Akio asked a question earlier today about changing the color of some metal rivets. I suggested a bluing pen designed for guns. A couple of folks commented about it and Just Jeepin requested pics and more info on the process so here ya go!
Also yes even though it’s called bluing, the color generated is very much black.
I’m packing my house now so you don’t get an in depth analysis of bluing tools and techniques but here’s a quick and dirty introduction complete with shitty pics.
I mentioned a Presto Gun Blue pen that I use for small areas and touch ups
It works well for small areas like nicks and scratches. It’s also pretty odorless even though it kicks off a chemical reaction in the metal.
Out target piece of metal:
It’s a cheap razor scraper, the first piece of untreated metal I found that I don’t care about. It feels like a mild steel that’s uncoated but has a slightly reflective finish. There was zero prep done to it, didn’t even wash it (you should definitely do that).
I rubbed the marker on it for probably 30 seconds then after that color set another 30 seconds over it again to get it evenish.
Definitely an uneven finish, but that’s to be expected after zero prep and a pen designed for tiny areas. If you’re more careful than me though you could turn that into a decent finish.
If you’re looking to do a larger area I’d recommend Brownells OXPHO-Blue - it’s awesome.
Most gun shops carry these things, and if yours doesn’t (or you don’t want to go into a gun shop now) Amazon does too.
Thanks for coming along with me on this brief tour of cold bluing of metal.