getting an aged dark grey patina look on barrel

[cowboys1062]

I have a barrel that I would like to get an aged patina look to it. It still has traces of the bluing still on it that I have to remove. Any suggestions on how to remove the old bluing and produce a nice patina dark grey look to yhe barrel? Any suggestions or advice would be greatly appreciated. Thankyou.

[dmills]

I use Lock-Tite Navel Jelly from hardware store.  It is a gel form of phosphoric acid.  It will take off the remaining bluing and can also give you that dark gray patina you are looking for.

It is lightly etching the surface of the barrel but not enough to feel.  Still keep the gel out of the inside.  

I usually hang the barrel with the nose down.  Then brush on a coat of gel and keep it moist on the barrel with fresh coats for a day.  I have accidentally let a coat dry before, but just used another fresh coat over the dried gel and that will re-moisten the dried on stuff.

Remove the gel with a damp rag.  You can do more treatments until the patina is darker gray.

I did this GPR several years ago.  It has continued to darken with age.

When fresh built:

[attachment=0:12ickn9k][/attachment]IMG_0176.JPG[/attachment:12ickn9k]

and now:

[attachment=1:12ickn9k][/attachment]GPR.jpg[/attachment:12ickn9k]

[Spotted Bull]

spread an even coat of cheap mustard on it and let it set a few days. Works wonders on knife blades to age them. Should work on a barrel too.

[greggholmes]

White vinegar will take bluing off.
ask me how i know

It took the black off of my navy arms 12g barrel

[cowboys1062]

I ended up using BC Bluing and Degreaser to remove the old bluing. Then I went over the barrel with 0000 steel wool. I then applied a new coating of BC Bluing to the barrel and blended it in with the 0000 steel wool to get rid of any streaking on the barrel. I rubbed the barrel back until I got a light grey look. I then mixed vinegar and mustard together and applied that to the barrel with nice even swipes. I let the barrel sit for a couple of hours and dry. I then took a damp washcloth and cleaned the mustard and vinegar off. I then soaked the barrel down with WD40 and lightly went over the barrel with 0000 steel wool blending and lightening the finnish of the barrel. It came out just the way I wanted it to look. It has that aged dark grey patina look to it. I then put a light coat of gun oil on it and put the rifle away. Job Well Done! I want to thank all of you for your great advice it really helped. Respectfully, cowboys1062.

[dmills]

spread an even coat of cheap mustard on it and let it set a few days. Works wonders on knife blades to age them. Should work on a barrel too.

I had not heard of using mustard before.  I'll have to try that on a Dixie Gun Works Tennessee Mtn. Poor Boy I am resurrecting.

[Voyageur]

Yup that good old cheap mustard works every time. Use patience when doing this technique, with careful addition of more mustard and removal....."Doc"

[cowboys1062]

Yes, The Mustard really works. I had read about using it on several other forums and they all swore by it. I also heard of mixing the Mustard with some Vinegar and that is what I did. Cant argue with the results! It came out better than hoped it would. The barrel now has that deep rich aged dark medium grey look to it. I couldnt be happier. cowboys1062.