acer 10 Posted June 10, 2011 Report Share Posted June 10, 2011 I have done quite a bit of research on the process of slow rust bluing and have all of the necessary materials and tools. The question I have for the Saiga/AK crew is... have any of you done this to a gun of this type with the barrel installed? I have seen numerous ak builds that have been blued, but they were all done before the barrel was pressed in. My concern is carding down in the receiver. Do you think it would work to leave the factory finish on the internals and only strip and apply the bluing solution to the outside? Do you think it would rust anyway through the repeated processes of applying the solution and boiling? I would like to start the process this weekend if possible. Thanks. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
kresk 10,063 Posted June 10, 2011 Report Share Posted June 10, 2011 Rust bluing is usually done on double barrel shotguns (s/s or o/u) that are soft soldered together and therefore would not survive the temperatures of regular bluing tanks. There is a company named Colonial (I think) somewhere in the midwest that does this process. I see no need to subject an AK to this secondary, unnecessarily more complicated and expensive regimen. Never seen an AK rust blued as there's no reason to do so. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
dowork1021 64 Posted June 10, 2011 Report Share Posted June 10, 2011 I dont know much about rust bluing but I tried to cold blue a sks without completely stripping all the parts off. It was one PITA. I had a hard time getting the tight crevaces to blue and I kept cross contaminating the gun as I worked my way down. I like a glossy blued gun but I absolutely hate doing it myself. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
acer 10 Posted June 10, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 10, 2011 http://www.akfiles.c...94&page=1&pp=35 Here's 1 of the many ak's ive seen rust blued. Im just curious if anyone has any experience with doing one with the barrel installed. I prefer the look of the rust blue (being a more blackish blue) as opposed to the tank blue for this particular build. I am set up for zinc and manganese parkerizing and have been doing it for a couple of years, but again would like the rust blue look if possible. Well... I'm going to do it anyway. I was just looking for some thoughts, thanks for your replies. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
dowork1021 64 Posted June 11, 2011 Report Share Posted June 11, 2011 (edited) Say I wanted to Rust Blue a Mosin nagant, how do I get a pan big enough to boil the barrel in haha. This is interesting, thanks for posting the link on how to do it. Ill give it a try. Maybe its easier than cold bluing. Edited June 11, 2011 by foreign firearm fiend Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Scott Kenny 144 Posted June 12, 2011 Report Share Posted June 12, 2011 One of those disposable turkey roasters, maybe? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
acer 10 Posted June 13, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 13, 2011 Custom stainless tank. Check ebay for parkerizing tank. If there isnt one listed pm me and I'll give you the website to contact him. He builds tanks any size but sells standard 40" ones on ebay most of the time. I dont know the guy personally, but have bought from him. You could also use steel, but would not hold up long. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Cobra 76 two 2,677 Posted June 13, 2011 Report Share Posted June 13, 2011 I've got a stainless tank I got from an old guy who used to do BBQ cooking at the fairgrounds and other public meeting places. I'm going to try this and see how it goes. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
dowork1021 64 Posted June 15, 2011 Report Share Posted June 15, 2011 Thanks ACER. Maybe ill give it a try. Now I just need a sand blaster or some kind. I dont like chemical strippers as ive used on my other bluing projects. They leave a weird film and residue on the metal. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
acer 10 Posted June 15, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 15, 2011 I did a couple of applications/boils on a scrap piece of pipe and it looks pretty good. I've got a bolt action 12ga that belongs to a friend of mine that I need to do first, but i'll post pics when I start. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
acer 10 Posted June 28, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 28, 2011 I was pretty busy last week but I did manage to get a couple of pieces started. These have been rusted, boiled and carded 3 times. Maybe a few more times will darken them up and they'll be ready. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Cobra 76 two 2,677 Posted June 28, 2011 Report Share Posted June 28, 2011 Looks very nice Acer! I'm definitely going to have to try this. Painted guns are low maintenance and all, but nothing beats a nice blued finish. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
acer 10 Posted July 5, 2011 Author Report Share Posted July 5, 2011 Almost done with the first batch! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
acer 10 Posted July 10, 2011 Author Report Share Posted July 10, 2011 (edited) First batch is done. I did 6 cycles of applying solution, rusting, boiling, and carding. The first pic is what they looked like after the final boil. The second is after the final carding. The parts are now curing in oil and should be even darker when they finish. Good luck to all of you who wish to try rust bluing. It took a bit of time but worth it to me, as I'm very pleased with the results. Edited July 10, 2011 by acer 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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