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S&W Revolvers: 1980 to the Present All NON-PINNED Barrels, the L-Frames, and the New Era Revolvers


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Old 12-16-2013, 01:08 PM
moonclips moonclips is offline
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Black finish for Stainless guns? Black finish for Stainless guns? Black finish for Stainless guns? Black finish for Stainless guns? Black finish for Stainless guns?  
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Default Black finish for Stainless guns?

I plan on getting a smith 617 soon, and I was wondering if there was a black finish available for revolvers. I know this is heresy, but I don't like the look of stainless guns. Any recommended finishes/services to go with? Any problems with applying a different finish to a stainless gun? What finish does S&W use on the Night Guards/Scandium guns? Thanks in advance for any answers.
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Old 12-16-2013, 01:30 PM
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I know that for a while S&W used Birdsong Black T company for some of their finishes, aka the 629-5 stealth hunter , 629-5 light hunter plus, exc...
I have a stealth hunter nato green/black but can't say how the finish holds up, mines never been out of the box.. :-)
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Old 12-16-2013, 01:37 PM
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The factory had a stainless 686 version in "Midnight Black" that was not particularly durable. Now the factory uses Melonite or a similar process on (semiauto) M & P slides that holds up well, so I would look into that.
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Old 12-16-2013, 01:46 PM
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I had a stainless steel Ruger Redhawk Cerakoted and it has held up very well. I carried the gun quite a bit out in the woods and it doesn't show any wear yet.

Cost was right at $100 from a local certified Cerakote dealer.




Last edited by Arisin Wind; 12-16-2013 at 01:50 PM.
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Old 12-16-2013, 01:54 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by kritter View Post
I know that for a while S&W used Birdsong Black T company for some of their finishes, aka the 629-5 stealth hunter , 629-5 light hunter plus, exc...
I have a stealth hunter nato green/black but can't say how the finish holds up, mines never been out of the box.. :-)
Their finishes have a very good reputation, at least on the Internet forums.

According to their price list a revolver will cost you $165, plus the cost of shipping it back to you via FedEx.
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Old 12-16-2013, 02:15 PM
moonclips moonclips is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Arisin Wind View Post
I had a stainless steel Ruger Redhawk Cerakoted and it has held up very well. I carried the gun quite a bit out in the woods and it doesn't show any wear yet.

Cost was right at $100 from a local certified Cerakote dealer.



That looks really good, I think thats what I'll go with. Thanks
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Old 12-16-2013, 02:30 PM
BJoe BJoe is offline
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Fords in Florida do/or did offer a blue type finish for stainless. It was closer to a black color but at first glance looks like blue.
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Old 12-16-2013, 02:33 PM
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Why not just paint it ??? You could make it any color you want and removing or changing it would be easy when you got tired of it. Pulse the original finish is un-molested.
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Old 12-16-2013, 04:57 PM
Hapworth Hapworth is offline
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If I was going for a no joke hard use dark finish on stainless, I'd opt for one of the ferritic nitrocarburizing finishes -- either Melonite or (preferably) have Dave Severns Hard Hat it.
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Old 12-17-2013, 08:43 AM
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The blackened stainless cylinder on my M&P 360 is showing wear marks from carrying. Not sure which process S&W used for the coating.

Thinking about having it bead blasted to a satin finish. Making the 360 into a 'Pinto'.
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Old 12-17-2013, 09:04 AM
snubbiefan snubbiefan is offline
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I live down here with the Birdsong's....more-or-less. Their finishes were invented by the "original" Mister Birdsong who was a chemist with a sincere desire to put a finish on/in a gun that would hold-up to the southern humid climate. The problem with them is they do a lot of government and agency contract work (foreign and domestic) and they will work an individual gun in the line-up.....but don't get in any hurry.

The finish will wear over time like any finish will on a moving part, such as a slide or bolt. They suggest treatment of ALL the parts...internal and external. The finish is so thin that it does not affect any tolerances built into the gun, so no machining or fitting is required. They also recommend finish and forget....no lubrication required after the treatment is applied. Some of their treated exterior parts are attached to submarines, obviously a saltwater environment if that's any indication of the durability of Black-T. They also offer OD green and a Desert Tan.
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Old 12-17-2013, 03:11 PM
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I've been impressed with the cerokote finishes I've seen.
I'm with you, I've always HATED the look of stainless guns. They look like they're "in the white" and somebody didn't finish them.
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Old 12-17-2013, 03:27 PM
snubbiefan snubbiefan is offline
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To each his own I suppose...that's why they make both . In my case.....it's the nickel or any plated finish I avoid, but prefer the stainless examples.
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