jeff89 Posted October 20, 2003 Share Posted October 20, 2003 My para is developing light rust on the frame everywhere my hands usually touch it. I've had enough and have decided to send it out to be refinished (along with the mags). I'm thinking about hardcrome, but was wondering if there was anything better out there for corrosion protection. Am I the only one with this problem??? I clean my guns fairly regularly and finish with either a silicon rag or a thin coat of oil to the entire gun. Its usually stored in a pelican case with some dissecstant (spelling bad I know) The rust is only on the frame which has a different finish on it then the slide. The gun is a P-14 Limited and about 5 years old. Thanks in advance!! Jeff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jessej Posted October 20, 2003 Share Posted October 20, 2003 I've seen some Black T finishes that are really corrosion resistant. But for a competition type gun I would get hard chrome for durability also. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ErikW Posted October 20, 2003 Share Posted October 20, 2003 I've heard hard chrome can rust. But I won't believe it until I see it. I'm a big fan of hard chrome. But I've never used anything else besides Metalife and bluing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duane Thomas Posted October 20, 2003 Share Posted October 20, 2003 I've seen hard chrome rust. Actually, it's not the chrome itself that rusts, but the finish has micro-cracks in it that allow corrosion causing material to reach the steel underneath. When that happens you wind up with this brown crud bubbling up from underneath the hard chrome. And it looks like holy hell when that happens. If ultimate corrosion resistance is your goal, try Birdsong's Black-T. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reneet Posted October 20, 2003 Share Posted October 20, 2003 In my experience, there are just some unfortunate people who have the ability to rust any firearm they touch no matter what the finish was. Call Bob Coogan @ Accurate Plating & tell him about your problem. He can recommend the best solution for you. http://www.apwcogan.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MoNsTeR Posted October 20, 2003 Share Posted October 20, 2003 According to their marketing blurbs, Metalife and Armoloy use a "thin dense coating" process that results in a finish without the micro-cracks of conventional hard chrome. Whether that's really true, and if it would really improve corrosion resistance is anyone's guess, but it sounds good to me. Nickel and the various polymer finishes provide extremely good corrosion protection, but aren't nearly as durable as chrome (though nickel isn't bad). If it were me, I'd try Metalife first, and if that were ever to rust, I'd bite the bullet and pay the $300 for Robar NP3 (nickel+teflon). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blue edge Posted October 20, 2003 Share Posted October 20, 2003 Tripp did my edge and mags. The gun has been perfect!!!! however the mags are a differant story, not bad by any means just a few small bubbles. Still very happy !! I am one of those guys whos hands swet alot. I would do it again..looks great and very functional. good luck with who ever you choose blue edge Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quixote Posted October 20, 2003 Share Posted October 20, 2003 My sweat is incredibly acid (I can't wear plated jewelry etc. without it turning green within a day or two). I had a similar problem on the beavertail safety of my parkarized Springfield 1911. I talked with my gunsmith after the frustration of cleaning became too much and he suggested a thorough cleaning, and then applying paste wax to the beavertail safety. Oddly enough it worked like a dream! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
texasag93 Posted October 20, 2003 Share Posted October 20, 2003 My Para(stainless) will get some rust on the slide and back of frame occasionally. I have done the paste wax thing and it seems to work well. Hard Chrome is the way to go for rust resistance. There may be others that work as well or better( not storing it in salt water are you?) but it looks good on a firearm. TXAG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcoliver Posted October 22, 2003 Share Posted October 22, 2003 Paste wax thing...is that Flitz? Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reneet Posted October 22, 2003 Share Posted October 22, 2003 Paste wax thing...is that Flitz?Thanks. I don't think Flitz is considered a wax. I would imagine almost any car wax would work but I've just recently come across a new wax type product called Blue Wonder Armadillo which is specifically formulated for firearms. I think that Midway carries the Blue Wonder products. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SRT Driver Posted October 30, 2003 Share Posted October 30, 2003 Metalife and Accurate's Chrome is good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EricW Posted October 30, 2003 Share Posted October 30, 2003 Paste wax thing...is that Flitz?Thanks. I think carnauba wax (i.e. high quality car wax - it will say "carnauba" on the can) is pretty close to what he's talking about. I've used it on aluminum after polishing to keep the oxidation down. Works very well. The only "issue" is durability. I'm guessing you'll have to be treating your gun once a week or more if you handle it much. Too much hassle for moi. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chuck Anderson Posted October 30, 2003 Share Posted October 30, 2003 I have one of my SV's hardchromed by Tripp, he did a very good job but I believe he is out of the plating business now. You may also want to look at some of the finishes that Robar does. The NP3 finish is excellent. It's a silver/gray color and is very durable and corrosion resistant. They also offer some black finishes as well. Just a note on the black finishes though. None will be as durable as a silver colored finish. The black finishes, Rogard and Black-T for example, are polymer based and they will wear with time. I also wouldn't recommend Black-T for anything. The last gun I had done by Birdsong took longer to finish than it did at the custom shop. When I got it the finish was already coming off. Within two weeks there was a dozen or more silver spots on the gun. Shipped it back and had the same problem again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nemo Posted October 30, 2003 Share Posted October 30, 2003 Jeff89, If this P-14 is your main competition gun you WON'T go wrong getting it hard chromed. It'll look good and a good chrome job should give you years of service before another finishing is needed. My Edge was done by Virgil Tripp but he's not plating anymore. I'd recommend Accurate Plating & Weaponry (Bob Cogan's shop) their work is of the highest quality. www.apwcogan.com Good luck &... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ross Carter Posted October 31, 2003 Share Posted October 31, 2003 It's not popular anymore but Nickel is about the most rust resistant finish I've seen. I believe NP3 has some Nickel in it. Polymer over parkarizing is excellent also. Hard Chrome will rust but you have to really abuse it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ogiebb Posted November 29, 2003 Share Posted November 29, 2003 is it advisable to have my gun hardchrome now? i just got it a few months ago..when does corrosion usually start on a gun? i was thinking of using it first for a year or so before having it started.. i always take care of my pistol and always wipe and clean it as often as possible..if the slide to frame fit is loose will having it hardchromed fix the loose fit? i spent it all on quality parts and really forgot about the hard chrome finish ..im not really crazy about a shiny gun but if it will help my edge last longer im open to anything Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EricW Posted November 29, 2003 Share Posted November 29, 2003 Keep in mind that light corrosion on the frame is a cosmetic problem only. Back in the days of yesteryear- with black powder - everybody's gun had light rust that they just had to live with - and did. It's really no big deal. As far as "fixing" the slide to frame fit - a plater and/or a gunsmith will know about that. If your gun is properly fit, the plating will definitely preserve the fit over a plain, blue finish. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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