Re-bluing a plum blackhawk frame

[mohavesam]

Where are the pictures???

I understand the plum aging and have a couple but the purple coloring came from batches with an accidental, inferior titration - a bad mix that reacted in an un-intended color and unstable oxidation, therefore changing over time or environment. So I'm very interested in how Ruger intends the coloration aside from dyes. :?: The purple comes from the baths, not the metal.
'course, that is where they ended up with the SA "case-coloring".

Post copious pics and review this adventure here please...
8) 8)

 

[ditto1958]

While I am far from an expert about bluing, I have a difficult time accepting that something that happened to so many guns over multiple years is the result of an error.

A more plausible possibility? What if the first guns they had that happen to were done that way unintentionally, maybe the result of an error, and they decided they liked the way it looked?

 

[choirboy]

I had an Iver Johnson Champion single shot reblued many years ago. The finish was mostly gone. The gunsmith told me the receiver had been case hardened and would turn plum when blued. It came back a rich plum color. I think perhaps the hardening process might play a role in how the salts react. JMHO