Stevens 44...??

[runfiverun]

i'd case harden the reciever,and hammer.

[edsmith]

Duracote

[geargnasher]

I'll relate some of my recent experiences with a similar project.

First, DON'T use any kind of phosphate blue, it is likely to severely pit the metal as it will eat out any impurites in the old steel. I'd stick with a nice rust blue or even brown it. Case hardening would be the best IMO, I colored my #4 remington receiver very carefully with a torch.

I'd get my liner from TJ's Liners instead of Brownell's, his are much better quality and the way he packages them there's no chance of them getting bent, not so with Brownell's. TJ's are about twice as much (.$2.60 and inch IIRC for .310" .22cal 1:16 twist rate).

You will need a liner drill, and I don't think Brownell's sells one for a .22 liner that is 12" long, just the short one that has to have an extension made and soldered on to it. That is a job for a machinist or gunsmith who has a lathe. Maybe some other supplier makes a .3125" (5/16") liner drill that is a full 12" long. I was drilling out a .32 rimfire for a .22 liner so I used a regular, non-piloted 12"X5/16" HSS bit from Snap On since all I was doing was removing what was left of the lands from the bore, but redrilling .22 bores requires a drill with a bore-sized pilot.

Don't get a match reamer unless you have a bolt-action or some other sort of action that cams closed. Match chambers tend to engrave the bullet and are difficult to unload without firing, and are difficult to get the round chambered in the first place. A finish reamer by itself is all you need.

Check out my thread "relining a .32 rimfire" in the barrel works sub-forum for some tips from John Taylor on how to hide the muzzle seam, plus my relining experiences with pics.

One more thing, if you haven't already, check out the PDF on the Brownell's site about installing barrel liners, tons of great info in a "how-to" format.

Good luck!

Gear

[Bret4207]

Finish is a tough choice. Color case hardening is correct, but I have no clue what it costs. Plus, those colors fade over time. My memory (not very reliable) says there were formulas for coloring that didn't involve actual case hardening, but where I saw that is a mystery. Seems like it was a commercial concoction many years back.

My 44 wears it's very faded original finish. Looks fine to me. If your going to make this a show piece, do it right.

[excess650]

Stevens used a different process for CC compared to other companies. Most used the bone and charcoal method, and that is what you would find on old Winchesters, Ballards, Marlins, and Remington's. Stevens dipped their receivers in molten arsenic to achieve their tiger stripe pattern.

CPA Corp in Pa might tell you who to send the receiver to for the correct CC type. There are several other companies that do bone and charcoal if you decide to go that route.

Hot salts bath blue will be spotty and purplish at best. Rust blue should work if you just want a satin, blue-black receiver. It is definitely what I would want on the outside of the barrel.

If and when you disassemble the receiver, be aware that the "screws" aren't as they might seem. Those on the RH side are basically slotted nuts. Those on the LH side are keyed in place and will not turn, and must be pushed out from R-L.

[gnoahhh]

I recommended a french gray finish because I sensed he wants to keep costs down, but, yes, I agree with color case hardening being the best-- if done right. Doing it with a torch is just not right. It'll always be recognized as a "torch" job, reference the howls of derision that go up on collector's forums around the internet whenever a "torched " gun appears publicly for sale. Early Stevens case colors were a thing of beauty. Someone wielding an oxy-acetyline torch just makes a mockery of that. Don't be a "Bubba!"

[calaloo]

The barrel, trigger, hammer, and breech block should be rust blued. You can send the frame, lever and buttplate to CPQ ( www.singleshotrifles.com ) for the correct color case hardening. Stevens colors were striped instead of blotchy.