Advice on Filing Markings off GPR Barrel

[Mike_AK]

Any words of wisdom from folks who have done it before I jump in? Thanks!

 

[BrownBear]

If you know how to draw file and are careful, it's pretty easy. Just be careful not to round the corners on the flats. That's really obvious to the eye. I certainly wouldn't do it any other way than draw filing, so if you don't know how or understand what I mean, do your research first and get a little practice.

 

[Bill Hall]

Chalking up the file helps with it clogging up, but it's still going to clog. So what I do is file a few strokes on one end of the file and then move the file over the width of the flat, so I use a clean portion of the file. I do this until I get to one end of the file and then turn the file over and do the same. When I use up both sides, I card the file and start over again.

I do half the length of the barrel at a time, cuz I'm short and have trouble reaching too far. I put my thumbs on top of the file, almost touching, and the two index fingers ride along the two angled flats next to the top flat. This gives you a good feel for the file being flat with the corrospnding barrel flat. I try to keep my arms and shoulders somewhat stiff and make a pulling stoke mostly by pivoting at my hips.

When the filing operation is done, I like to run down the entire length of the barrel with some emery cloth wrapped around some flat tool. This will blend in any start and stop marks from file. Bill

 

[mpriester]

i didn't file mine off, i used lmf browning and let it set for 12 hrs between coats and they disappeared. this gave it a deep dark brown that looks to me like an aged appearence instead of the smooth looking finish.

 

[BrownBear]

i didn't file mine off, i used lmf browning and let it set for 12 hrs between coats and they disappeared. this gave it a deep dark brown that looks to me like an aged appearence instead of the smooth looking finish.

That's a good point. In the process of stamping, some of the metal is raised. If you draw file just enough to remove the high points, browning with LMF and little or no carding pretty well fills what remains. Some of the stamping gets pretty deep, and you're going to move a lot of metal to get to the bottom of it all. Gotta love LMF!

Edit- If you're working with refinishing a blued barrel rather than starting with a bare barrel in a kit, it helps the browning to fill the stamp if you hit the stamping with naval jelly, then use a fine brush to clean it. The LMF solution doesn't particularly like bluing and won't work on it.

 

[Little Wattsy]

If you know how to draw file and are careful, it's pretty easy. Just be careful not to round the corners on the flats. That's really obvious to the eye. I certainly wouldn't do it any other way than draw filing, so if you don't know how or understand what I mean, do your research first and get a little practice.

Do bevel it out so it isnt an abvious dip in a 3" section of the barrel; Stretch out the area filed to like 7 or 8"

 

[Mike_AK]

Since I will be browning the barrel with LMF, I'm just going to focus on draw filing the barrel even without trying to obliterate the stampings. Hopefully, as others have experienced, the rust will fill in the offending lawyer-ese. Thanks to everyone for the replies. I really enjoy learning from this forum. I'm making plans to build a shed for the stuff that is filling my garage so I can make room for a drill press and a bigger work bench for building more rifles!

 

[LRB]

You can burnish the lettering and reduce the amount of filing needed greatly. The butt of of a suitably sized drill bit can be used. Shape the end half round and polish to a mirror finish or close. The rub the lettering hard, lengthwise the the lines, and then across.

 

[BrownBear]

If you know how to draw file and are careful, it's pretty easy. Just be careful not to round the corners on the flats. That's really obvious to the eye. I certainly wouldn't do it any other way than draw filing, so if you don't know how or understand what I mean, do your research first and get a little practice.

Do bevel it out so it isnt an abvious dip in a 3" section of the barrel; Stretch out the area filed to like 7 or 8"

Thanks for that reminder. I'm long and lanky with orangutan arms, so as a matter of course I draw file the full length of a barrel on each stroke. Just seems "natural," but a lot of folks wouldn't think about that.

Interesting idea on the burnishing, Wick, and it sounds very useful. Following the smoothing and polishing, do you then go back and hit it lightly with 320 sandpaper or similar so it "takes" the browning better and blends with the rest of the barrel?

 

[LRB]

Yes. You would want to match the surrounding metal. Burnishing is an engravers trick to hide slips with the graver. It won't completely erase, but will reduce the size of the letters.

 

[BrownBear]

I'm betting that after burnishing, the browning could be a lot less "course" and still fill the letters.

Many, many thanks for a great addition! :hatsoff:

 

I did that on my first flinter, a Dixie Tennessee rifle. Man, where those stamped deeped. But I just couldn't bring myself to go out in the woods with something stamped "made in japan". I made a trip out to see my father, whose a machinist, tool and die maker, and his opinion was they were stamped to deep as well to completely make them go away, but we used a punch and displaced the metal and then draw filed. After browning, they looked like nicks or scratches, which was fine by me. I sold that rifle back in 99 and the guy thought it was a custom barrel until I showed him where it had been stamped.