[dogbone]

It never fails, you get all setup to do parkerizing on 1919s, AKs or whatever and someone pops up and says," hey can you park my________ for me?"

I don't mind throwing it in with everything else, just wanted to make sure it dosen't come out with big holes eaten in the side. Not sure what kind it is yet, pump I think. Was going to alum. oxide blast it then dunk it with everything else.

Anything I should watch out for, or maybe just turn it down? I don't want to damage the gun or contaminate the solution with other items in the tank.

 

[IMBLITZVT]

" hey can you park my___CAR__ for me?"

You will want to plug the barrel...

 

[Rory]

forgive the novice question here but what do you plug the barrel with? and since it is plugged and such a large diameter, what will stop pressure from building up and popping the plugs?

r

 

[xdevildog]

Same question as Rory.

My ancient handbook on bluing (where you get several different recipes and work up your own favorite bluing mix with chemicals purchased at the drug store!!) says to carve or turn soft wood plugs and drive 'em into the barrel at both ends. There has to be a more modern method. Maybe expanding rubber plugs like those used in the Lewis Lead Remover?

 

[BLUESMAN]

Parking

Ok I parked my friends 12gauge shotgun and I was a little scared the thing is about 100years old. I used alum oxide and parked it same as a1919
and it came out great!!!! They make rubber plugs for barrel.
bluesman

 

[IMBLITZVT]

I am not expert but its my understanding that a barrel is a precision cut instrument... You do not want to hit it with the sand blasting or add thickness with the parking... In General it just does not help. Now will it really hurt in this case.. probably not much...

Its the same with Springs... you are not suppose to park them either... I think it weakens the spring...

"what will stop pressure from building up and popping the plugs"
We are not dealing with high pressures here. The only problem I can think of is a shotgun barrel may float if plugged. Its no boiler!

 

[Armorer]

I have heard similar things about sand blasting a shotgun barrel but there is really no reason to. The original finish can be removed with steel wool and "Naval Jelly" rust remover. I parked a M11 Remington years ago and it came out fine. As I recall I plugged the barrel using a 1/4 inch threaded rod and a couple pieces of rubber from an old inner tube and large washers. The solution is only about 180 degrees and should not pop the seal. But it's been a long time since I did the job and I can't remember the details. The main problem is if the receiver or trigger guard is aluminum. They can't be parked and may have to be painted. Painting aluminum is problematic as most paints don't like to stick to aluminum. However I am sure others on this board have tried coatings that do work on aluminum and could give you advise on this.

 

[woodsman]

Wine corks!!!!

Kiss it!!!! Wine corks work every time!! Just use the synthetic type. They are perfect for 12 Gauge. I have done a few rem. 870's and had no problems bead blasting and parking them. The surface disturbance is very small with bead blasting. As far as the parking the material removed is replaced with zinc or magnesium phosphate molecules. This doesn't mean that you can go out and parkerize any shotgun barrel. I have no idea what it would do for Damascus steel for example !!!

 

[dogbone]

I'm glad I asked, I hadn't even thought about plugging the bbl. I did figure glass bead blasting would look better on a shotgun, maybe more silkey, but I ain't got none so he gets alum oxide! Maybe there won't be much difference. If his turns out ok I might even do my Rem 1100

 

[glockhead]

you guys are reading my mind

i was going to post the same question today. can you see any problem with the solder on a double barrel? I know you have to be concerned with hot blue but what do you think about the park chemicals or the temps and any effect they may have on the solder?

i bought a few Spanish double barrels from Century and I really did not want to spend more having them re-blued than I did for the gun itself

 

[Dutchpilot]

How about the Oxpho-blue or 44/40 cold blues from Brownells, any experience with those?

 

[glockhead]

i've used the brownells

and have heard good things oxpho. they are a bit tedious and you have to be very careful about getting any oil around it. the finish is very nice but some say not as durable.

anybody care to chime in on parking the soldered barrels????

 

[wonderwolf]

Small rubber stoppers for boats, Lab grade stoppers/corks, tightly rolled inner tube rubber?....lots of things could be used.

IMBLITZVT are you talking about if the inside of the barrel gets parked? I wouldnt think it would make all that much difference if the inside of a shotgun barrel got it. I could understand on a rifle though.

 

[dogbone]

I'll cork the bbl. what about the magazine tube? Cork it too, or does it matter?

 

[xdevildog]

Oxpho blue

Dutch, I've had uniformly good results with Brownell's Oxpho blue, but can't speak to durability vs rust bluing. Contrary to the instructions on the label, it is vital to get every bit of oil off of the steel. It is also important to use 100% cotton applicators. I steal disposable makeup applicators from my wife. They are about 1 1/2" square and made of cotton batting.

Apply, wipe off with clean cotton cloth, apply, wipe off, apply, wipe off. Don't let the Oxpho dry around the edges of the work, and don't try too large a patch at one time - two or three square inches at the most. When you want to stop the darkening process, wipe with CLP or a similar oil.

Actually, you can't really stop the process of darkening. It seems to go on for at least another six hours after the oil bath - at a very slow but discernable rate. If you are trying to match an existing "depth" of blue and there is a hidden spot where you can experiment, do so to find the right number of applications.

I guess I'm kind of quirky, but rust bluing fascinates me. Once I hit retirement and have the time, I'm going to set up the buffers and tanks, build a cabinet and try to figure out how to do it right.

 

[Armorer]

How bad is it if the bore gets parked? A friend of mine parked a 1100 Rem. I asked him how he kept the bore from getting parked and he said he didn't do anything just parked it. He hunted with it for years and had no problem. The only problem I see is slightly higher pressure due to the rough surface and the bore never looks as clean. Other than that it probably wears off fairly fast anyway. If not a little Naval Jelly and triple 0 steel wool will take it out real good. Just don't get any Naval Jelly on the finish on the rest of the gun.

 

[glockhead]

anybody???

anybody care to chime in on parking the soldered barrels????

i was hoping to find some help here after spending several hours cruising the net. i'm feeling that with the temperature of the park at about 180 degrees, it should not be hot enough to disturb the solder but it would be nice to hear from someone who has done it.

i would like to try the rust blue too at some point. i really liked the double barrel that was posted yesterday that was moly coated but from what i have read, allot of guys moly or dura coat over a park job.