I've been browning gun parts for thirty years and in the very first Hawken build I boiled the hardware between applications. There are comments on line now that boiling changes the chemistry of the oxide and produces a black finish. However and for reasons unknown my parts came out a wonderful chocolate brown and with a very nice finish.
I do most of my browning work at this time of the year so I can put the parts in humidity chambers next to the wood stove where they are kept warm and happy. I do see differences sometimes in the way various components respond to the browning process, but I presume this has more to do with the type of steel.
Along the way TOW has had to changed the formulation of the browning reagent they offer to slightly different chemistry. The original formula was Wohkon Bay and the replacement is called Tried and True. The new formula seems perhaps a bit more aggressive and toward the end of the process some parts start to show a pitted surface finish.
Since I am not aiming for an antiqued appearance I prefer to have a more polished finish on my browned components and I have discovered that I can achieve improved luster on finished parts by buffing or burnishing them with 2000 grit emery paper and oil after the browning has been done.
I do most of my browning work at this time of the year so I can put the parts in humidity chambers next to the wood stove where they are kept warm and happy. I do see differences sometimes in the way various components respond to the browning process, but I presume this has more to do with the type of steel.
Along the way TOW has had to changed the formulation of the browning reagent they offer to slightly different chemistry. The original formula was Wohkon Bay and the replacement is called Tried and True. The new formula seems perhaps a bit more aggressive and toward the end of the process some parts start to show a pitted surface finish.
Since I am not aiming for an antiqued appearance I prefer to have a more polished finish on my browned components and I have discovered that I can achieve improved luster on finished parts by buffing or burnishing them with 2000 grit emery paper and oil after the browning has been done.
