Thanks for your comments fellers!
I am posting a few photos of the charcoal bluing process I used. It is a very simple process really, and this is the second barrel I have done this way. I won't go into a whole lot of detail as the process was previously posted here:
http://americanlongrifles.org/forum/index.php?topic=31486.msg302146#msg302146Two things were done a bit different this time around, the first is that the charcoal was heated in a pot for an hour or so in an effort the drive out any residual moisture, and I lengthened the time the barrel was in the fire. I'm not convinced drying the charcoal made any real difference. The charcoal granules were shaken and stirred frequently. The barrel was degreased inside and out in preparation for bluing.
A couple inches of charcoal were poured in the pipe, and the bore of the barrel was filled with charcoal and plugged with a wad of newspaper. A open-ended cardboard tube was placed in the pipe to prevent scratching the barrel, and the barrel was slid down the tube. Charcoal was poured around the cardboard tube, and the tube was withdrawn a bit with each pour, keeping the barrel centered in the pipe. A steel plate was wired over the open in to act as a lid. A good length of heavy gauge wire was used as a handle:
Small parts were placed in a tin half full of charcoal, then the container was filled to the top and covered with a lid.
The fire was started and when a good bed of coals formed, the pipe and tin were placed in a fire pit of suitable dimensions for the job.
Wood was placed on top and I tried to keep an even fire going the entire length of the pipe for approximately 3 hours.
The tin and parts were removed from the fire and allowed to cool sufficiently to handle. The barrel and pipe will stay HOT a long time. When I set the pipe out of the fire it was hot enough to set the grass on fire, so be careful! I think they could be left in the charcoal overnight, but I was not that patient.
Small parts and barrel as they appear after coming out of the charcoal:
I let the patina cure over night, the barrel was hung on a wire through the tang bolt hole in the shop. The barrel and parts were oiled with a heavy gun oil and left for a day.
Barrel before oiling:
Parts oiled and barrel after waxing:
The finished product may not be everyone's cup of tea, I kind of like the look. I may do the next barrel directly in the firepit and see how that turns out!
Well I did it again, typed a lot more than I set out to do! I'm almost done with applying finish to the stock and will try to get some photos of the assembled rifle in a day or two.
Thanks for looking,
Curtis
