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run into a problem, see message I got below from my gunsmith Rocky,

"Mike,
Tomorrow (20 October) I should be doing the final assembly on your gun, but I've run into a problem:
Sunday (17 October) I did the bluing for the barrel & all the other parts that needed bluing. See first photo. On Monday, I did the color casing. I did it in 2 batches--the first batch was all the small parts--
grip cap, butt plate, trigger guard, etc. See 2nd photo. In this batch of color casing, I included pieces of the receiver, which I had cut off to remove the stripper clip guides; I used these as my final test to be
certain that it was safe to color case the receiver. As it turned out, these pieces crystallized into Martinsite, which turns the metal brittle. As you can see in the 3rd photo, where I stressed the parts, they
snapped in half and you can see the crystal structure. This immediately told me that color casing the receiver was not a safe option
Since we are dealing with a casting of unknown alloy, with a high silicon content, it presents difficult finishing. Due to the high silicon content, the bluing I did on the other parts is not an option for the receiver
So we are not going to be able to produce a finish on the receiver that will match the barrel. And I will not color case for safety reasons
There are 3 other options that I can offer: 1) Carbona Blue, which I do here, although I've never done a cast piece, so I do not know the outcome; or 2) Cold Rust Bluing, which will produce a semi-matte finish while the barrel is high gloss
However, at your direction, (3) I will contact Doug Turnbull, and ask if he will color case the receiver--and assume all liabilities
The gun was supposed to be finished this week--taken to the range and test fired with the ammo I have worked up, and then be ready for shipping next week. Starting 1 November, I have a legal obligation in Nevada, which means if the gun isn't finished by then, I must stop work on it for several months. The only possible option for me to finish the gun is for me to Carbona
Blue, but I can't guarantee that this process will work on a cast gun
I will put the reciever in the Carbona Blue tonight, and see if it works. If it does, I'll send photos tomorrow. If it doesn't, I'll have to stop work on it. I'll let you know, and then you can pick
another option
I am very disappointed that the receiver cannot safely be color cased; I have 3 other Mannlicher receivers lined up to be color cased"

Here are the pics below, I´ve put the gun ones on again as they seem to have been deleted or rather I have moved them to another file.
Any of you guys got any ideas, in a hurry !!
best
Mike

Edited by Mike_Bailey (21/10/10 08:26 AM)

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