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How to remove cold bluing???

31pickemup

Well-known member
Hey Gang
I purchased a 1942 CE from a friend of mine and should be getting the rifle tomorrow. When he took the rifle in to have it checked out at the local gunsmith the knuckleheaded gunsmith thought he would coat the buttplate, recoil lug and stock disc with cold bluing because the finish looked thin to him. And he did this all without asking!!!!! My question is how do I remove the cold bluing? This is supposed to be a all matching slant script CE so I don't want to ruin anything in the process either.

Adam
 
Hey Gang
I purchased a 1942 CE from a friend of mine and should be getting the rifle tomorrow. When he took the rifle in to have it checked out at the local gunsmith the knuckleheaded gunsmith thought he would coat the buttplate, recoil lug and stock disc with cold bluing because the finish looked thin to him. And he did this all without asking!!!!! My question is how do I remove the cold bluing? This is supposed to be a all matching slant script CE so I don't want to ruin anything in the process either.

Adam

White viniger.........BILL
 
Flitz. Bill is right re white vinegar, but it will remove original blue too.
 
????

He's de-blueing parts that should not be blued. SO thats not an issue. I really have not tried so I have no idea how much elboe grease is required to remove the old cold blue. The butplate and recoil lug can be removed to be de-blued but the takedown disc is a little trickier to remove.
 
Putting things white = Bill's advice = white vinegar. Be careful with this stuff if a dot gets on your blue it will remove it. Don't have white vinegar in the same room or cloth, etc., where you have firearms or parts that you don't want deblued ;)

Generally, Flitz will remove cold blue pretty easily.
 
Motor Oil will work too, but you have to apply some elbow grease.

I havent heard of Flitz.
 
It is a metal polish, much like Semi-Chrome. Flitz is blue and Semi-Chrome is pink but they do the same. Blade collectors tend to use it more than firearm collectors. As with any metal polish, it is slightly abrasive, so if you don't want to remove original finish (bluing and guilting) don't use it near it. As mauser99 said, these parts are supposed to be "in the white" so it doesn't matter hear.

For what it is worth, I don't believe I would take any more guns to that gunsmith! Ron

Motor Oil will work too, but you have to apply some elbow grease.

I havent heard of Flitz.
 
I've been using Flitz over 20 years and not found it to take off original blue unless you abuse it. If you rubbed original blue long and hard enough with a wool sock it would thin at some point. A "rule" on using Flitz on original blue to remove cold blue I follow is this: rub with a q-tip with Flitz on it. If you are pressing hard enough to break the q-tip you're applying too much initial pressure. This is like the two fingered screwdriver torque rule. Flitz takes rust and cold blue off quickly, well before original blue. Like anythng, don't over-do it.
 
Gunshop

I've been using Flitz over 20 years and not found it to take off original blue unless you abuse it. If you rubbed original blue long and hard enough with a wool sock it would thin at some point. A "rule" on using Flitz on original blue to remove cold blue I follow is this: rub with a q-tip with Flitz on it. If you are pressing hard enough to break the q-tip you're applying too much initial pressure. This is like the two fingered screwdriver torque rule. Flitz takes rust and cold blue off quickly, well before original blue. Like anythng, don't over-do it.

I owned a Gunshop and Flitz/semichrome was what worked for us.
 
I owned a Gunshop and Flitz/semichrome was what worked for us.

Jack, that kind of info is plenty good enough for me. Folks that use things daily as part of their livelihood (as opposed to me graba$$ing in my workshop on a Sat.) have to know. It's true thought that both will thin original blue if you overdo it. I think it says on the Flitz can "will not remove original blue"; it will if one misuses it.
 
Careful

Jack, that kind of info is plenty good enough for me. Folks that use things daily as part of their livelihood (as opposed to me graba$$ing in my workshop on a Sat.) have to know. It's true thought that both will thin original blue if you overdo it. I think it says on the Flitz can "will not remove original blue"; it will if one misuses it.

I am not one to mess with stuff but I have never seen any diminution to original blue with flitz. I used it when someone would trade in a gun. I would wipe it down and many a time the blue came off in the cloth and I did not purchase the gun or bought it cheaper. You would be amazed at how many guys would try to pull a fast one on me. I would ask them first if I could check, and promise them I would restore cold blue that came off if I didn't purchase the weapon. I broke a lot of hearts...

A couple of years ago a buddy bought an excellent Hsc..so he thought. I told him the grip strap was reblued and he asked how I knew. I said I handled hundreds of guns per day...that is what I did for a living years ago. Got the tube of semichrome and watched that front strap go from 99% to 60 %
 
Yep, lots of "98%" guns are really 75% guns that have been pimped. You can usually tell, but the final test is a dab of Flitz on a q-tip, a little wipe, and if it comes back with black on it, you know. I've had pimped up "99%" 98ks before that I could bring back to their original, nice, 80% condition with Flitz.
 
bluing

I used the vinager on the buttplate and recoil lug. worked perfectly. Came off with just a little rubbing. Thanks for the help guys. I going to definitely get some Flitz as well.
 

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