Preserving case colors

[Robert Fernald]

Does anyone know how to prevent losing case colors? My VH was newly restored & id like to retain as much of the color as possible. I won’t be able to use the gun as much as I’d like but it will get out quite a bit over the years. I understand your sweat contains acid which can affect it but that may be a myth. Any ideas?

[Buddy Harrison]

While I have not tried this method myself, a number of posters to this forum have stated that they clean the area to be preserved to remove oil and fingerprints and then apply a thin coat of Tru-Oil to the case colored metal surface. They indicate that they periodically, depending on the amount of use the gun gets, reapply a thin coat. This seems to be one of the most often touted ways to accomplish your goal. Good luck.

[Russell E. Cleary]

The use of Tru-Oil for metal on this Forum I do not recall. I only see it recommended, by some, for wood.

The original post pertains to protecting metal-- case color, specifically.

[Buddy Harrison]

While I am getting up in years, I am not yet senile yet. Other posters have suggested coating case colors with Tru Oil which is basically a varnish or shellac that common sense tells me may protect the metal, although not long term.

[Brian Dudley]

Just keep the gun oiled.
Anything you put on the metalwork will effect the appearance and just create possible issues down the road.

If the gun is kept oiled and cared for properly, the finishes will age naturally and look fine for as ling as you will likely need them to.

[Victor Wasylyna]

Any ideas?

Hopefully the folks that cover their couches with plastic wrap will chime in with some ideas.

-Victor

[Jerry VanHorn]

Dr. Gaddy told me years ago that he used TESTORS...(model paints) clear lacquer..

[David C Porter]

Parker never top coated the color case hardening & doing so would make it look un-natural. Turnbull used a violin varnish on CCH when requested & so does the Germany company that does Perazzi's & Krieghoff's. Brownells used to have a baking lacquer that was hardened in the oven. True oíl is also used. For a Parker leave it original; no top coat, just a little oil & it will look more original.

[Dylan Rhodes]

I put a liberal coating of renessaince wax on mine. ...It looks absolutely awful. If I were taking guns to be displayed or to show off, I would remove it. But for wondering around in the woods or fields it serves its purpose. After a lengthy 5 year experiment it seems to protect things to some extent. More data would be needed to come to a firm conclusion. At worst, the wax is easily removed and i'm back where I started with unprotected colors. I try to completely remove the coating 1-2 times a year and oil then reapply.

[Stan Hillis]

Oscar Gaddy may have also used Testor's clear lacquer, but I have it in writing that he recommended Behlen's clear lacquer. I have never used it myself, just reporting what he had written.

Case colors are not a pigment that can rub off. The colors we see are a result of light refraction from a microscopic prismatic surface, which is a side effect of the casehardening process. In one of the articles Dr. Gaddy wrote for DGJ there is a picture showing how the surface looks under an electron microscope, and the tiny prisms are evident. Simple wear from handling removes those surface prismatic shapes, and the colors go away. It makes sense to me, and it did to him (which has much more credence than my opinion) that a protective coating of lacquer, or some other transparent coating, would delay that wearing away. I would assume this is the reason he recommended, and used, that method of preservation.

[Phillip Carr]

I have never liked the looks of any hard coating over any of my guns with case colors. I don’t use anything but oil or wax. I’m guessing many don’t agree.