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I bought an all original Remington 1903A3,that had sat in a barn for quite awhile, before summer began.. Many of the blue'd parts, mainly the trigger guard and barrel band, have bad rust putting. I let them soak in WD40 and then tried 0000 steel wool on it, which helped allot and removed no finish, but I can't seem to get all of it. Any suggestions?
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Throwing out some ideas for you from least to most intrusive..Quote:
Originally Posted by garrettbragg12
#1 replace it entirely.
#2 use a nylon brush on a Dremel to card off the rust in the pits "if they're not to deep" and oil it.
#3 use rust/blue remover to strip the part and then rust blue it.
#4 use rust/blue remover to strip. Sand the pits out starting @220 grit down to 320 then rust blue.
You can use an electrolysis setup but is it worth all the trouble for a trigger guard? That's up to you.
Well it's not just the trigger guard, it's all of the blued parts, and I'd like to keep her with her original parts!Quote:
Originally Posted by WarPig1976
You have to accept to start with that rust is corrosion and blueing is a form of controlled corrosion (that's not strictly correct in some cases as a chemist or metallurgist will confirm). I say this because some people just won't accept this simple fact of life....., and that it has already started to eat its way into the steel. So unless you want to linish or whatever you do to get below the corrosion, you'll just have to accept the pitted nature of the beast!
That's your problem. If you want to keep the original parts (that's assuming that they are original - although what counts as original is subject to some dispute.....) you've got to accept pitted parts (albeit slightly pitted) but at least they'll be ORIGINAL pitted parts or start again by electrolysis/bead blasting and have them re-blued/blacked. IN which case, they might be original, but they certainly won't convince anyone........
What a dilemma eh? I say just deal with the corrosion as best you can with a stiff copper wire brush, keep it oiled and treat it as the grand, old but starting to look her age dignified old lady that she is. Just my 2c's worth
What is it about the word "original" that so many people don't understand?
It was "original" when it came out of the factory. Period.
Since then it has become considerably older, parts wear and are replaced, bluing turns to rust - I laugh when I see antique dealers describing it as "plum", as if it that was a desirable original finish!
And rust pits cannot be undone.
Basically, anything other than proper maintenance to keep the gun in working order, becomes falsification.
Bluing over rust pits can look ridiculous, and is just such a falsification - it does NOT make it more original.
Replacing parts with "what it would have had when it was made" (but no longer has) to make it more "original" and hence desirable is also a falsification. Peter Laidler and his colleagues around the world replaced parts for a very good reason - to keep the equipment functioning properly.
In other words - for those fond of the IMOH overworked phrase - such replacements during its service life are "part of its history".
Forced matching by stamping on new numbers is not merely not original, it is a falsification that turns into fraud if the gun is sold at a value enhanced by those numbers.
Just my 2cents/pence/groats, of course!
I think I gotcha , you want to keep all the original parts that came with it the day you took possession of the rifle because maybe, just maybe it's never been messed with but if YOU change something that illusion is gone.? At least that's how my brain works..Quote:
Originally Posted by garrettbragg12
There just isn't a magic bullet to fix pitted metal. The damage is done, your options are limited, rust never sleeps....
That's a great phrase Warpig and SOOOOO true. Rust NEVER sleeps
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1909 Argentine, all-matching and was probably imported in 'unissued' condition. Then rode hard and put away wet.
First you cry. Then accept it for what it is and get down to work. It will never be pristine again. But it is a good representative example and I love it for what it is. YMMV.
Best wishes. Dave
Good save Dave, like the stock color too...
I know what I would do, wipe some oil over it and take it down the range. That will take your mind off the rust for a while.
The Argentine is an ideal candidate for a gentle electrolysis treatment. It does not appear to have severe pitting. Electrolysis should remove most of it, leaving some blackish spots which are visually much less obtrusive, being effectively the same oxide form as "bluing".
After the electrolysis treatment it will look like a rifle with worn bluing, instead of a rusty rifle.
And then oil it and take it to the range.
Go here for some encouragement:
https://www.milsurps.com/showthread....hing+argentine
You can try this, I use BP Blaster, which has kerosene in it and a S.S. scrubby for washing dishes, preferable a clean, worn/used one. Do it gently and it doesn't scratch the metal.
WD-40 will not remove the rust. Steel wool, will scratch.
However, I suggest trying this first on something else, to get the feel of it. Then, I only use Ballistol to keep it lubed.
Just my 2 cents.
Chuck
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I used various methods. Oil, 0000 steel and plastic wool, Kroil, solvent, soft wire brushes, Oxpho blue. These two pictures make the resto look a bit better than the overall effect. Point is this: you can mitigate the rust damages to a great extent and the rest is attitude. :)
PS: I fully understand that this can seem insurmountable if one has never/seldom used restoration materials and techniques. Go slow, use common sense. Good luck.
Hey, very nice job, looks great !!
Chuck
OP, I don't know if you can get a product called RB-17 where you are, but I use it here all the time. It is a miracle rust remover. It will take all the rust out of a severely corroded bore in a few minutes. I've used it on surface rust, it only takes the rust, no bluing. Try it out!
WOW, I just found the stuff here in the US, @ RB Treasures in Houston Texas. Say's it cleans just about anything and wont hurt the finish. I'm gonna order some.Quote:
Originally Posted by flying pig
Thanks for the info.
Chuck
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How does the Oxpho Blue, do on blued finishes?? Will it hurt them if you leave it on too long?Quote:
Originally Posted by MasterChief
Thanks,
Chuck
PJ's, who sell it up here, recommend using it as a degreaser before rust bluing even. I didn't go that far, but it really obliterates rust. It's a gel so it's nice and controllable on your bore brush or nylon surface brush too. My Ross MkI*s bore looked really pitted. I had been tying to get all the rust out for almost two years. I brought that stuff home and after running the rod through a few dozen times back and forth, then patching dry and cleaning the rod then repeated I think three times and the bore is spotless. Lightly pitted throughout, but won't leave any residue on the patch. That's the end of the rust for that poor old girl!
The local gunsmith has a very fine wire wheel that he removes surface rust with. Does a great job of removing surface rust without harming the blue. This is the same grade of wire wheel used to remove the rust during the rust blue process.
Well, here's an update on RB treasures in Texas that supposedly sells RB 17. I have called them several times in the past few days and no answer, but get the voice mail, which if full and can not accept any more messages. So I E- mailed them also, no response back. I called the manufacture and told them about it.
The only other distributor they can find, is a place in Canada, PJS Products in Ontario.
So I called them to order some, its a little more pricy than here, but I can't get it here either.
Next order shipment should be Early January, so I should get some them.
Chuck
have them refinished correctly