Bluing a Winchester SL 1911 Shotgun - who can do this?

[Broc Tuah]

Although it is not Mil Surp, I figured this group might have a good answer.

I will be buying for cheap a Winchester SL 1911. The receiver and wood look fine. The barrel has some nasty rust.

I can remove the rust and bluing, but probably can't do a good job applying a finish.

Can anyone here help or can recommend a good place to do it?

I will only pay $100 for it (for the gun, not the work).

The guy will take more pics, he says it is surface rust.

I would re-barrel it, but I have no idea if someone does that.

 

[38ExtraSpecial]

Boil it and card it. You’ll learn something and save money.

 

[ThePreBanMan]

I've DuraCoated several firearms and they all came out fantastic. The prep work is the bear, the spray takes 10 minutes. If you already have a compressor, all you need is an airbrush. I would also recommend an external regulator, filter, and water separator. It's not an absolute requirement, but they're cheap enough. Should have to protect your air tools anyway. Very good selection of colors available. It stands up very well to harsh cleaners. It's durable enough. My 11-87 has been through multiple shotgun seasons chasing whitetail and you would never know. I use chlorine-free bake clean lots of times and the finish is unaffected by it. Something to consider as you could do it yourself.

100 bucks probably won't get you the job done. The prep work is very time-consuming and laborious. Maybe if you know someone who hooks you up. But I would expect a walk-in to have to pay a few hundred - minimum.

 

[Broc Tuah]

I've DuraCoated several firearms and they all came out fantastic. The prep work is the bear, the spray takes 10 minutes. If you already have a compressor, all you need is an airbrush. I would also recommend an external regulator, filter, and water separator. It's not an absolute requirement, but they're cheap enough. Should have to protect your air tools anyway. Very good selection of colors available. It stands up very well to harsh cleaners. It's durable enough. My 11-87 has been through multiple shotgun seasons chasing whitetail and you would never know. I use chlorine-free bake clean lots of times and the finish is unaffected by it. Something to consider as you could do it yourself.

100 bucks probably won't get you the job done. The prep work is very time-consuming and laborious. Maybe if you know someone who hooks you up. But I would expect a walk-in to have to pay a few hundred - minimum.

I thought about Duracoat.

Also, the $100 is for the gun, not the work. I figured the work would be more.

I gave my compressor and airbrush to my dad, it is in Florida now. How good are their spray cans?

I was thinking I could try removing the rust and bluing with Evaporust. Last time I used it, it worked great, but this was like 15 years ago.

I guess if I screw up the Duracoat all I have to do is remove the finish, so not a big deal.

 

[ThePreBanMan]

I thought about Duracoat.

Also, the $100 is for the gun, not the work. I figured the work would be more.

I gave my compressor and airbrush to my dad, it is in Florida now. How good are their spray cans?

I was thinking I could try removing the rust and bluing with Evaporust. Last time I used it, it worked great, but this was like 15 years ago.

I guess if I screw up the Duracoat all I have to do is remove the finish, so not a big deal.

I've never used their cans, so couldn't tell you. I've always bought the colors, mixed and airbrushed. Looks like a shotgun. Does the barren not separate from the receiver? Not familiar with the model.

 

[ddeck]

If you put oil on it (regular gun oil or kroil) and rub it with fine bronze wool or 0000 steel wool you won’t harm the finish. If there are pits, you can do the same with a bronze brush. Just did a milsurp in this way and got rid of all the red rust. Boiling and using the same steel or bronze wool will also work, but I’ve never personally done that.

 

[Chris M.]

The guy in Natick does nice bluing, but I don't think you'd want to spend that much.

 

[Broc Tuah]

I've never used their cans, so couldn't tell you. I've always bought the colors, mixed and airbrushed. Looks like a shotgun. Does the barren not separate from the receiver? Not familiar with the model.

Yes, so removing the barrel is easy.

 

[Broc Tuah]

If you put oil on it (regular gun oil or kroil) and rub it with fine bronze wool or 0000 steel wool you won’t harm the finish. If there are pits, you can do the same with a bronze brush. Just did a milsurp in this way and got rid of all the red rust. Boiling and using the same steel or bronze wool will also work, but I’ve never personally done that.

Interesting. I will try this first.

 

[ddeck]

Interesting. I will try this first.

This person does a good job explaining this method. Skip to 6 minutes in:


View: https://youtu.be/l4ym7MPOCRo

 

[majspud]

Did the Kroil technique on my Carcano. It wasn’t as bad as that and it came out well.
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[45collector]

I actually made a set of tools specifically for disassembling the 1911SL shotgun. Let me know if you need to borrow it.
I used a product I'd never heard of before to remove surface rust from a Colt that sat in a basement for decades. It's called the "Big 45 pad". Check it out.

ETA forgot to mention the recoil buffers in those guns will be long since dried out and hardened so if you're going to shoot yours, you'll want to make new ones. I used large rubber hose to make new ones for mine (I have a pair of 1911SL's)

 

[Sweeney]

I would boil it, rust it, boil it again, repeat until you have the desired look.