Re-blueing

[sdblazer]

Hey people! New guy here, I just received my first Winchester '94 and I am in love. It's a trapper. built in 1979.This rifle appears not to have been shot very much at all. The problem is there is a little rust on the barrel,mag tube, and receiver. I talked to a local gunsmith and he said it could not be re-blued. I didn't even have the rifle with me,he never saw it. The fact that it's a 1979, I'm not worried about re-blueing a pre '64. any comments?

[20cows]

Is the problem on the receiver a flaking of the finish? This is a common thing for one of that vintage.

I don't know if a professional could make it "like new" again, but a good dose of Birchwood-Casey's Super Blue or Brownell's Oxpho Blue will improve it considerably.

BTW, welcome to the board!

[CJM]

The steel that Winchester used in the post-64 1894 receivers doesn't blue, it turns a purple-red color using the standard bluing salts; which is why most gunsmiths won't even try to re-blue these rifles. There are special formula's that Winchester used to get a blue finish and some of the winchester restoration shops know what they are and can re-blue your gun.

[Hagler]

sdblazer,

Here is a closeup of a "rustbucket" 94, manufactured in 1975, that I bought for $149.00 over a year ago (click link for large picture of receiver):

http://i88.photobucket.com/albums/k185/ ... Before.jpg

94 Metal 600.jpg

Since the gun was not pristine, but it was together & fully functioning, and most of the rust & pits were on the receiver, I decided to experiment on it. I used sandpaper, wrapped around various pieces of wood, to sand out the pits (on the empty barreled action). I also used carburetor cleaner to strip the peeling varnish off of the wood, but I did not remove the stain. I applied Birchwood-Casey Super Blue to the smooth receiver, as directed. Once the metal would no longer darken, I sumerged the receiver in a pot (a 12 quart stock pot) of boiling water for about 20 minutes. I let it dry, then oiled it, and set it aside. I applied Birchwood-Casey Tru-Oil to the stocks, until I was satified with the appearence. Here are shots of the assembled, finished rifle (click link for full view of rifle):


http://i88.photobucket.com/albums/k185/ ... ght250.jpg












That was done over a year ago, and the receiver has still not turned purple. My goal was not to wind up with a perfect rifle, but one that looked respectable, for its age.

Shawn

[sdblazer]

Thanks Guys, I appreciate the info. Great job on the rifle Hagler.