Barrel Finish

[Bob Rearley]

How fine do I need to sand down my barrel to get a nice brown finish?
Thanks in advance, Bob

[D. Taylor Sapergia]

180 lengthwise on a 12" board.

[D. Taylor Sapergia]

Here's my last effort with 44" Rice barrel and Chamber's lock both browned after polishing to 180.

[Bob Rearley]

Thanks Taylor.  Beautiful finish and gun,by the way.

[D. Taylor Sapergia]

Thanks, and you are most welcome.

I think that carding between applications is more important than a mirror finish.  Most browning solutions I've used leave a fair matte finish no matter how you polish.  The rifle above was carded using a tight roll of canvas, and on the last application, OOOO steel wool.  It is very smooth and a nice plum brown colour.

[T*O*F]

It is very smooth and a nice plum brown colour

I wonder where that term can from.  I've never seen a brown plum.
Did it originate with Birchwood Casey, or does it go back further.

[Gene Carrell]

What color would you call a prune?

[D. Taylor Sapergia]

naturally there are many varieties of plums.  The colour to which I refer is a rich purple/brown, and I have seen it refered to in books such as Robert's "The Muzzle Loading Caplock Rifle" and in a book on bluing and browning by Algiers (sp?)

Birchwood Casey used the term but it was rather misleading, since I have never got that colour with their product...more of a chocolate/brown.

[Randy Hedden]

What color would you call a prune?

Yeah, but it isn't called prune brown, it's called plum brown.

Randy Hedden

www.harddogrifles.com

[Randy Hedden]

Taylor,

Years ago I tried Birchwood Casey Plum Brown and the barrel turned out with a very distinct purple color.

Randy Hedden

www.harddogrifles.com

[D. Taylor Sapergia]

Prunes are black like raisins.  We called them "CPR strawberries" when we were kids.  ..don't know why...

[Ky-Flinter]

The prettiest browning job I ever saw was on the hand rails of a sliding board in the school playground.  Had a deep reddish-purple brown color, polished by years of sweaty little hands.  I've been trying to recreate it ever since.

Or maybe plum brown ain't a reference to a color at all....  if'n ya'll are from the south this here will make sense....  "Why, that barrel is plum brown!"  As in positively brown!

-Ron

[Dphariss]

Thanks, and you are most welcome.

I think that carding between applications is more important than a mirror finish.  Most browning solutions I've used leave a fair matte finish no matter how you polish.  The rifle above was carded using a tight roll of canvas, and on the last application, OOOO steel wool.  It is very smooth and a nice plum brown colour.

High polish on  part for browning or rust blue just retards the process. I never go finer than 320.

Dan