Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Gunsmithing Blueing a Ruger bolt handle

One of the purely aesthetic issues I have with the Ruger 77 (later models, at least) is the stainless bolt. I really like the Ruger 77s and they are/were available as lefties, so they are one of the actions I can foresee building a custom rifle on.

Has anyone ever refinished the stainless bolt in one way or another? Being stainless, I guess you can't actually blue it, but maybe nitriding or black chroming? Engine turn or jewel a section of it? I think in a perfect world I'd rust blue the rest of the gun (again, not sure the cast receiver would take rust blueing), and treat the bolt the same way, I'm just not sure what's possible given the nature of the (cast?) stainless bolt.

Anyway, any ideas or experience would be appreciated.

Blueing is a definite no, alas I have had stainless coated black…but it was a type of cerakote.
Nitriding may work but it won’t be a deep black.
I’ve done Parkerising, but it wasn’t what I wanted finish wise.
Good luck getting the finish you want as I have never had one come back how I envisioned.

Cheers.

Here is one posted by RGK that had the bolt handle cerakoted.

Link to pics: Re: If you had to pick just ONE - RGK's Ruger Hawkeye

And below his description of what he had done to the rifle.

I have cerakoted barrrels for Rugers, and the Midnight Blue matches the action pretty closely so that would work.

That’s the color I use for all my bluing match cerakotes.

Stainless can be blued. Depending on the alloy, results may vary as to tone.

I once turned, per customer request, the rear sight hump off a 721 or 722 ( I forget) without realizing it was blued stainless. Incidental, actually, to some other work. "No problem", says I. "I'll just drop it in the tanks afterward with some other guns on blueing day."

That cost me for the send-out wotk- but there are people out there who can blue (or re-blue) stainless.

That's a beautiful rifle there. It looks like Cerakote may be the answer.

I would just glass bead it to a dull gray and use as is.

Stainless can be blued as per the previous comment. Stainless is rust resistant, not rust proof. Bluing is controlled rusting. I would think hot dip bluing would be possible, but the timing in tank would need to change. I’ve done slow rust blue. I think it would just take extra dips in the hot water. I may be way off base. I’d slow rust blue as it can be done at home and doesn’t use hazardous chemicals.

Don't know crap about gluing a gun. Period.
Beyond the fact thatRemington used to blue stainless barrels.

I do know that while stainless can rust. It acts different than
carbon steel. Carbon, gets light surface rust that eventually pits.
Stainless often shows rust as pits.

At least in rifle barrel grade steels.

Slow rust bluing is as simple as it gets.