Refinishing a 75B

[Tim_B]

I have a 75B with over 30,000 rounds through it and it has numerous dents in the polycoat finish from ejected cartridge cases bouncing off the indoor range partition wall between lanes and coming back to strike the right side of the slide or frame.  I have never done a complete refinishing before and I am wondering if what I am thinking will work.  Can I just use medium then fine grit sandpaper to remove the polycoat finish then use the Oxpho Blue product sold by Brownells to refinish the gun?  I have used Oxpho Blue with good results on various 1911 parts that needed fitting.  It is far better than the Birchwood Casey products you find at big box stores like Academy.  Would sanding work well to remove the existing finish?  Or if not then what would you recommend?

[The Guardian]

Not sure what you are wanting the gun to look like when your done but to get a refinish job to look "good" takes a bit of time and energy....I've stripped and used the Oxpho Blue on a Pre-B, had done many other type finishes but a blued one was a new venture, I had used the Oxpho Blue on rifles, shotguns, but not a CZ....it turned out differently than I expected but really BETTER overall in the end, its really a unique (in a good way) looking finish......here is a picture of what it looked like in daylight type lighting, you don't get a black type bluing, a lot has to do with the metals composition, the prep done to the metal, and number of applications, though the first one gives 90-95% of the final look.....there are a lot of factors that affect how it turns out....in fact I sold this to a forum member early last year, he liked the finish a lot....said it was one of his favorite CZ's, just due to how it looked, and the upgrades made it a sweet shooter too 




For info on how to properly strip and prep the metal check out these forum links......

http://www.czfirearms.us/index.php?topic=81305.0

http://www.czfirearms.us/index.php?topic=89226.0

[Tim_B]

Wow.  Those threads were very informative.  I will use the paint stripper rather than sanding so I don't flatten the anti glare ridges on top of the slide and so I won't round off the edges of roll marked letters on the slide and frame.  Thanks for the reply.

[The Guardian]

The best advice I can give is prior to applying the bluing solution, take the time on the prep of the frame....after the final sanding at about a grit of 500 wet/dry then I buffed the surfaces with a bench grinder buffing to a smooth shine not mirror like but close then thoroughly wiped down all the surfaces with a dry cotton cloth and elbow grease to get all of the polishing compound off....and then lightly with a damp cloth not wet, that will start things a rusting pretty quickly. Cleaning with chemicals like Acetone, degreaser....etc, leave a reside and will affect how the solution absorbs into the metal...just some thoughts to pass along   

[Jigo23]

Not sure what you are wanting the gun to look like when your done but to get a refinish job to look "good" takes a bit of time and energy....I've stripped and used the Oxpho Blue on a Pre-B, had done many other type finishes but a blued one was a new venture, I had used the Oxpho Blue on rifles, shotguns, but not a CZ....it turned out differently than I expected but really BETTER overall in the end, its really a unique (in a good way) looking finish......here is a picture of what it looked like in daylight type lighting, you don't get a black type bluing, a lot has to do with the metals composition, the prep done to the metal, and number of applications, though the first one gives 90-95% of the final look.....there are a lot of factors that affect how it turns out....in fact I sold this to a forum member early last year, he liked the finish a lot....said it was one of his favorite CZ's, just due to how it looked, and the upgrades made it a sweet shooter too 




For info on how to properly strip and prep the metal check out these forum links......

http://www.czfirearms.us/index.php?topic=81305.0

http://www.czfirearms.us/index.php?topic=89226.0

Yessir Guardian, that would be me and NO you can?t have it back   Have hit it with a little more of the Brownell?s cold bluing mentioned, wiped down with a cold damp rag and some real fine steel wool, nothing fancy sure glad you did all the hard work Sure I could send it off and pay a lot for a fancy bluing job and it would look beautiful I?m sure, but I love it just how it is...with some rugged character externally, but with the upgraded internals you did, it?s a fantastic shooter too!  Even managed to get some nice carry holster wear at the muzzle   Gotta rough up my purdy black leather holster some though to match   Honestly, it would have been tough for me to tackle the cold bluing process on a newer finished pistol, but this Pre-B was the perfect candidate and sure glad you did it!  To me, it?s perfect tho and a joy to carry and shoot. There?s plenty of good info on here and YouTube etc and everything you need to do it is readily available and not that expensive for someone looking to jump into this type of finish without spending a fortune. Takes some time to do tho and shouldn?t be rushed. As you said, I think the patience to do the proper metal prep is the key and you did a fine job. Of course I take all the credit for it with my friends JK!!!  Here?s a couple more recent pics. If anything, I briefly considered maybe different set of grips (wood?), but these rubber ones are so dang comfortable and fit my hand perfectly.   Any questions on the process, feel free to holler and  I?d be happy to direct you to Guardian for help . Thanks again bud!

[The Guardian]

Glad it?s still part of your collection.......the cold blued finish is nice because it?s easy to touch up and keep looking good. Seeing it again makes me want to do up another blued one.....just might have to do that, maybe a BD version this time

[Jigo23]

Glad it?s still part of your collection.......the cold blued finish is nice because it?s easy to touch up and keep looking good. Seeing it again makes me want to do up another blued one.....just might have to do that, maybe a BD version this time

Yep exactly!  Man, I saw a perfect 75BD candidate at a little country gun show yesterday. Internally it looked great but Finish was beat to hell. The guy wouldn?t  budge from $475 for it tho, so I passed.

[The Guardian]

Glad it?s still part of your collection.......the cold blued finish is nice because it?s easy to touch up and keep looking good. Seeing it again makes me want to do up another blued one.....just might have to do that, maybe a BD version this time

Yep exactly!  Man, I saw a perfect 75BD candidate at a little country gun show yesterday. Internally it looked great but Finish was beat to hell. The guy wouldn?t  budge from $475 for it tho, so I passed.

Yea, that's a bit much......but your CZ did inspire me so I picked up a brand new BD for not much more than the used one you were looking at, ordered the parts from CGW & CZC and will be starting on it in about a week......so it's your fault, thats my story at least 

[Jigo23]

LOL, COOL!  I can live with the weight of that guilt on my shoulders....I think
Looking forward to seeing how it turns out!

[Tim_B]

Well, it turns out you guys were absolutely right.  The dents were not in the metal at all but were limited to just the polycoat finish.  I did not know it was that thick.  I let it soak for more than a day in aircraft paint remover to remove the polycoat.  Every few hours I would pull the frame and slide out to brush them with a wire brush and the polycoat would just peel right off.  Have to wear thick gloves and safety glasses and not let that stuff get on your skin.  Once I pulled out the frame and slide for the last time and washed them off I sanded with 400 grit and wiped vigorously with rags soaked in denatured alcohol to remove any chemical residue.  I went over it about eight or ten times with oxpho blue.  I buffed with steel wool and wiped the metal clean between each application of oxpho blue.  It came our great.  The gun is a black color like it was with the polycoat but it has more of a glossy finish.  The flat surfaces feel smooth and slick to the touch.  I used various plastic bristle clean brushes to apply the oxpho blue to the inside of the slide and frame and even in tiny hard to reach areas like the firing pin tunnel, etc.

[Joe Allen]

[myczaccount]

I?d also like to see how it turned out. I?m about to refinish a Pre B. What would you suggest is the best way to strip it besides aircraft paint remover? Would white vinegar work? Any help is greatly appreciated. Consider me clueless. I also don?t have a ton of tools.

Here?s a pic for reference:

[sberres]

  Like Guardian noted earlier, you need to figure out what you want out of it to determine what you put into it. Aircraft stripper and some time will get rid of the black paint/poly-whatever. Under that should be some sort of dinged up phosphate plating/coating that will have to be cleaned up. If you're going to any type of bluing that secondary layer will need to be removed through sanding, blasting, or (I haven't tried it but read it here), Evapo-rust.
  That will get you down to the base steel and you'll have to decide where to go from there.  You don't need a ton of tools. A vise with some jaw padding, files, sanding block, and some patience are what you'll really need to get started.
  There's also some darn good advice to be had here whatever direction you decide to take it. Good luck!

[Underwhere]

I would suggest the Klean Aircraft stripper.
Vinegar isn't going to touch that. I tried normal Klean stripper and it didn't work. The polycoat is very durable.

As far as not having a ton of tools - This doesn't take a ton of tools but it does take quite a bit of working knowledge with your hands.

Every time I hear someone say they don't have tools I cringe because I'm not sure how they will respond to what occurs normally during these processes. Someone with tools likely has those tools because they needed them. Someone without tools may just not have the experience. (I don't know in this particular case but it does make me nervous)

I have a thread where I detail my struggles for I believe it has been several weeks of working on the gun almost every night.
I have have experience in the past Cerakoting, parkerizing etc. I'm not unfamiliar with finishing...and bluing still gave me a run for my money.

[Tim_B]

Well, I am not much of a picture taker but here it is.  This is with 8 or 10 coats of oxpho blue.  Between each coat I buffed with steel wool and wiped with a damp paper towel.  The first wiping with the paper towel would leave a black residue on the paper towel so I would wipe a couple of more times with a clean damp area until it no longer left a residue.  I used gloves during the entire process because skin oils will block the steel from reacting with the bluing chemicals.