Metal finish on 18th-19th century American pistols

[wet willy]

What finish, if any, was applied to the barrel & lock on the originals?

Browned, left in the white, or something else?

I'm interested in those made in the KY and PA area especially, but I suspect many of the surviving pistols from 1750's to 1830's were European or British imports. I've several books on pistols of this era, but all have only B&W illustrations.

Some color illustrations of original I've seen show a faint brown-gray color, but I don't know if this is original or the aging process.

[nord]

Rifles and pistols run pretty much parallel in my experience.

Some in the white, some browned, and some blued. Since the process of coloring a barrel is one of oxidation it's sometimes difficult to backtrack to the original finish. White metal will oxidize over time and take on various colors. Brown and blue are subject to wear and they tend to often resemble unfinished guns over a century and a half.