[Mark in Missouri]

Last winter I rust blued an old Mauser "parts gun" and found it to be an enjoyable project.

I used disposable latex gloves to handle all parts and worked on clean newspaper in between coats. The parts were boiled in de-ionized water which is available at the grocery store. I made a rust box out of scrap plywood, mainly because the garage was somewhat cold and dry. Had I done this project during the hot, humid summer the rusting box would have been unnecessary.

Patience is required. All parts were highly polished and in the white before I started. I did all of my carding with very fine steel wool. Small parts were placed in a wire mesh basket for rusting and boiling.

Here is the result:

 

[GRIMJIM]

That looks great, are the chemicals very toxic? I have heard that everything you have in the garage will get rusty also. Maybe from the fumes I don't know.

 

[Mark in Missouri]

I bought the chemicals from Brownells. It comes in a small bottle called "Classic American Rust Bluing Solution." I have a gunsmithing book that gives the formula for making it yourself, but that looked like a lot of work. The solution is dabbed on the metal parts with a cotton ball and allowed to rust for several hours. I did not have any problems with fumes or other stuff rusting.