New member has a Ithaca Lewis project

[alcaviglia]

No worries Dan, it's my pleasure.

I was on a roll a minute ago in response to your previous post and my computer froze as I clicked "post reply", so I'll try and get back into the groove (a bit of 15 yr. old Redbreast should do), rewrite it, and see if I can thoroughly address your polishing questions. It's a long one so here goes:

First, I would suggest hand polishing. Yes, it is time consuming and quite a strain on the eyes, but unless you have a slew of polishing wheels (materials and shapes) and have mastered them all, I would steer clear of buffing wheels, rotary tools, and any type of power sander.

Files make great backing for the abrasive when used on flat surfaces. Just be sure to round off the corners on the file to avoid any accidents. For a radius, I typically use pieces from a gardener's kneeling pad: they are cheap, work great, and are easy to cut into any shape imaginable. A fresh, out-of-the-package kitchen sponge works well, too. They are stiffer like that than they are when wet, but still pliable. Remember that you are removing material so be sure to overlap your passes a little on every radius to reduce the appearance of flats. Additionally, I would leave the water table and barrel flats alone. Maybe a few quick passes at the end, but that's it. If there is bluing on them, especially in the lettering/numbering, use a chemical rust remover and a stiff nylon or soft brass brush.

Take great care around holes and sharp edges. Keep them sharp, especially on the tubes and fences. Any work on the bottom of the receiver should be done with the trigger plate seated. Wouldn't want this thing to look like "franken-gun" when it's completed. And watch the screws/pins, they should be timed forward (North to South, if you will) and never proud.

On to emery cloth, I would think that the imperfections in your polishing thus far could be at least partially attributed to using a cloth-backed abrasive. The emery granules work their way into the cloth (it is far more porous and elastic than most papers) leaving some granules proud to the metal surface. Try a paper-backed abrasive, that may help. Also, I have never been a fan of aluminum oxide abrasives for this kind of work. I typically use paper-backed silicon carbide and a sparing amount of honing oil on my first passes at a new grit. And wear a mask when using it, despite the oil.

Something to note: if you believe that you are looking at pits/scratches on the receiver that sit 180 grit deep, you may have to accept them. Aluminum oxide granules at 180 grit are about 3.5 thousandths of an inch. Without a very expensive piece of ultrasound equipment, you never really know how thick the martensite layer is on the receiver (especially after over 100 years). I've heard of everything from 2 thou up to 8 thou. Removing 3.5, which is a ridiculous amount of work by hand, may not be the best idea regarding corrosion and abrasion resistance down the line.

To engraving, yes, that is the basic Quality 1/1S engraving pattern which I believe was roll stamped on. This would've been done while the receiver was still in it's annealed state, before the hardening. I am not an engraver, but think that they would prefer to recut engraving while the steel is soft. A lot of sharpening on very expensive gravers would be required to make clean cuts otherwise. If you mask the lettering first, and avoid polishing over it until the end, you can preserve much of what is left. If the original engraving being complete and sharp means that much to you, perhaps a legitimate restoration is in order (color case hardening and all).

To barrel prep, I've seen a rifle barrel that was prepared to about 2000 grit. Quite frankly, I didn't see the reasoning behind it. If you are running into polishing imperfections on the barrel set, cross polish with each subsequent grit.

To barrel finish, bluing - that is all. And trigger guard, as well.

As I understand it, you are looking for some type of coin finish to stand in for bluing on the receiver in the absence of case colors (which again, I very much agree with). Bead blasting can be okay, but you'll probably find yourself in a catch-22 with that, and end up redoing everything by hand. Depending on the desired luster, some chemical treatments can also work, but they'll take at least as much time to prepare, apply, neutralize, and remove as you'd have spent hand polishing. Plus, any unforeseen issues that take you away from tending the chemical process can be devastating.

I think that well defines where I come out on hand polishing, and I hope something from this verbose sermon is of some practical use to you.

Also, keep asking questions, it's how you, me, and many others learn. While mankind's greatest resource for information may be the internet, mankind's most valuable resource for knowledge is still people. Luckily, forums like this combine the two quite well, rendering people far more accessible.