The most common recipe for hot caustic bluing that I see online is the Blind Hogg recipe which is 5 lbs of sodium hydroxide (lye) and 2.5 lbs of sodium nitrate mixed with a gallon of water. Heat to 275*F in a non-aluminum pot (apparently cheap enamel coated steel is fine) and suspend your pieces for bluing (properly prepped of course) for about 30 minutes to achieve a deep, almost black finish. From there you rinse them, wipe them dry, and toss them in oil overnight to disperse any remaining water.
Anyone have any experience with this type of bluing? Does the ratio look okay?
Any suggestions or tips/tricks would be helpful. I'm re-bluing a beater Hi-Standard at some point when it warms up a bit more and wanted to give this a try.
Anyone have any experience with this type of bluing? Does the ratio look okay?
Any suggestions or tips/tricks would be helpful. I'm re-bluing a beater Hi-Standard at some point when it warms up a bit more and wanted to give this a try.
