Polishing a blued Remington 700 receiver

[dmoran]

I don't recall saying anything about the color of rouge Donovan : Nor am I referring to abrasive wheels or buffing compound. Do you know what a flapper wheel is Donovan? You have to use the correct wheels. You aren't going to bring a piece of steel to a polished state with a wheel designed for buffing. I've probably polished more aluminum and stainless steel than you have ever had in your hands

Well JRS you have went from originally stating "it can easily be polished on a buffer" to now stating "You aren't going to bring a piece of steel to a polished state with a wheel designed for buffing" which I agree with and was what I said also.
In any regards, Jason's advise above is the most commonly used method to bring steel to a polished state.

 

[Jason Boersma]

Donovan some people are afraid of hard work, hand polishing an action or barrel is the best way and most rewarding way to polish any metal and if done how I described the surface of the metal has such small pores and is so smooth that it really doesn't tarnish or rust and the shine lasts a long time but it is hard work. Businesses use machines because they save time not because they do a better job. This country needs more people that do hard work by hand.

Let's end this argument and go out and shoot some targets.

 

[Sniper338]

Blued actions are usually not stainless, unless I'm missing something here if you you leave it in the raw it's not going to match the barrel for very long no matter how much oil you putt on it. You need some kind of coating to prevent the carbon steel from oxidizing.

This is what I am thinking... Ive done it, but it will rust up quicker than a bad case of the squirts if something isnt on it to protect the bare metal. blued actions arent stainless steel.

been there.

 

[shortgrass]

After reading two pages, it becomes obvious why there are few professional, traditional firearms refinishing (bluing) shops, today. Standing a novice in front of a buffer, without proper instruction, is an invitation to disaster. Rounded off corners, that used to be sharp, dished out screw holes and washed out lettering & numbers will be the result. Do the work by hand, beginning with draw filing (an 8" mill bastard would be about the right size for a 700 action, although you'll need some special files for some places). I guarantee you'll find very small rust deposits and the only way to remove them in any amount of time is by draw filing. The goal isn't to turn the metal into a pile of 'filings', just strip the finish and work gently on the rust deposits, you don't want to file a hole. Proceed with wet & dry paper and a little penetrating oil to keep the paper from loading-up. Go from course to fine (180g-220g to 800g or finer depending on the 'shine' that's desired), alternating direction with each grit (you won't know if you removed the 'scratches' from the previous grit paper if you don't change directions). Use a sanding block. A piece of hard wood cut to a usable size will do fine. If your 'gunsmith' will polish your action to the brilliance of SS for $60, he's offering you a bargain! Jason, few people are willing to pay for "hand work", these days. Learning to operate/use a buffer is just as much of a skill as machining is. When I went to school, 20 some years ago, we learned both ways, by hand and with buffers. Sometimes it takes both to obtain the desired results. There are many pit falls along the way. A good polish job is a good polish job, no matter how it is obtained.