Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters Why can't stainless be blue?

It could be that you deserve "the cute award" for this particular thread.

Or so it seems to me.

458 lott -

Who invented the lightbulb???

Oh,Oh... I think I know this one. If my memory serves me right. Thomas Edison took his theory and assembled a team of experts/craftsmen, which included a glass blower and had a working prototype in 6 months. I think it happened in NJ. Saw it on the History channel.

I'd call that incredibily fast. Early lightbulbs even lasted longer. It would take a lot longer today, I'm sure. Heck, there is a multitude of things modern society can't do as fast.

Sorry to get off topic but that's what happens when a thread goes beyond its useful life; it won't happen again.

I've seen documentaries that discuss "blue through and through" stainless steel development. With the amount of resources that are being devoted to it's creation, I'd expect it sometime soon. After all it is a necessary component of the hoverboard. Along with the flux capacitor. Shortly after the "blue through and through" stainless, we'll be seeing "Transparent" Aluminum.

But seriously, anything present in enough quantity to change the color of a mixture of iron, nickel, chromium, carbon and other compounds is more than likely going to have a lot of other effects. Most of which will be highly detrimental. Also, as far as I know, there is just one person looking for stainless that is "blue through and through". As opposed to billions of people that use the electric light bulb, and hundreds of millions that use mobile phones. So while it may be theoretically possible to come up with "blue through and through" stainless, there isn't the right effort to reward ratio needed to justify the expenditures needed to create such a material. Unless you are stepping up to foot the bill ?

Regards,
Scott

** Bonus points to those who can name the documentaries!

Thanks for your input.

No bonus points for me today.

I wuz thinkin of sendin him a couple boxes of Rit Cobalt Blue dye. He could mix it up, stick his barrel in and let it soak. Then he can pull it out once a week, cut off an inch of barrel and let us know how long it took for the blue to be completely absorbed.

Sorry ex, I can't help taking cheap shots at jarheads <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />


And about that ex thing. I thought there are no ex marines, only former marines???? <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/help.gif" alt="" />

I belive that Smith & Wesson had some"blued" 686 revolvers in the early 1990's.
Don't know what process that they used.
Bob

Don't know about the 686 revolvers, but sometime in the 1960s Remington started using stainless barrels on some of their magnum 700s. The sneaky buggers didn't mark them as stainless, however. I have seen them polished up ready for blueing on the supposition that they were regular barrels. After 30 minutes in the tank the receiver was nice and blue, but the barrel was still silver. Don't know what process the factory had used to blue the barrel.

I keep all my magazines, read them endlessly and believe 99% of what I read. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

Look for your May 2002 copy of shooting Times. Layne Simpson did a fine article titled, Remington's Model 700 Turns The Big 40. Early Rem's in 6.5 and 7 mag had SS barrels. In the article, page 54, Layne writes "Remington went to the great expense of first plating them with copper and then iron so they would accept a blued finish."

The blue is a lighter hue and matt in appearance. I have trained my eye to spot these rifles on the used rack. I have a 1963 7 mag thats marked SS on the barrel and a 1967 production 6.5 mag that has Stainless Steel fully printed out. I believe this stainless feature was finally dropped because of the expense and less public fear of these rounds burning up barrels.

Both these rifles, by the way, are gems cabable of sub MOA.

Hey AJ300MAG.

You are right. It is always open season and great fun to take shots at all ex (former? perpetual?) Marines. Especially, if like me they volunteered with patrotism and high hopes of national service in their innocent hearts. But if you want a better and more appropriate target level your sights at this Jack Murtha yahoo. If he was ever a true jarhead, he must have forgotten it years ago. Maybe, he went Washington.

This exmarinejensen thing didn't actually start with me. The young guy who knew me and that installed this present computer system, and got me online, suggested that this was somehow fit for me.

Because my memory is not always that great for recent things I have consequently utilized this for all my internet stuff. Also, and this may make you chuckle, have used the serial number of my 1958 issued International Harvester M-1 Garand as my password for all my accounts. In remembering this archaic information, I doubt that I am unusual among former members of the Marine Corps. Funny how this stuff works and sticks in an old guy's memory.

Finally, if the technolgy for creating a "blued" metal was as easy as Ritz dye saturation; I would guess that I would be carrying such a firearm rather than wishing for one. I still wonder if I will live long enough to hold such a wonder in my hands. Probably not.

Lastly, my thanks to all the inputs to this thread, serious and otherwise. They have provided various proportions of education and entertainment. If you will take a look at the numbers of folks who have read and responded to this thread; then I think I must label my efforts - and certainly yours - as "Mission Accomplished."

I have enjoyed this thread as well!
You take care, MARINEjensen!!
Regards

Thank you, Tim.