polishing barrel

[DENNIS B]

Is their a easy way to remove tool marks and filemarks prior to browning. I've been trying to remove them with sand paper and a buffing wheel..Seems life a lot of work with little inprovement..I must be doing something wrong.thanks for any help..

 

[Bob Riegl]

Dennis, I work with abrasive bars which are like large
(~ 2" x 4") black rubber erasers in three different grits---I believe Woodcraft or Lee Valley suppplies them. They did a great job on the barrel and action of my H & A, and a pistol barrel that was a wee bit shopwarn in appearance. :front:

 

[Mike Brooks]

A draw filed finish is all that's needed for a browned barrel. Get it too polished and the brown won't take well.

 

[MSW]

Thanks for the 'heads up' about getting the barrel too polished before browning- my last effort was left 'in the white' ("Armory Bright?") per the instructions of the end user (a.k.a. my Chief of Staff and She- who- will- be- obeyed). So I polished it all up and it looks very pretty.

To do this, i draw filed, then used wet / dry sand paper (any automotive supply store- NAPA, CAP, AutoZone etc.) in decreasing grits down to about 800 grit. You can get a mirror finish if you like.

USE A BACKER on the sandpaper, or you will get dished areas. You may also want to put a piece of stiff leather between the wood backer and the paper.

Good luck!

 

[Zonie]

You might want to read this link:

FILEING, 101

 

[walruskid1]

i consider myself a fair to good metalworker, thanks for filing 101. it brushed up on somethings i knew and covered a few things i didn't. thanks much dave

 

[CrackStock]

Mike,

I agree with you on the browning not taking well if the surface is too smooth, but another option is to go arsenal bright and let it gray naturally. Polish it smooth and then let it stand briefly, then oil. This makes a beautiful barrel finish and is quite correct. Old guns got aged through the years, but they started life as new guns and looked that way for a long time when properly cared for.

YMHS,
CrackStock