MARK LEE EXPRESS BLUE #1 

Designed for bluing double barrels & fine riffles

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AVAILABLE SIZES

473 ml / 16 oz - $90   

118 ml / 4 oz - $30  

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Excusively available in Canada at PJ's Products. Mark Lee Express Blue #1 is for traditional rest bluing without the need for a humidity box. Chemicals in the solution form iron oxide by applying heat. Then the oxide coating turns blue black when boiled in water. 

 

Mark Lee Express Blue #1 provides a more durable finish than a cold blue and can be used for spot repairs. 

 

Warming the metals to open the pores is always best. Use a hair dryer, heat gun, hot box, or oven. Heat gun or part to 150° - 200°F degrees and swab on solution, immerse in boiling water for 5 minutes, and card with soft wire wheel or fine steel wool. Repeat the application of the solution and boiling until colour is achieved, then neutralize. Apply Clenzioul to ensure rust prevention.

 

Tips from Mark Lee

• Do not touch the metal with your bare hands; you can leave contamination spots in the finish. If you have a very small spot along a rib that does not want to accept the colour, take a piece of new 400 grit sandpaper and scuff the small area. The following coats should take to that area.

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• If you use steel wool for carding, only use oil-free steel wool. It is available at fine woodworking stores.

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• If you must use regular steel wool, soak it in acetone to remove the oil.

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• Do not try to blue the ends of a barrel; you don’t want to get any bluing solution in the bore. Polish the barrel crown back to white after bluing. I don’t plug bores anymore, but I make sure I’m using fresh water on each process when doing barrels.

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• I have found that I can usually repair rust blue finishes without stripping the part. Polish only the problem area. Coat that section, and when the colour matches, then coat the entire part with one or two coats.

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• Using the rust blue to touch up damaged screw heads is easy and the bluing will not rub off. If you do not have a boiling tank and are only going to do a few guns, you can buy a piece of PVC pipe, glue a cap on one end, and hang your barrel in the pipe and fill the pipe with boiling water each cycle. Parts can be strung on a degreased wire for boiling, but -DO NOT- wire brush the parts with the wire attached. The wire brush can grab the chain of parts and cause serious injuries!​

 

• Sometimes carding with steel wood and water can blend a streak in the blued finish. Rust bluing can be lightly buffed with a loose muslin wheel and a compound used for mirror finishing. This adds some sheen to the finish. This operation can be done just before applying grease or oil to the finished parts.