Bluing with Drano Kitchen Crystals

[Sharps40]

First experiment. Satisfactory results. Second experiment will be with polished parts, a bit less heat and a longer boil....but for now, on to the show and tell of it.

In any event, the proportions and types of chemicals (except for the aluminum bits which are not in concentration enough to kill the bath) are about the same as commercial bluing salts.

First, its lye and nitrates and boiling at 250 to 300+ degrees. So, sleeves, pants legs, gloves and most important, splash goggles. Vinegar near by to douse with if splashed on the skin. Extra caution all o the time....just like when I used to hot tank blue with Brownells solutions.

An acid test basically. No cleaning, no polish, no nothing...just dirty rusty parts with lots of bare areas to go in the hot tank.

I mixed strong. 4 pints (8 cups) of double filtered water and 5 cans of Drano Kitchen Crystals. The bubbling reaction of making up the mix rapidly brought the water to 250F. Lots of fumes. Had to move away from the pot till the reaction stopped. After that, no bad fumes....just stinging all over any exposed skin....the lye reacting with the sweat!

The old banged up parts are in, the pot on the heat and the candy thermometer reads 300F and a nice slow boil. (I probably have the solution oversaturated and need to add water to start the slow boil at 260 to 270 F.

 

[Sharps40]

20 minutes at a slow boil, average temps below 320F and that's prolly not enough time and too much heat. Acid test though, dirty unpolished oily parts are in there. Just to see if it'll work. So, times up and I'm heating clean water for a boiling rinse.

Based on my experience with rust bluing, I'll betcha theres some bluing under there...this side of the barrel was worn to the white before...(Temps too high I think that's why all the extra red rust like a long sit in the damp box for rust bluing....)

Carded and oiled. Success. Bare areas blued....not as dark as factory but then I did no prep either. The white side of the barrel is black and so is the bearing of the cylinder face.

The cut end of the barrel and the polished gripping end of the cylinder pin look super, dark black. Of course, these were likely the cleanest portions of the parts dropped in the tank.

The cylinder is pitted with age and spotty due to some differences in the color of the factory blue and this blue but, durn, no turn line and all the silver areas are at least deep grey black. I think a good polish will result in a very fine blue!

Same on the cylinder pin and EHR button. Polished areas look fantastic. Areas there were worn white are blackened but the bits of original factory blue show a bit darker. But, if yer doin screws and pins, toss em in, no need to polish, I think they'll come out dandy!

 

[win1894s]

I like it

 

[rugerjunkie]

Very cool! Great illustration too. Once you get to that point you mentioned polishing. What is done , and how for that step?

 

[Sharps40]

I typically polish old school way. Sandpaper. The buffing wheel is a highly efficient divot maker and marking remover as well as a ripple inducer and straight line bender. So, with all respect to those that have mastered the buffing wheel, I sand!

 

[Jimbo357mag]

So much for one stainless Chili pot. ...kidding. Very interesting. :mrgreen:

 

[win1894s]

What grade sandpaper?

 

[Sharps40]

Relearning what I used to know about hot tank bluing. I need three pots, not two. Salts, hot water rinse, oil holding tank.

So....some light spotting cause I handled the parts with a damp towel, an oil holding tank would have eliminated that but a buff with 0000 and wd40 evened things up and I think I have a process that gives a very acceptable utility grade finish if not the potential for a much finer finish.

To the second test.

I controlled heat thru saturation. Started with extra water and the boil came on rolling at 260, carried it up and used saturation to maintain a 280 to 300 F range rolling boil for 40 minutes.

I need to keep parts off the bottom to prevent bronze tint too....hot down there on the bottom. But....

These parts were wire brushed then buffed on the cloth wheel with #2 stainless polish to a mirror shine. The black is mirror as well. It has the watery translucent look of highly polished and blackened steel. Cleaning the parts before hand will be a critical step to ensure the salts bite and blacken. But, no spots and I think if nothing else, this is a fine method for blackening small/hard to handle parts or ones with crazy contours that don't lend themselves well to rust bluing and carding.

The barrel stub received a wire wheel brushing only down to clean metal. The fine speckling and pitting remains. The front sight is harder, it greyed but did not blacken. The barrel blackened nicely and provides a great utility finish or better.

The cylinder received a wire wheel brushing to white. Then a 120 sandpaper polish around the circumference. Then a 220 sandpaper polish around the circumference.

Like the barrel, I am very happy with this finish. The sanding removed almost all of the freckles and the cylinder is a lovely satin black. I spotted it a bit but I believe adding a motor oil or light mineral oil soak after the hot water rinse will eliminate the handling that leads to spots! Of the parts, the cylinder looks the best, not because its blacker or shinier but because the freckles/pits went away in the preparation. I'll be anxious to try this process on a bead blast/sand blast finish as well.

I'm not ready to blue a whole gun this way......I'll reserve Slow Rust Blue as the Master Finish. But, I'm pleased to be a bit down the road to a blackening process that will save me several days engagement over rustbluing and save me having to polish, coat, boil, card and repeat all them small bits!

More to follow. I gotta find some more stuff to play with in the salts.

 

[Carry_Up]

A very interesting experiment to be sure. How did you come up with the idea? My only question would be, since you are going to the same trouble to hot blue why not use Brownells hot bluing salts? Is there a dramatic price difference if you buy enough Drano?

The only thing I dislike about "modern" bluing is that it is really black. There is very little blue in it. Someone told me the real stuff contained arsenic which mom tells us we can't use. Now that you have the basic formula, why not whip up a recipe for authentic blue bluing salts?

CU

 

[Sharps40]

Two answers....

Spend your money at home in local businesses, not giant muny grubbing far away over priced corporates.

Its a bring whatcha got shop at my place.....I got Drano!

 

[Joe S.]

To the second test.

I controlled heat thru saturation. Started with extra water and the boil came on rolling at 260, carried it up and used saturation to maintain a 280 to 300 F range rolling boil for 40 minutes.

Could you explain what this means?

 

[Sharps40]

Water boils at sea level at 212F.

Add solids in solution and the temperature where boiling occurs is raised.....eg, the water is saturated....saturation.

The water that's in the mix is supersaturated with bluing solids. Bluing occurs best when the supersaturated water boils in that 280 to 300 F range.

If the salts are boiling below 285 to 300F then you have too much water....boil water off to raise the temp and then start bluing.

If the salts are boiling over 300F ya don't got enough water, carefully, very very very carefully add water to lower the temperature to the proper range so your steel turns black instead of red.

 

[Joe S.]

Is the drano a one time use? Or can it be saved and reused? Will straight tap water work?

 

[Sharps40]

Multiple use. I use filtered water. Acquire and read Brownells instructions for their bluing salts.

 

[Dan in MI]

Help a newbie out. How do you get from this:

Based on my experience with rust bluing, I'll betcha theres some bluing under there...this side of the barrel was worn to the white before...(Temps too high I think that's why all the extra red rust like a long sit in the damp box for rust bluing....)

To this;

Carded and oiled. Success. Bare areas blued....not as dark as factory but then I did no prep either. The white side of the barrel is black and so is the bearing of the cylinder face.

 

[Sharps40]

After boiling, parts are rinsed in boiling water. Once dried completly, rubbed out (carded) with degreased 0000 steel wool. Then while still warm, or rewarmed with a hot air gun, oiled heavily and hung up to rest 24 hours.

 

[Dan in MI]

Thanks

 

[xman9282]

Well I got the nerve up and tried this method. My results were not pleasing. Actually parts were in for 30 minutes at 290 and I have absolutely no color at all. Any thoughts on what went wrong?

 

[xman9282]

Just thought about it-- I didn't get any rust either!

Read another post with a drano and stump remover mix. This post didn't mention stump remover. Do I need it?

 

[xman9282]

bump

 

[Sharps40]

Stainless steel? Don't know. No problems here. Maybe heat is not evenly distributed....290 at the thermo and cooler where the part is.

 

[xman9282]

I was using the wife canning pot (she's not very happy now) so I would imagine heat couldn't be that far in difference and it wasn't stainless steel. Didn't see anywhere on the can about aluminum crystals. And like I said in the prior post, I rinsed in hot water after and let air dry and no rust!

 

[NikA]

xman, did you use the "Kitchen Crystals"? If not, you probably didn't get rust because it's a different product containing different chemicals. That specific product seems to be the only one that contains nitrates, which by my understanding of the posts are important to the bluing process.

 

[xman9282]

I will check on the "kitchen crystals" I do remember the can said "professional" but thats about all I remember it said right now. Sorry pruger45 I didn't take any pics.

If I even mention Drano at home the wife freaks out. SHHHH here she comes.........

 

[NikA]

There are multiple Drano products with the "Professional" label. It is much smaller on the "Kitchen Crystals" container, such that I didn't even notice it despite having the product.
FWIW, the MSDS for stump remover indicates that it's basically the missing nitrates you would need, so if you have stump remover and your Drano and don't want to buy another Drano product, that should be an option.