Brownells Instant Blue
If you prefer to watch a video instead of reading; I made a YouTube video review of the Brownells Instant Blue and you can find it at the following link;
Like many of you, I have inherited many firearms over the years. Many of those firearms are more than 70 years old and have the marks, scars, and worn areas which are indicative of their age. Even the firearms I have purchased have developed wear and tear over the years. Several years ago I inherited a rifle from a grandparent and its original bluing had been worn off in a few areas. In my quest to restore this rifle to the best possible condition I found Brownells Instant Blue. I ordered a bottle, gave it a try and was blown away at the instantaneous positive results. I have continued to use it on many firearms over the years and it continues to be a staple on my gunsmithing bench.
If you want to purchase the Brownells Instant Blue, you can find it through the following link;
Well, fast forward a few years and I noticed after 10 years or so of use, my Ruger 22/45 lite had developed rust on several of the steel magazines.
It's a bit hard to see in the images above, but you might be able to spot a few of the rust spots on the magazines.
After disassembling the magazines, I took a rough brillow like pad and thoroughly sanded at the magazines to remove the surface rust which had developed.
I sanded down the rust areas especially well but also gave the entire magazine a scrubbing also so I would have some uniformity in the overall look once I used the instant blue. The directions say the instant blue works best if the metal is heated to 90 degrees, although it says this step is not required. Being that these were just disassembled 22/45 magazines, I placed them in the sun for a period of time before moving onto the next step. I am not sure what temperature the magazines were when I got them out of the sun, but they did feel warm to the touch.
After prepping and cleaning your part, (and heating if you choose to), the next step is to wipe the part you will be treating with alcohol. I used a medical alcohol wipe and wiped down the entire outside of both magazines.
Next I got a clean cloth (I used an old cotton T-Shirt piece) and applied some of the instant blue solution to it and just started wiping the magazine with the bluing solution. The color change is literally instantaneous. As soon as the bluing solution touches exposed metal it blues it.
The directions say once the rag turns black to reapply the bluing solution to a clean part of the rag/cloth and keep going until you have achieved the bluing results you are seeking.
After applying the instant blue to the entire magazine, I used a clean rag to wipe off any excess bluing solution. The bluing solution leaves a matte black/blue finish and so oil needs to be applied as the last step of the process.
I have been a fan of Hoppe's products for a long time, but these lubricated field wipes are seriously awesome. I used one of the aforementioned wipes to put a thin coating of oil on the magazine.
I then lightly wiped the oil off the magazine and as you will see, the results were outstanding.
It is hard to see the results until you compare it before and after with the untreated magazine and then the difference is stark. The Brownells Instant blue is an amazing product which should be on the workbench of any gun owner. The results speak for themselves, and at about $10 for a small bottle it really is a no brainer purchase.
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