Buttplate color
 

I notice many Parkers from the 1880s-1890s have brown colored buttplates and grip caps. Where they built that way or have they faded over the years?

Thats what aged gutta percha looks like Bruce...the old timey hard rubber used for buttplates and grip caps,you can clean them up to look black again with super fine steel wool.

A modest buff with 0000 steel wool will help. A very very thin wipe of stock finish will enhance the "black" if palmed in with the hand.

Just an interesting note. I refitted a used Lefever buttplate to a stock, and I had to bend it some for the different stock. I boiled it and it turned a mustard gelled color on the surface when boiled. It took a bit to get it black again.

Play on words??? :corn:


..... Oh, nevermind :banghead:

Had that happen to me as well, it's almost like the oxidation got thicker and tougher during boiling.

I have read somewhere that a very light coat of black shoe polish rubbed in will recolor a butt plate but I have never tried it myself.

I'll let you know :)

I used Formsby's to clean the old finish of a stock before steaming out the dents. I had left the butt plate on and the edges of it where the stripper touched it turned brown.

my plan was to try one of those liquid scuff polish applicators on it to restore the black.

I've actually used toothpaste to restore a Lefever buttplate. Toothpaste is technically a mild abrasive. I found this idea from a vintage automotive restoration shop when they want to restore the bakelite knobs, etc. Took a lot of "thumb grease" to get it black but I think I'd use Orange hand cleaner next time. A little more grit.

I used toothpaste to take wiper scratches of of the windshield way back when I redid a Healey. Got the idea from my brother who was part of a group building a telescope for a small college observatory, they used it on the mirror surfaces.

What you are dealing with is most probably a material called Bakelite, a very early form of plastic/resin. This from Wikipedia:

"It is a thermosetting phenol formaldehyde resin, formed from an elimination reaction of phenol with formaldehyde."

This is the stuff that turns brown when you expose it to the wrong solvents or heat. I'm guessing because of the formaldehyde element. You can stain it black, but it's still brown underneath.

I have a couple of Lefevers with brown buttplates, Parkers also. I would rather leave them as is than mess with them. Some have been boiled to make them that way, some came to me that way. I like them, no matter how they got that way.

John, Parker Bros. butt plates are made from "Gutta Percha" a form of rubber at least into the Remington era. The Parker marked plate's made by Remington may be bakelite.

I clean with a power toothbrush like I use for Checkering. For old buttplates I use orange hand cleaner with Pumice, rinse thoroughly then rottenstone in soap slurry, rinse thoroughly then a but of stock finish and they look new.

Harry;
I've heard of rottenstone before but where can one purchase it?

any serious wood workers supplies dealer

http://www.woodcraft.com/product/200...tone-1-lb.aspx

I got mine from Brownells

Basically you want mild abrasives in a NON petroleum liquid. The finer the abrasive the higher the polish and the longer it takes to remove the old oxidation. It seems to me I once used Bon-Ami cleaner too.

Assuming there's no crud on it, I use Kiwi black liquid shoe polish Take it off the stock before you use it!

Vintage gun grips is now taking orders for the 3 frame butt plate. Just incase you don't like that lovely brown look. Dave