How to age bare metal

[daveboy]

Wow, a little research goes a long way BEFORE starting any project.

Well, like I said, the receiver had some cheap, improperly applied bluing applied to it when I got it. So, stripping that off did not cause any harm as I can tell. Case hardened metal, of that age, usually has a dark grey finish. That is what I am trying to replicate. Only the bolt body has been polished in any way. The extractor still has the fire blue.

---------- Post added at 07:22 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:19 PM ----------

I think it looked better before!

It may have looked "better" but a glossy, cheap, modern bluing job is nothing close to original. That is why I took it off.

---------- Post added at 07:28 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:22 PM ----------

Great job on the wood! It looks used but cared for.

Thanks. This rifle is put-together with donor pieces from all over. This is a cut-down rifle stock.

---------- Post added at 07:32 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:28 PM ----------

The "before picture" shows an aftermarket Buehler safety-lever. Was this action drilled & tapped for a scope at one time?

Good catch! That is one of the things that I fixed on this restoration. It has not been drilled and tapped. Someone, somewhere along the line had a Buehler lever they weren't using, and it went on here. This rifle has been thru a lot of hands, each trying to "improve" it. I suppose I am too, but my improvements tend more toward the "restoring to original look."