We have a lot of active threads right now relative to the recently announced blue Pythons. I’m happily following them all.
In one, Mike Heffron (Heffron Precision) commented that the bluing chemicals Colt used to use can’t be used anymore because ”they’d kill a small nation” or something to that effect.
Mike’s comment triggered a memory of conversation I had with a PhD chemist about the bluing process, in which I commented that many shooters attribute the lack of modern, nicely blued guns being related to the the EPA or some other regulatory agency restricting the use of bluing chemicals. My casual friend, who works for Dow Chemical (we went to high school together) laughed and said something like, “are you kidding me? Bluing chemicals are largely potassium nitrate and sodium hydroxade, none of which are really on the EPA radar as long as well established guidelies are followed for chemical disposal.” Which I took to mean it doesn’t enter the ground or water supply. I had to Google those ingredients to recall the names, but I think they’re the two he referenced. He’s a gun guy, mainly bolt rifles.
With that I mind, last night I dug around as much I could on the Web and couldn’t find any reference to a bluing formula of any sort, at any time, being targeted by a regulatory agency. Obviously, Google is different than industry data, legal cases, etc., so my limited research doesn’t mean much.
I found well established bluing chemicals really easy to order for even home use.
What I did find easily was conformation to what we all know, which is that the most critical element of a bluing job relative to its appeal is the level of polish prior to bluing, assuming appropriate base steel is used to receive to the chemical process.
From what I can tell Mike may be mistaken: Colt’s bluing chemical formula for their premium bluing through the 1990s was not a secret, now restricted or banned chemical formula, but the legendary level of hand polishing.
I’m not calling out Mike, of course, but wondering if he was mistaken.
Anyone have any thoughts?
-Uplander
In one, Mike Heffron (Heffron Precision) commented that the bluing chemicals Colt used to use can’t be used anymore because ”they’d kill a small nation” or something to that effect.
Mike’s comment triggered a memory of conversation I had with a PhD chemist about the bluing process, in which I commented that many shooters attribute the lack of modern, nicely blued guns being related to the the EPA or some other regulatory agency restricting the use of bluing chemicals. My casual friend, who works for Dow Chemical (we went to high school together) laughed and said something like, “are you kidding me? Bluing chemicals are largely potassium nitrate and sodium hydroxade, none of which are really on the EPA radar as long as well established guidelies are followed for chemical disposal.” Which I took to mean it doesn’t enter the ground or water supply. I had to Google those ingredients to recall the names, but I think they’re the two he referenced. He’s a gun guy, mainly bolt rifles.
With that I mind, last night I dug around as much I could on the Web and couldn’t find any reference to a bluing formula of any sort, at any time, being targeted by a regulatory agency. Obviously, Google is different than industry data, legal cases, etc., so my limited research doesn’t mean much.
I found well established bluing chemicals really easy to order for even home use.
What I did find easily was conformation to what we all know, which is that the most critical element of a bluing job relative to its appeal is the level of polish prior to bluing, assuming appropriate base steel is used to receive to the chemical process.
From what I can tell Mike may be mistaken: Colt’s bluing chemical formula for their premium bluing through the 1990s was not a secret, now restricted or banned chemical formula, but the legendary level of hand polishing.
I’m not calling out Mike, of course, but wondering if he was mistaken.
Anyone have any thoughts?
-Uplander
