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I have a question:
Have all Enfields been blued during the Civil War?
And, did the finish last for long, or was ist more likely to wear off?
The reason I am asking is, that I have an Enfiled reproduction at home. I personally do not like the blue finish. So, if it is historically correct, i would remove it.
I am aware of the disadvantages it would have....
As far as I know no Enfield left the factory except in the blued configuration. That said as soon as they reached the men in the field many were struck bright. This was true of both the US & CS forces. So a bright finish is as appropriate as not. The modern blue used by the Italians isn't accurate anyway, so if you're of a mind to; go ahead and strike it bright.
Good Luck.
__________________ Few take the trouble to understand or to view the American scene with perspective. And we Americans love to find ourselves guilty of something. However, it is never I who am guilty, but those other Americans, the past or present government or the other political party. Americans almost never find other countries guilty. It is always ourselves or our fancied influence in other countries. Louis L'amour
An off topic question(?):
Should the blue/black finishing go off with lime remover (e.g. for bathrooms)?
Cos mine did. It sorta was an accident. My wife had some hot water in a cup with lime remover in it and I thought it was mine and poured that stuff down the barrel... *gg* so at the bottom some of the blue finish came off.
Now I am wondering wether this weapon really is blued.
Lime Remover, CLR etc will strip ANYTHING. I would suggets if you want ot go the armory bright option to strike it bright the old fashioned way, grit and ash. there are other easier ways to do it but I'm one of those ****ed fool purists who no longer owns an Enfield anyway... so take it with a grain of salt.
My M1841 is rust blued, my M1861 struck bright so my practical usefullness is questionable.
THe best answer might come from lodgewood.com.
Good Luck
__________________ Few take the trouble to understand or to view the American scene with perspective. And we Americans love to find ourselves guilty of something. However, it is never I who am guilty, but those other Americans, the past or present government or the other political party. Americans almost never find other countries guilty. It is always ourselves or our fancied influence in other countries. Louis L'amour
Unfortunately, my father passed away but, he was a gunsmith and dealer.
That said, I am wondering if there might be a gun manufacturer that can re-blue a reproduction for you and or 'doctor' it; as to tailor to the customer's needs; especially in Austria or in the neighboring nations.
As far as reproductions go; I think there are some good ones out there as well as bad. I think in regard to swords/sabers; I will purchase from Ames Sword Company. Indian made swords just don't have the 'wow' factor. My grandfather's sword by Ames is still in pristine condition; to which may be due to my father's proper oiling of the blade and handling with gloves.
Just some thoughts.
Respectfully submitted for consideration,
M. E. Wolf
The modern blue is a different procedure, I'm not certain of the process in comparison to that used in England in the 1860's.
__________________ Few take the trouble to understand or to view the American scene with perspective. And we Americans love to find ourselves guilty of something. However, it is never I who am guilty, but those other Americans, the past or present government or the other political party. Americans almost never find other countries guilty. It is always ourselves or our fancied influence in other countries. Louis L'amour
I have a question:
Have all Enfields been blued during the Civil War?
And, did the finish last for long, or was ist more likely to wear off?
The reason I am asking is, that I have an Enfiled reproduction at home. I personally do not like the blue finish. So, if it is historically correct, i would remove it.
I am aware of the disadvantages it would have....
kind regards
Handy
__________________ My areas of expertise are firearms and Latin females. Not necessarily in that order.
The metal's blue depended on several things. First, the quality of the polishing weighed heavily on how the gun would appear once blued. The better the polish, the better the blue. Poorly polished guns don't take on a rich blue. Another factor is the type of bluing salts used and its purity. As you use the solution, your bluing tanks must be replenished every now and then. If contaminated (with grease), then it can result in a splotchy look. Even the composition of the metal comes into play as different metals will react diffferently to the bluing solution.
Some of the old bluing salts were downright dangerous. Cyanide was used by some gunsmiths. I have a book somewhere that has nothing but bluing and browning formulas. I used nickel pentate when I used to hot blue guns. I've also down rust browning too.
Back on topic: I'm given to believe that Enfields were blued at the factory but once here in America, were polished bright.
As an added tidbit, the M1854 Lorenzes that made it into this country came in struck bright, blued, browned & rust blued and they were issued as received. Once they reached the field they were typically struck bright by the men in the field. There were exceptions, especially among the western troops but generally most were struck bright.
__________________ Few take the trouble to understand or to view the American scene with perspective. And we Americans love to find ourselves guilty of something. However, it is never I who am guilty, but those other Americans, the past or present government or the other political party. Americans almost never find other countries guilty. It is always ourselves or our fancied influence in other countries. Louis L'amour
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Enfield and the blue finish 
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