Color Case Service

[NorEaster]

Can anyone direct me to someone who does good color case hardening work at a reasonable price?
I contacted a smith on the web who adverises his service and his reply was the following:
Thank you for asking about my Color Case Hardening (CCH). I only CCH the old traditional way with bone & wood charcoal. Your Ruger Old Army is made of modern steel and I have not had much luck CCH modern steel.
He further explained that the only way that Rugers could be case finished was through the cyanide method which I believe is probably similar to the method Ruger was using on the Vaqueros until they discontinued it.
I know Turnbull can do it and I've received a quote from them as well. Just trying to find someone who can do the work without me having to take out a second mortage.

 

[princeout]

Alan Harton at Single Action Services in Houston, TX. Give him a call.

Pictures at

http://gallery.mac.com/aharton

Tim

 

[Robb Barnes]

Here are two that Alan had CCH for me.

 

[NorEaster]

wow... nice. I will try to contact him.
I would like to have my ROAs cylinder frame, hammer and loading levers finished off like that.
If there are any others other than Alan, throw me a bone.
Many Thanks

 

[CraigC]

Can anyone direct me to someone who does good color case hardening work at a reasonable price?
I contacted a smith on the web who adverises his service and his reply was the following:
Thank you for asking about my Color Case Hardening (CCH). I only CCH the old traditional way with bone & wood charcoal. Your Ruger Old Army is made of modern steel and I have not had much luck CCH modern steel.
He further explained that the only way that Rugers could be case finished was through the cyanide method which I believe is probably similar to the method Ruger was using on the Vaqueros until they discontinued it.
I know Turnbull can do it and I've received a quote from them as well. Just trying to find someone who can do the work without me having to take out a second mortage.

Several points. Ruger's investment cast steels cannot be case hardened. However, they can have an authentic finish applied through a psuedo original process to impart beautiful bone charcoal case colors without actually getting hot enough to harden the part. This is what Doug Turnbull does. I'm surprised the guy you contacted did not know this.

Don't know of anyone doing the cyanide process on Rugers.

Ruger's factory finish is neither. It is simply a chemically applied finish made to look like case colors.

Most gunsmiths who offer this finish as an option have Doug Turnbull do the work.

Here's some of Turnbull's authentic case colors on a custom Ruger Bisley .44Mag by David Clements.

 

[powder smoke]

Here's another Turnbull Bisley This one has charcoal Bluing. ps

 

[NorEaster]

Thank you for that information. I did not realize that the Turnbull process for a Ruger was a totally different process than that done on a early Colt. When they tout "bone and chacoal" I thought it was something done to all guns. Turnbull does great work; but at $650 a revolver to do my ROAs, I can live with plain blue. Was just hoping....
Thank you for sharing the pics, beautiful guns.

 

[CraigC]

$650!!! I think it cost me $250 to have the above Ruger done. Of course, that was with Clements' disassembly, metal prep and bluing, Turnbull did only the case coloring.

The process is not "completely different", it still utilizes bone charcoal and a furnace. The parts are just not heated enough to harden them.

 

[NorEaster]

yup... I asked for a quote last fall and was told $650 per revolver.
Maybe it's a political issue... maybe customizers who use their services on a regular basis get a price break. I'm not sure; but only going off of what I was told by the person who emailed me the quote.

 

[Boxhead]

Alan has a local guy that does cc's for a lot less than Turnbull and it looks great. He's doing a hammer and trigger on a M29 that Alan is working on for me.

 

[CraigC]

That had to have been for more than just a case coloring job. Did it not include disassembly, reassembly and a full bluing job? Carbona bluing perhaps?

 

[NorEaster]

CraigC it would have been for disassembly, CCH and re-assembly; but no rebluing is requred.
My ROAs are 98%. I asked for cylinder frame, hammer and loading lever to be done. Maybe they charge $250 and item.