MetalworkingFun Forum

Greeting to all :)
My first post on here !! :)


I've been building ths 'Dark Lady Clock' by Brian Hogger (http://briansworkshop.weebly.com/dark-lady.html)  the last year or so as my first trip into metalworking :)

So I have had a long road including having to build a dividing head (this took 3 attempts!) and all the tools etc + having to learn using the lathe and milling machine pretty much from scratch.

I'm a fair way through and I've completed the first few chapters including the making of the main wheel assembly, main arbor, plates, second, hour wheel and escapement. I have also made the Depthing tool.

BUT I just cannot get a good even blue of the main plates ?? Every flippin' time I 'over cook the heating process and one end of the plate turns from blue to grey?? I just don't know how 
Brian got such an even finish - unless he used some form of Kiln.

I can easily blue the small component and once I have made the two pinions and bushes I'm ready to 'plant the train' - If I have managed to blue the main plates.

Any advice from you learned members ?? :) :)

All the best

John

All most all (that's a disclaimer) home shop blueing attempts turn out exactly as you describe.  Is there a plating shop near by?  I do not know the status of gun smithing in the UK, but given the UK's restrictions I expect it is limited, but that would be another source  of blueing.

If you go the plating shop route talk to them about phosphating.  While not exactly the same as blueing it will produce (if done properly) a nice even black surface.  It does need to be oiled from time to time to hinder rust.

BTW, you've taken on quite a project for your first go at machining.  Mine was a drill point gage using hand tools (I still have the gage).

Why not chemical bluing? I've gotten good results with several of the commercially available solutions.

to get and even blue you may have to heat the parts that your trying to blue on something like a bed of brass filings so that the heat will be evenly distributed in order to have control over the process.

Can you get your hands on some of this cold, liquid blueing solution?  We can get it here locally at sporting goods stores or online at Amazon or eBay.  It is distributed by Birchwood Casey and is not terribly expensive.

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I have used a product called Dicropan and it has worked great for me. http://www.brownells.com/search/index.ht...&ksubmit=y

Heat the parts with a torch, dip them in oil and burn the oil off. It will make them more black than blue, but it is very reliable. If you want blue, Brownell's Oxpho-Blue works very well. If you look in the gunsmithing section, you can check out a shotgun I just reblued with it.

Tom

(06-24-2016, 03:33 PM)JScott Wrote: [ -> ]Can you get your hands on some of this cold, liquid blueing solution?  We can get it here locally at sporting goods stores or online at Amazon or eBay.  It is distributed by Birchwood Casey and is not terribly expensive.

Yeah, that's the stuff I used.

Tips for an even finish:

1.  Heat the part.  Not too hot to hold, but quite warm.  A hair dryer is perfect.
2.  Slather the stuff on.  Keep scrubbing away with the applicator until it is evenly colored.
3.  Gun cleaning patches are ideal for applying.  Just enough roughness to scrub the part without imparting scratches.
4.  Oil the part afterwards to stop the reaction and keep rust off.  Just a little bit goes a long way if you don't want a shine.


I've also used their brass blackening solution with decent results.  Not as durable a finish as bluing, but that shouldn't be an issue for a clock.

Here's a post from the Mustang Club RE phosphating

http://www.mustangandfords.com/how-to/pa...l-coating/

none of the gun bluing processes will give the blue color that is achieved by heat coloring that clock and watch makers use.