Posted: 7/4/2010 8:38:14 AM EDT
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I have a Series 70 that is need of refinishing. I am considering hard chrome. I recently had the slide to frame tightened along with some other repairs. The gun now shoots fine and is accurate.
There is a slight amount of play left in the slide to frame fit. 1. Will hard chrome add any material to the rails that could possible make the slide to frame even better? 2. There is a local plating company that advertises chrome and hard chrome. Is there any difference is the process for companies that advertise gun refinishing and a shop that does this work? Could the gun be screwed up by a shop that is not familiar with guns? |
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Typically hard chrome is about 0.0002" thick. It doesn't need to be very thick since it's plated directly to the steel with no undercoat plating of copper like standard decorative (car bumper) chrome is.
Hard chrome is still the best "all around" gun finish. It's very hard, tough, rust resistant, acid and solvent proof, and is one of the few gun finishes that's really considered to be a life time finish. You can get it in finishes ranging from the original satin pearl-gray, to a brushed stainless steel look, to a bright mirror polish look. The finial appearance depends on how the steel is prepped before the hard chrome is applied. A few platers will even plate the inside of the barrel and chamber. Here's the top platers who do GUN work. Don't trust anyone else but a gun service to get it right or you'll have major problems. Each plater has different options and different pricing, depending on what you want. http://www.apwcogan.com/ (Probably the best of them all). http://www.fordsguns.com/ http://www.armoloyftworth.com/Armoloy_WebDevelopment/Web_Pages/Firearms_Applications.htm http://www.originalmetaloy.com/ http://www.techplate.com/firearms_pl.htm http://www.mahovskysmetalife.com/ http://www.elitecustomguns.com/index1.htm |
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Check out Bobby Keigans of www.freedomgunworks.com He does great work |
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MELONITE is a thermochemical treatment for improving surface properties of metal parts. It exhibits predictable and repeatable results in the treating of low and medium carbon steels, alloy steels, stainless and austenitic steels, tool and die steels, cast and sintered iron. Resulting properties from these chemical and structural composition changes are increased surface hardness, lower coefficient of friction, enhanced surface lubricity, improved running wear performance, increased sliding wear resistance, and enhanced corrosion resistance. Melonite has excellent resistance to salt (like salt water or sweat) even compared to hard chrome and Ionbond.
IONBond is a coating that adds thickness to the material at a micron level, which is generally 2 microns thick, an excellent fit for custom guns. Ionbonds' unique application process makes it a finish that does not chip, crack or peel. The Ionbond finish is 1500-2000 HV. Typical hard chrome finishes are generally 1050 HV and melonite is in the 700 HV range. The finish is not "self-lubricating", but it has excellent surface to surface characteristics and several competitive shooters run their Ion-Bonded guns dry. Ionbond absorbs oil and releases it over time due to the unique characteristics. Ionbond also reduces the friction coefficient on the coated parts. Steel on steel has a typical friction coefficient of .7; Steel on IonBond has a typical friction coefficient of .25; Ionbond on Ionbond has a typical friction coefficient of less than .2. Due to the friction improvement the performance of parts that wear on each other is reduced. Melonite and Ionbond both come in black, while hard chrome is silver. Hard chrome is an excellent finish, perhaps one of the best all around finishes, but if you want black then hard chrome is not what you want, if what you want is silver then Ionbond and melonite are not for you. |
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Quoted:
Thanks for the information. You seem to be very informed on the types of finishes available. I was considering a silver finish, so Iobond may work. Any recommendations of companies that can apply Iobond ? You're only gonna get IonBond in Black. Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile |