Unsightly Stainless

[Wayne Lundstrom]

I see a good bit of talk about stainless barrels from GMB..can these, or any other stainless barrels be blued or browned? Or must they shine?

 

[roundball]

I see a good bit of talk about stainless barrels from GMB..can these, or any other stainless barrels be blued or browned? Or must they shine?

They're a non-glare finish, not shiny like chrome...if you're concerned about using them for deer hunting, shiny polished brass doesn't bother deer and the non-glare stainless won't either

 

[Zonie]

They shall shine unless they are painted. Even painting can be difficult because most paints will not stick to stainless very well.
They can be made to look somewhat discolored but IMO they don't look very good. A poorly maintained stainless steel kitchen sink is an example.

 

[john12865]

Zonie hit the nail right on the head. It almost sounds like we're talking about unspeakables here. Yes your unspeakable stainless barrel will corrode and rust. Pyrodex is very good at it :grin:

 

[ryoung14]

Yes, John, they will. But they clean up real nice, real quick without a hint of surface rust after you pour in the boiling rinse water. From a practical standpoint, I love 'em. The way T/C and GM finish them, they're light colored, of course, but not shiny.

It seems stainless would be an excellent choice for musket reproductions that are left 'in the white'. But, not being PC, I suppose it'll never happen.
Bob

 

[cayugad]

I have two of the stainless steel GMB's in the 1-28 twist. Like said, they are not a gloss or shine in appearance.

They are also excellent shooting barrels.

 

[howlingwolf]

Actually that isn't true. Stainless can be blued. It takes a different chemical than normal hot salt bluing. A local gunsmith should be able to do it for you.

 

[Pittsburghunter]

I have seen the Green Mountain stainless and many other purported stainless steel rifles/barrels their finish is not shiney if anything I bet they reflect less light than a polished blued rifle.

They have a kinda dull grey patina. I don't like the looks of them as much as a well blued or browned barrel.

 

[Mad Professor]

Brownell's sells epoxy based laquer paints that can be applied to stainless barrels but they need to be prepped by bead blasting then cleaned with solvent prior to painting. After painting you bake the finish at 300 oF for a half hour to set it. Their claim is impervious to solvents/gun cleaners only removed with sandpaper when cured.

I did mine and it came out great. There is a choice of colors too, mines flat black. Will try to get a pic to post if you're intrested.

 

[Nightwind]

I have a T/C Silver Elite: SS barrel. I just cover the barrel with camo tape during the hunting season. Cleans up easy enough after the season is over.

 

[RedFeather]

Yes, stainless does not equal rustless. And salt will work on it, too. Those stainless fish hooks used in the ocean corrode and rust. Just takes longer. So a repro Brown Bess with a stainless barrel would have to be treated much the same way as a regular one. It would be a boon to the Re-enactors, though, as they seem to take about the worst care of their guns as any groupg I've ever seen. :blah: Also, you still need to clean the locks, etc., so why not the whole hog?

RedFeather

 

[Halftail]

I have two of the stainless steel GMB's in the 1-28 twist. Like said, they are not a gloss or shine in appearance.

Cayugad,
Nice lookin rack of Muzzleloaders!Cool print on the wall too! :thumbsup:

 

[cayugad]

Cayugad,
Nice lookin rack of Muzzleloaders!Cool print on the wall too!

Thanks.. the print is Mountain Man by Michael Gnatek Jr. he does some beautiful Mountain Man type prints. I collect a lot of wildlife prints and rifles..:grin:

 

[Sawtoothtaxi]

I had a strainless barrel on one of my rifles. It had too much shine so I had it bead blasted. Looks great and no shine

 

[chadh1]

Yes, the stainless steel barrels will rust. The ss will rust unless it is polished (like the sinks). They rust because there is still a small amount of carbon in the ss. Carbon and oxygen is what makes rust. When they are polished, you get a "coating" on the ss and thus oxygen can't get to the metal = no rust. The only reason it is hard to paint ss is because of the polishing, and the metals natural tendency to be smooth. To paint, the easist thing to do is "bead it". This is where glass beading makes the surface rough enough to make paint stick to it. You can do the same thing to cast iron cookware. After beading, just get it "seasoned" as quickly as possible.