Hey Teach, Tennmike, Al, Any and all that have used Brownell's Ospho Blue?

snake284 · May 2018

What do I need to apply it to a virgin carbon steel barrel? And can you give me a break down on procedure to apply it so I know what I'm getting into?

Here's the deal. As I've mentioned on here, Dwight, my gun smith, has screwed the barrel on my commercial 98 Zastava action and head spaced it, but he won't be bluing until the late fall. He has a ton of oil field machine work to do and he doesn't have enough guns that need bluing to do right now. He blues in volume. I don't want to wait that long. I asked him what would be the best temporary solution that could be taken off when he does blue? He offered the fact that Ospho blue would be easier to remove than something like Krylon. So I figured I'd blue it with Ospho Blue and if I'm not totally happy with it I can have Dwight do a real hot blue job on it in the late fall. So how do I go about it? Do I need a tank to boil water and drop it in? And what else would I need?

Big Al1 · May 2018

Brownell's products come with detailed instructions. Oxpho is a cold blue, Dicropan requires a hot water tank.
https://www.brownells.com/gunsmith-tools-supplies/metal-prep-coloring/metal-bluing/liquid-cold-bluing-chemicals/32-oz--sku082024032-1072-111988.aspx?rrec=true

snake284 · May 2018

Big Al1 said:

Brownell's products come with detailed instructions. Oxpho is a cold blue, Dicropan requires a hot water tank.
https://www.brownells.com/gunsmith-tools-supplies/metal-prep-coloring/metal-bluing/liquid-cold-bluing-chemicals/32-oz--sku082024032-1072-111988.aspx?rrec=true

Which one you recommend? I mean is most durable?

tennmike · May 2018

For touchup the Oxpho Blue liquid is a good choice, but for a whole gun I'd use the Oxpho Blue Creme as it's easier to apply. Oxpho Blue is a tough finish when properly applied and will wear and last a LONG time. It's also easy to touch up.

hawk18 · May 2018

Oxpho Blue works well and is easy to use. But, even though it's a cold blue, it works better if you can heat the metal. The only barreled action I've done was still short enough to fit in my wife's oven so I did it where it was hot enough that I could barely handle it. Metal prep is definitely key to success. If it's just the barrel you want blued, that's probably your best choice. If you need to do the whole barreled action, using a browning solution and then boiling it in water to change it to black. The only time I've done that was on a Collins axe head and it came out better than bluing.

Hawk

jaywapti · May 2018

Wambli Ska said:
I’ve done entire rifles with Oxpho and they look as good (or better) than many factory blue jobs. Metal prep and patience is key. Any oops will be magnified by bluing.

I have done a few guns with both, I find the paste does a better job if you cant do a good polish first, also Teach told me that using a heat gun and warming the parts first does a better job, and it does.

JAY

Freezer · May 2018

I've used both Oxpho Blue and Dicropan. I prefer Oxpho Blue cream. I clean the metal very well, suspend the metal from the ceiling if possible and heat the metal with a heat gun or blow dryer. Nitrile gloves help to keep skin oils off the metal and Oxpho Blue off your hands. They can be changed in between coats to insure the metal stays clean.

I've used 44-40 and Casey's blue in the past, Oxpho Blue is far superior.

Big Al1 · May 2018

Another option is not blue it, just give it a good coat of paste wax to protect the metal until you can have it blued!

tennmike · May 2018

Big Al1 said:

Another option is not blue it, just give it a good coat of paste wax to protect the metal until you can have it blued!

I've used auto paste wax for blued firearms that are going to be seeing rain or other wet weather. It keeps the rain/moisture off, and protects the metal from rust. A good choice if bluing in hot bluing salts is in the firearms future.

snake284 · June 2018

Big Al1 said:

Another option is not blue it, just give it a good coat of paste wax to protect the metal until you can have it blued!

Now that's the kind of advice I do like a lot. I mean not to slight any of the excellent advice given here, but I was thinking of just leaving it in the white until he could blue it, but I was worried about taking it hunting without bluing because I didn't want it to rust, but if paste wax will seal it then that's what I want to do. Thanks Al, I just wasn't thinking.

You're talking automotive paste wax, right?

tennmike · June 2018

Automotive paste wax is the stuff I use; never tried the liquid stuff. And if you live in a humid climate (I do) that automotive paste was is the stuff for keeping mold from growing on woodrifle stocks that have been finished with oil finish and no polyurethane finish. Apply the same way as on a car. Put it on, let it dry, buff. Water will bead up and run off like it was on a ducks back.

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