I found this forum as I was wondering what the original finishes should be for the Hawken rifle.

 

You have brought up a puzzle. I wonder if the case colors on Hawkens were done with some other method. I have never seen a rainbow color case like you see on the English guns of the same time frame. Is there a faux color case process that would give grays and black splothy look to locks and other hardware in the 1840's through 60's? Most Hawkens have had a blueish black finish where there was any left.

 

[Clark B]

I am gonna hazard a guess that CCH colors would vary with the materials used to impart the carbon into the surface of the metal. I do know that a common 19th century mixture was bone, charcoal and leather bits packed in a vessal with the metal. I too have seen some finishes that had far less color than others. This is something that could also be affected by the structure/composition of the metal as well. I can't wait until the time arrives when I know how to do all this stuff.

 

Here is a picture of the type of finish I see on many Hawken rifles. A dark blue oil finish on the furniture. The darker area around the hammer is just oil on the surface of the lock plate.

This next picture is an attempt at case coloring that doesn't quite look like what I have seen on a few Hawken rifles. Maybe if I buffed this back some to soften the colors it would emulate the originals. I did this one by heating with a torch and splattering oil on the hot surface repeatedly. About 3 or 4 times.

And this one is fire blued and quenched in oil as was the first one.

I can't wait for you to get it figured out either. I'll send you my hardware. :winking:

 

John, here is a look at the Carson rifle.

And the S.Hawken in the Smithsonian.

I may as well throw in a couple of pistols by the Hawkens.

These pictures are the courtesy of Chuck (Gray Wolf) Borrows.
I hope this gives you a better idea as to how to finish your Hawken and also give you some idea as to your options.
Don

 

[Russ T Frizzen]

Is it possible that the case colors on the original rifles have faded over the years? I have a second generation '60 Army that was casehardened in the old fashioned way and the colors are quite bright.

 

[Clark B]

Real CCH is not real durable. Not quite as durable as cold rust bluing. With a fair amount of cleaning CCH will eventually rub off, and it something abrasive is used, well it will vanish pretty fast.

 

[reddogge]

It is very fragile. Most rifles of this age and hard use would have the case colors worn off.

I saw the Carson-Beale rifle in person and it was browned or maybe turned brown patina but it was brown color.