Removing bluing from damascus

[Harold Lee Pickens]

Aquired a GH16 0 frame damascus at Hausmans, but the barrels had been blued. Will the Birchwood-Casey bluing remover take that off or should I just leave the bluing until I send the barrels in to be stripped and restored? Didn't know if removing the bluing would cause any problems if i didnt get it restored right away--kind of like to see how much pattern is still there.

[Daryl Corona]

Harold,
I don't think it would hurt anything as long as you did'nt immerse them. Pull of the fore arm and try a small spot behind the lug and see what happens. I bet that gun has some killer damascus under the blue. Makes you wonder what some people are thinking when they do stuff like that. Post your results- this may open a whole new field of employment for you.:)

[Rick Losey]

the only issue I can think of is leaving the barrels with no finish to protect them.

[John Campbell]

Why not leave them blued until you send them in? It would look better. If you want to check the Damascus pattern, strip a little from under the forearm. Some burgundy Scotch brite and Hoppes will do that.

A good refinisher will charge you about $300+

They blued Damascus years ago to hide the fact that they were Damascus... which was not a sell point back then.

[Brian Dudley]

Most refinishing prices will include polishing. So you are not really saving money by stripping yourself.
Birchwood Casey bluing remover will work well for removing the bluing.
It leaves a grayish finish to the metal after application. Sometimes it takes a few applications to get it all off.

[David Holes]

Brian is right and don't expect to see a damascus pattern under the blue. So I would leave the blue on until refinished.

[Harold Lee Pickens]

Well, I picked up some gun blue remover at the gun show Sat. and tried it under the forearm as suggested. It did remove the bluing, showing a nice Damascus pattern when it was wet,,but then faded to silver when dried.
Bottom line, I will leave the bluing until the barrels can be properly refinished as suggested. I think it will look great.
Daryl, thought I had everything to start reloading those 3/4 oz loads using 20/28 that you suggested. Turns out I do not have the right bushings and neither did Cabelas or Gander Mtn., so will have to order them.
Thanks all.

[Daryl Corona]

Harold;
Call MEC directly or order an adjustable charge bar. They work great and you can dial in exactly what you want. No more bushings when you want to try a new load.