Best way to strip bluing?

I have a browned barrel coming in a week or so. The fellow said he would send me some of his browning to match up the rest of the rifle. If I like it I'll probably do some of the other rifles as well. So I was wondering what you folks use to strip the bluing? On hand the only thing I have that I could think of that I have is CLR. Just looking for more ideas to see if anything would be better.
Thanks

I use sno bowl toilet cleaner and an old tooth brush. It will strip it clean as a whistle. Just make sure you use gloves and in a well ventilated area.

Naval Jelly.

I always use my sand blast cabinet with 80 grit garnet sand and then glass beads. This will clean and texture the surface to readily except almost any rust blue or brown agent on the first pass. It goes a long way in making the finish more even as well.
I know that often the originals were not finished very well if at all but I think they should be if one is going to go to all the other decorative embellishment common to them.
Some rust blue or brown jobs done now days will show streaking, blotching or unevenness in bright sun light unless down well. I have seen these jobs roughed up with sand paper and tool scratches, apparently to cover the poor quality, and is called "antiquing".
Use is the only authentic Antiquing and can be speed up by handling your gun wearing leather gloves. Mike D.

Depends on what you want to end up with.

If you don't mind a pretty rough surface Naval Jelly will work fine.

If you have a smooth surface and you want to keep it, Birchwood Casey "Blue and Rust Remover" will remove the bluing without attacking the metal.

A word about using a cold browning agent: It works best if the surface is slightly rough.
It has difficulty in getting a "bite" on very smooth surfaces.

Evaporust!!

it'll take the bluing off of metal and also browning ( rust) :wink: works by chelation I believe its called.. the solution ( you can find it at Harbor Freight ) attacks only the oxides.. the base metal is unharmed. The chemical is considered safe and can be poured down the drain when used up..

Works great and has a LOT of other applications..
I like to find OLD tools, clean em' up and get them back into use!!

Respect Always
Metalshaper/Jonathan

Thanks for several responses so quick guys.

Why bother? I have browned right over the bluing. Results just fine like it was bare steel.

Didn't know you could do that.

Naval gel, toilet bowl cleaner and blue remover are almost always the same chemical. Phosphoric acid. I strip blue on a regular basis for engraving. I buy phosphoric acid at the hardware store and cut it with water to about 30%. You can use it straight but be careful not to leave it in the acid too long or it will etch. Usually about 10 minutes is enough then just brush with a wire fine brush. I don't recommend sanding unless the surface was rough to begin with. The same thing goes for browning.