Stripped Fire Bluing Off Of Uberti Remington .44 Cal.

[GYJ]

It is/was the Ruger cowboy-type revolvers that had/have a simulated, faux case blue coloring.

They even gave up on doing that and changed to all blue. A lot of them rusted and it couldn't be stopped. I have one that looks real nice but it's a rarity.

 

[maillemaker]

Lots of side-car discussion on bluing and case hardening, real and faux.

To answer OP's question: Yes, it is trivial to strip the bluing off of any reproduction revolver. Simply fill a glass or plastic dish with plain old vinegar, and stick your blued revolver parts in there, completely submerged. Within minutes, the bluing will be gone.

I personally am not a fan of "aging" or "antiquing" firearms. Seldom would anyone have done this to a firearm in period. When new, these firearms looked new - they did not look "aged" nor would anyone deliberately try and make them look so.

Now, there are some modern folks who would like a gun that looks 150 years old. I get that. But I still would not want to take a "like new" gun and make it look beat up.

Yet, I did it.

At one of the N-SSA Nationals I went to it was raining like in Noah's day. Evidently I put my Pietta 1860 Army up in it's case still damp, and when I removed it, the nice blue finish was freckled all to heck with rust.

So, I stripped it to give it an "aged" look, but only because the finish was already ruined.

 

[GYJ]

I personally am not a fan of "aging" or "antiquing" firearms. Seldom would anyone have done this to a firearm in period. When new, these firearms looked new - they did not look "aged" nor would anyone deliberately try and make them look so.

Yeah but when you live in your saddle, sleep under the stars, used a generic fit holster and may or may not have a strict cleaning regimen, how long is it going to look new?

 

[maillemaker]

Yeah but when you live in your saddle, sleep under the stars, used a generic fit holster and may or may not have a strict cleaning regimen, how long is it going to look new?

I don't know. I'm sure some people did not take care of there things. In 1880, a $20 gold piece would buy you a nice Colt revolver. A sergeant in the army made about $17 a month. They say a good handgun was about a month's wages. A functional one about a week's wages. I'd expect some level of care for such a thing.

But, even my competition guns, which I consider "working guns", get wear and tear, and that's just from being used once a month or so.

I've got some old original guns (about 100 years old) that were only "moderately" used. They retain 90% of their bluing, and have holster wear that has removed the bluing from around the muzzle and other high spots. But they were not worn outdoors, I suspect.