Perma Blue

[dallas10c]

I am to the point on my first build where I have the barrel prepped for blueing and have read the instructions that came with the BC Perma Blue and also I have re-read the blueing instructions in Shumways book. My question is that the BC instructions say leave it on for no more then 1 minute before washing with cold water but the Shumway book says to leave iton for 5 min before washing and carding it.

Which is it?? I want to believe the manufacturer but Shumway was a master and I tend to believe him.

Any help would be much appreciated.

Bob

 

[Birddog6]

Is Shumway using BC PermaBlue ? If not, I would go with the BC PermaBlue instructions, they made it, they should know how to use it.

Or you could test it on some scrap metal & see if it makes a dif. :hmm:

 

[dallas10c]

He specifically said BC Perma Blue. That is why I am not sure which to do. I might try and find a scrap piece and se what happens.

 

[paulvallandigham]

All blueing compounds are oxidizers, and they always work better the longer they sit on the metal. They usually also work better if the metal is hot- above boiling point of water( 212 Degrees.) Do use some scrap steel to find out what gives you the color blue that YOU want- not what someone else desires, or thinks is blue. I personally like a dark blue/black color, because I have found through long experience that cold blues fade with handling. The darker it is, the longer it lasts.

 

[Erzulis boat]

Cold Bluing is kind of like a rattle-can paintjob, no matter how well you do it, durability is for naught.

As posted above, warming the metal will definitely help things along, but if you start to get the least bit serious about a durable "blue" then there are other courses of action.

BC Perma-Blue is very forgiving.


Andrew B.

 

[davy]

Many a person has been saved an embarrising moment with "touch up" blue ... amatuer and otherwise ... do NOT let them fool you! Longterm durable it may not be ... but it is handy (and very, very quick(! :hmm: :thumbsup:

Davy

 

[rabjr]

If this is a flinter, it's pretty much a waste of time. I used it once and any where the heat of the primer from the pan touched, the bluing disappeared faster than you can say "poof!".

 

[ricklandes]

Take a serious look at Mark Lee's rust blue. It will do a wonderful job for you and be very durable. I ('cuse me Dave) do not recommend cold blue. Yes it works, but at a cost of very decreased durability.

Mak Lee is easy to use and does not take a lot of time. If that does not convince you...how about this...how much time have you put into your build? Is not a couple of more hours for a durable finish worth the effort. Do not get in a race to finish! Enjoy it all.
I especially like the finishing as it seems the reward for all my deligent efforts to that point. I will guarantee you will not look back and say I wish I would have cold blued it when you do the rust blue finish, but you very well may (will) regret the cold blue.
Just the rambilin's of the persnickety...take it for what it is worth...

 

[dallas10c]

Thanks for all the suggestions and warnings about cold buing. I am going to take a look at Mak Lees rust bluing and see how it looks. In the meantime I am going to leave the barrel in the white until I decide how to give it a ong lasting finish.

 

[ricklandes]

Mark Lee can be found at http://www.brownells.com/aspx/ns/s...p=8795&title=EXPRESS BLUE #1 EXPRESS BROWN #2

I figured it was worth sharing with others too Recon...

 

[renovato]

I highly agree with Rick about Mark Lee rust blue. I've tried most of the cold blues and was disappointed with all except Wheeler Engineering's version which is durable but hard to get a good looking finish with. I've tried several of the rust blues and Mark Lee's solution is by far the easiest and gives wonderful results.

Rust finishes are more durable than even hot salt bluing. The Mark Lee system is very easy to use and you can finish all your rusting repetitions in one session, rather than getting a tank of water boiling once a day for a week or so like some of the other systems require.

 

[dallas10c]

Thanks for the info....I'll check out Marks stuff.

 

[dallas10c]

What kind of container do you use to submerge a barrel in boiling water for 5 min?? Sounds good but I don't know what I'd use for this part.

 

[renovato]

What kind of container do you use to submerge a barrel in boiling water for 5 min?? Sounds good but I don't know what I'd use for this part.

You can improvise a container. A pot is fine for smaller parts, but for rifle barrels, you'll need to come up with something longer. I went ahead and bought a bluing tank from Brownells since I work on a lot of various guns anyway. But you can go to your local sheet metal shop and have them cut you a section of sheet metal gutter. Have them weld metal on each end to cap it off and you have an inexpensive barrel tank. Use it on your stovetop across 2 burners, or stick a couple camp stoves under it and you're good to go.

 

[rwsjr]

What about LMF Barrel Brown & Degreaser? Has anybody used it? Is it durable?

 

[widget350]

Laurel Mountain Forge - I've not used any blueing method until recently, when I tried Permablue. It seems to give a slightly purple color, but overall I think it will work fine for my current purpose (hardware for a cannon). I do have a couple of pistols that I'm planning on doing, and I'm looking into either LMF or Mark Lee, just not sure which one yet. There's a lot of information on LMF, so if you search you'll probably find out more.