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color-case harden

troopertyree
Is there any expert on how to color case harden a reciever?
I understand it involves heat ,bone meal, sawdust, and leather?
Maybe thats a myth but I would like someone to explain the process
that is tried and true.
I want to do a stevens favorite reciever and they always had such
a pretty zebra striping on them I would like to duplicate that.
I beleive I can do this myself if I had some real clues into it.
Thanks
Troopertyree
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Comments

9 comments

Date Votes
  • ern98
    I have never done case hardening, but I looked it up in Brownells and they offer a kit, instructions included, for $270. I'd call and talk to a tech rep and say that I was interested and wanted to know more about the process, could the sell me a copy of the instructions?
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  • p3skyking
    Traditional Case Hardening is done by packing the soft iron or steel parts in a
    cast iron box, together with a mixture of charred bone meal, leather scraps or
    parings from hooves etc. The top is wired in place and sealed with fireclay.
    The entire box is then heated in forge or furnace, to a medium red heat for
    several hours, after which it is removed, the wires clipped and the entire
    contents dumped into clear cold water.

    COLOR case hardening is a similar process to the above. In this case however
    the parts are first polished to about a 400 grit finish and CAREFULLY
    DEGREASED. They are then packed in the bone meal/leather charcoal mix and
    sealed absolutely air tight.

    After heating, the contents of the box are dumped into a barrel of clean, cool
    water to which a small amount of nitrate may be added to enhance the color
    ranges. This tub of water will have a grill half way down to separate the box
    contents and will be arranged with a vigorously bubbling supply of air from a
    perforated pipe at the bottom of the tub. Beautiful ranges and variations of
    colors can be obtained..though getting CONSISTANT, REPEATABLE, PREDICTABLE
    results make this the realm of a few VERY practised masters.

    Hope this gives you some idea of what you have to do.


    What men call a hero...is merely a man who is seen doing what a brave man does as a matter of course.
    A man who is in love with learning is a man who is never without a bride, for there is always more. L'Amour
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  • Bert H.
    Hello troopertyree...

    Case color hardening is not something that the average person (or gunsmith) can do on their own. It takes specialized equipment and ingredients. That said, I believe that Stevens used a slightly different method of case color hardening (cyanide method) than most other manufacturers. For a real good explanation of the bone charcoal method used by Colt, Winchester, Parker, L.C. Smith, Marlin, Ballard, Remington, and several other top firearms makers, go to the link I have provided below.

    http://www.gunshop.com/doublegunjournal_v7i4_9.htm

    Bert H.

    Real Men use a SINGLE-SHOT!
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  • ATF
    Here's a Smith & Wesson mod 15-8 that was case colored by the S&W Performace Center.
    standard.jpg

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    Limerick.gif





    There are 2 times when a man doesn't understand a woman
    - before marriage and after marriage

    ATF,Eagle Guns
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  • v35
    What's happening with case hardening is that you start with a nonhardenable grade of wrought iron or steel and infuse carbon into the surface, creating a high carbon skin that is now hardenable.
    the part now can be quenched from red heat and have a hard skin.
    The bone and leather sealed in a can process keeps oxygen out and gives the nice colors. Case hardening must not be done with a hardenable grade of steel or you will through harden it and it will become brittle unless it is subsequently tempered and it will lose the colors.
    There are other methods such as nitriding to give appropriate steels a hard surface but you wouldn't get the nice colors.
    I like the color case on old guns but would opt for heatreated high strength steel on modern guns.
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  • sosftim
    Sorry, I don't have any help on how-to but this seems like a good result....
    A field-grade LC Smith.

    http://www.bluebookinc.com/bluebookinc/myarticles.asp?P=6322&s=7284&pubid=4315
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  • v35
    Nice on a Stevens or LC Smith but inappropriate on a Colt SAA.
    I suspect the authentic brilliant colors will only result from the sodium cyanide process and that's a dangerous business in both the process and disposing of the stuff afterward.
    The bone and leather method may be the only option left to you. The colors are more subdued but look rich. Some of the repro Sharps look great. The Italians seem to have the process down pat.
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  • mazo kid
    Trooper, send me your email address and I will try to forward some good info to you. Emery

    "Well done is better than well said"
    Ben Franklin
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  • Wheelgun
    Probably the best person to contact for case hardening would be Doug Turnbull Restorations (http://216.234.245.224/) Click here --> http://216.234.245.224/pricing.htm for examples of his pricing.

    I'd dare to say you won't find anyone who can do a better job on case hardening using traditional methods. All of Colt's custom shop work is done by Turnbull.

    Mark

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