shotgun receiver refinishing options

[Pippus316]

Good day! I have recently picked up a "project gun". It's an old Ithica (SKB) over/under. I want to do a bit of a rebuild on it. The guts are in good to great shape, but the stock needs a refinish (which I'm capable of) and the the receiver could use some finish work.

The receiver has quite a bit of engraving and is currently blued. The bluing is pretty warn and I want to refinish it. Rather than just re-blue it, what are my option to brighten it up? I am told that nickel plating is an option, but it can cause grief by adding excess material that can bugger up the mechanical fit of the gun - can anyone confirm or deny that?

If I strip the bluing off, what can I put on to give it protection that is not bluing and wont darken it?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

[Hunter1602]

Originally Posted by Pippus316

Good day! I have recently picked up a "project gun". It's an old Ithica (SKB) over/under. I want to do a bit of a rebuild on it. The guts are in good to great shape, but the stock needs a refinish (which I'm capable of) and the the receiver could use some finish work.

The receiver has quite a bit of engraving and is currently blued. The bluing is pretty warn and I want to refinish it. Rather than just re-blue it, what are my option to brighten it up? I am told that nickel plating is an option, but it can cause grief by adding excess material that can bugger up the mechanical fit of the gun - can anyone confirm or deny that?

If I strip the bluing off, what can I put on to give it protection that is not bluing and wont darken it?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Good evening,
In regards to nickel plating it does add additional material to the surface, however I doubt enough to inhibit any problem upon reassembly. If you are looking to go down that route, I would speak to the company pertaining any concerns first.
Another option is a finish called cerakote/ Duracoat / armacoat, all basically the same. There's a couple AO members that do this Gitrdun being one of them.
Do yourself a favour and don't strip that bluing off until you know what direction your going with. Skytop is another member who does amazing hot bluing finishes and is someone I would recommend speaking with if your going to reblue ... Regarding your wood finish what are you thinking? I may know someone...
Regards,
H1602

[fps plus]

Nickel Plating can be done 2 ways electroless or with electricity .

For gun applications it should be done electroless , it uses chemical and temperature to draw the nickel to the metal parts . This produces a very thin EVEN coating .The method that uses electricity will have more of a build up of nickel on the edges and holes . This can cause fit problems for pins and screws and therefore not the best choice.

Nickel plating is a great finish the problem is trying to find someone that does it for gun applications .