THE BROWNING

The browning of the metallic surfaces of guns not only provides for an attractive appearance, but rather serves, primarily, the purpose of corrosion protection, of course. It is a not layer that is applied like paint, but rather is a change to the surface of the metal in which a black or dark blue mixed oxide layer consisting of FeO and Fe2O3 forms.

In the case of gun parts, this protective layer is mostly produced with the complicated and cost-intensive hot browning procedure, which is dangerous and highly corrosive due to the crystalline sodium hydroxide. Therefore, hot browning is not recommended for laypersons.

The so-called double browning, with which an extremely tight, even and closed surface can be achieved, is particularly long-lasting. However, even though this type of browning is largely abrasion-resistant and temperature-resistant up to around 300 °C, the oxide layer – which is only a few thousands of a millimetre thick – must be properly cared for to prevent corrosion effectively. For this reason, the browned parts of a gun should be regularly maintained with a high-quality gun oil such as Ballistol Universal Oil – with a soft cloth, as far as possible.

Even if great care is taken to maintain the browned parts, the browning can become damaged, whether while rough hunting or assembling the gunsight or due to constant rubbing on clothing or the holster.

In order for you to enjoy the jet black browning of your gun for as long as possible, you should clean the browned parts with extreme care and only with a soft cloth as far as possible. Should the browning get damaged nevertheless, cost-intensive decoction and an expensive rebrowning in the double browning bath is not urgently necessary.

Instead, the oxide layer can be easily touched up – with a bit of skill and the Quick Browning from BALLISTOL. It should be noted that only steels with a chrome content of a maximum of 3 to 4% can be browned; the same applies to housing made of aluminium or zinc casting. Coloured metals such as brass or copper contain a dark-grey colouring.

Touching Up The Browning

Tip for Quick Browning

It is also possible to blacken entire components with the Quick Browning. Here, it is particularly important that the foundation material be correspondingly prepared – a basic requirement for a perfect result.

If the material is sanded, this may take place with a maximum grade of 320. In the case of more honed surfaces, equal oxidation through the Quick Browning is not ensured. To accelerate the reaction, the component should be preheated. A temperature between 20 °C and 30 °C is sufficient.

In order to achieve an equal browning, the corresponding parts must first be completely degreased, for example with Ballistol Cold Degreaser. Apply the Cold Degreaser onto the site to be browned several times by spraying or using a brush and wipe it off again. The last time you apply the Cold Degreaser, hold the part to be browned diagonally so that the Cold Degreaser runs down the side. Once the last residues of Cold Degreaser have dried off, take a new brush, apply the Ballistol Quick Browning to the corresponding sites and smear it lightly. After up to 5 minutes, a slightly yellowish-green coating will form. Now the touched-up area must be rinsed off with plenty of water. Remaining water residues are mopped up gently with a soft sponge, a cotton cloth or a paper tissue. Finally, the treated part should be sprayed lightly with Ballistol Universal Oil or Gunex before the browning finally becomes stable overnight.

The next morning, the excess oil can be wiped off with a soft cotton cloth. The new browning now appears with the usual, jet-black matt shine and is abrasion-resistant and oil-resistant. Those who already have initial, suc- cessful experience with Quick Browning can also brown smaller barrels completely. The same applies to individual parts such as screws, nuts and bolts.

Should the metal have been previously treated with a silicone-containing oil, it cannot be browned without a corresponding pretreatment. In this case, the surface must first be treated multiple times with silicone degreaser to ensure that no silicone residues whatsoever are left on the gun. Subsequently, the sites to be browned are to be ground slightly with fine steel wool and are to be cleaned very thoroughly with a fuzz-free cloth or paper towel.

Caution is needed with some small-calibre rifles such as a few Remington models. Here, a individual gun parts look like they are browned, but in fact they consist of an aluminium alloy or a similar material and are only painted matt black. As these paints are often not oil-resistant, they can quickly become damaged and should be cleaned with a damp cloth only. Here too, however, the barrel and the breech are always made of steel and therefore should always be maintained using Ballistol Universal Oil.

Stock Care

There is a lot of truth in the old German hunter’s saying “the barrel shoots but the stock hits the target”. After all, the stock is largely responsible for the accuracy of a gun. The stock of a rifle should be looked after just as well as the gun’s barrel and mechanics.

Most rifles have a so-called oil stock, whose stock wood was already equipped with oil impregnation by the manufacturer. Only in the case of a few guns are the stocks not oiled but treated in other ways. Many American guns, for example, have a stock that is coated with a synthetic resin paint, while high-quality English hunting guns, in contrast, often have a shellack stock. The latter is to be maintained, not with stock oil, but with Ballistol Universal Oil. For stocks painted with synthetic resin paint, gentle agents such as a Ballistol Universal Oil emulsion or special plastics cleaners should be used.

Oiled stocks must be maintained and oiled regularly so that they remain water-resistant and are protected from decay and mould growth. Balsin Stock Oil and Scherell’s SCHAFTOL can be used for this – two outstanding care agents with which even old, brittle and weathered wooden stocks can be regenerated, maintained and preserved.

Safely stored

Whenever work is performed with cleaning and care agents, it should be taken into account that some of these are combustible and that with used cloths there could be a danger of self-ignition.

Therefore, cloths soaked with linseed oil or used for shellack, for example, should be stored in a sealable sheet-metal reservoir specially intended for this purpose or disposed of directly in an environmentally friendly manner.

Therefore, particular care is needed in workshops in which soldering or welding work also takes place.

Balsin Stock Oil, which is perfected with silicone and solvent, penetrates particularly deep into the wood, thus offering a high level of protection and visually emphasizing the woodgrain contrast.

With Scherell’s SCHAFTOL, in comparison, only the choicest natural products at the maximum finishing stage are used, with silicone and solvent consistently avoided – nevertheless, Scherell’s SCHAFTOL offers a high level of resistance to weather-related influences. The application sponge from Scherell’s is especially practical; with it, the oil can be applied manually with particular ease.

Both with Balsin Stock Oil and with Scherell’s SCHAFTOL, the colours can be mixed with each other, allowing the desired shade to be achieved. Both can be used to treat noble wooden stocks precisely according to your wishes –whether they are made of burr walnut, standard walnut, beechwood or pinewood.

Of course, it is not just wooden stocks that the products can be used to treat. The oils are outstanding for caring for furniture, antique woods and natural-wood floors and thus prevent wood becoming rough or spotted.

Oiling And Overhauling The Stock

Depending on the condition of the wooden stock, it must first be sanded with emery paper. First with a rougher grade of around 280 until all noticeable irregularities have been removed. Then with finer paper, with a 400 grade, for example. To achieve as smooth a surface as possible, the stock is also repolished with fine sanding fleece.

If a stock is being completely overhauled, it should be given an intermediate rinse after the last fine sanding. This allows the wood to swell. After the subsequent drying, rising wood fibres can be feather-edged with the finest emery paper. Here, it is important always to sand in the direction of the fibres!

Now the smooth, even surface can be wiped with a fuzz-free cloth to remove all wood dust residues. Before you now begin to process the stock wood with stock oil, you should make sure to spread out an underlay to prevent stains getting on the work surface – for example, use a cut-open plastic bag. Please take into account that oil can also cause stains on natural stones, PVC flooring and textiles. During the work, use the octagonal indent on the side of the Balsin folding box to position the bottle steadily in the lying box.

To enliven the prepared wood with the stock oil, i.e. to emphasize the natural colour of the wood, use either a suitable brush, a small sponge or a fuzz-free cloth soaked with the oil. Balsin or Scherell’s SCHAFTOL light is also recommended for the regular routine maintenance of the stock. If you would like to achieve a darker colouring of the stock, opt for the corresponding shade.

Tip for oiling the stock

When using Balsin Stock Oil, you should always ensure sufficiently good ventilation and neither smoke nor have a naked flame nearby. This is because Balsin Stock Oil contains a combustible solvent that is part of the silicone formulation, which permeates particularly deep into the wood and thus provides for the perfect water roll-off effect. Therefore, the solvent smell that arises when working with Balsin is completely normal. Nevertheless, Balsin Stock Oil of course contains the optimal proportion of oil basis to care for the stock and the woodgrain in the best possible way. Stock oils must always be used with the greatest care, as soaked cloths can self-ignite. Stock oil should always be applied extremely sparingly, as otherwise excess oil could get into the gun’s trigger or safety catch, which would lead to malfunctions there. This would possibly necessitate a repair by a gunsmith. In the case of a completely overhauled stock, Scherell’s Stock Oil should be heated to approximately 40°C when used for the first time. The oil thus becomes even lighter, allowing it to penetrate the wood particularly deeply. In the event of rough wood pores, these can be filled with pumice powder and stock oil. The pumice powder sets colourlessly with the oil.

If the stock to be treated is already visibly weathered and dried out, it should be oiled on several successive days and be left to dry overnight each time. The stock oil can thus penetrate deep into the wood and – if you have opted for treatment with Balsin – the silicone formulation contained therein can connect on the surface in order to form a water-repellent layer on the wood.

In the event of a comprehensive overhaul of a gun, it should without fail be taken into account that the silicone contained in Balsin can lead to problems in the case of a rebrowning; thus, here it is necessary to work with particular care.

On the day after the last application of the stock oil, rub in the residues that are still on the stock wood with a fuzz-free cotton cloth. To this end, use the cloth to form a small bale and move it in small circles across the entire oiled surface so that all the wood pores are filled equally. Alternatively, you can also perform this final treatment using the palms of your hands. The gun should now be left again overnight at room temperature.

The next morning, the stock wood will show a nice, silk-matt shine and will be coated with an invisible, water-resistant film that even the strongest rain rolls off. The entire stock is then protected excellently against rain, wetness, decay and mould for a long time and can be transported on the shoulder in the hunting ground or at the firing range.

Cleaning Other Stock Materials

Cleaning and maintaining stocks made of laminated wood, plastic or carbon fibre is significantly easier. Here, residues and soiling can be removed relatively easily. We recommend the use of a gentle agent such as a Ballistol Universal Oil emulsion or a special plastics cleaner. The latter cleans the plastic reliably and gives it an appearance as if new. The surface receives its original secure grip again. Special microfibre cloths improve the overall result markedly.

Cleaning Optical Systems

Particular care should be taken when cleaning gunsights, binoculars and spotting scopes. Here, the care instructions of the manufacturer for the corresponding product are always to be strictly followed.

However, it is to be mentioned that the lenses are the most sensitive component of each optical system. They may not be rubbed, neither dry nor slightly damp. Before the first contact with a special microfibre cloth, existing dust and dirt particles must be rinsed off under flowing water. In general, only special, mild cleaning agents, extra-soft optical brushes and fine microfibre cloths should be used for cleaning optical systems. Under no circumstances should lenses be blown down with a compressor, as the high pressure could displace the in-built sealing, causing the gas contained in the optical systems to escape. Only water and a soft cleaning cloth may be used to remove external dirt on gunsights and binoculars.