How to Dull a polished Staimless slide?

[teletiger7]

Hi guys. First i wanna thank you all for the great info i have learned already from reading threads on this forum.

My question: Is there a way to dull the finish of a highly polished slide and frame? I boguht a used stainless gun and it is too shiny and bright for me. I'm using it for self-defense and don't want a too bright/easy-to-spot gun. I want more of a dull frosted look. Any ideas?

Thanks

[DJ Niner]

Bead-blasting or grit-blasting will give any polished surface a matte finish. Some factories and many/most custom gunsmiths offer this service, and if you ask around, you may even find a local shop that does it. In my local area, there is one gunsmith who does glass bead blasting, and another that uses (I believe) aluminum oxide grit. I've seen examples of both finishes, and I'm having a hard time deciding between the two.

[kimberguy2004]

Bead blasting is my finish of choice because it is very uniform and gives a really nice satin finish, and by far the most attractive. The drawback is that if you use metal polish in the course of cleaning burned on powder residue, which I do because I'm anal about cleaning, you'll be back to the shine, and the finish will have to be reblasted. I'm setting up a blasting system so i can do that as well as remove slide finishes for re-coating.

The other way is with Scotchbrite. if you already have a polished shine on the metal, scotchbrite will gice you a satin, brushed finish. Be sure to rub the same way once you start. The roughness sequence beginning with the smoothest is white, grey, green, and then red/brown. Start with the smoothest and go up until you get the sheen you like. I say start with the smoothest because if you start coarse and don't like it, you'll have to repolish and start over since it takes a LOT of rubbing to get rid of the scratches from the rougher pad.
I've refinished several stainless revolves this way and the results are well worth the effort. The advantage to scotchbrite is that if you get a scuff on the metal, it's easily repaired to the original look.

My smith uses 120 aluminum oxide for stripping finishes and 270 grit glass beads for final blasting

[elsolo]

Kitchen sponge with the green Scotchbrite backer, wet sanding the metal while using Comet powdered kitchen cleanser (really).

Try it on something else first to see it you like it. Stainless and Aluminum looke slightly different using the same method.

[teletiger7]

thanks for the advice guys :)

[swatbwana]

best method find the sandpaper grit you like and make long even strokes on the flat with it held on a nice flat surface. I did the flats of a Colt 1911 stainless with 320 grit and it was the nicest "brushed" finish you ever saw.Take your time