Blued steel vs stainless steel.

[Grassroots89]

Blued steel vs stainless steel.

[Grassroots89]

Correction-Blued steel vs nickel platted steel.

Sorry, about that.

[Jerry A.]

Nickel can peel, so I would personally stick with blued.

[Treestand]

I like Blued steel on Rifles and Shotguns and S/Steel on Handguns.

[FirstBubba]

Never did care for nickle/chrome plated firearms. They make sense, I just prefer blued.

[Carl Huber]

JMHO Matte finished S/S is best. Nickel is attractive with the right grips [say Stag] on a hand gun. Deep blue is nice on a range gun. But keep it away from harsh weather and blood can spot/strip the finish. Colt came up with something I think they called Black Chrome that was attractive. The name might be wrong and I don't know how durable it was.

[Dcast]

I prefer S.S. for the same reasons as Carl stated. He also mentioned Black Chrome which I know Ruger refers to it as that, it's an option although I have not seen that on any shotgun or rifle but plenty of handguns. I would really like to see some of the shotguns and muzzle loaders with black chrome finish. On the other end,what ever coating I had on my 870 was as horrible as the guns was to me. If that thing looked out the window on a rainy day it would rust. I have to get a new insert for my gun case I kept it in because to keep it from rusting I had to wipe down with copious amounts of oil.

[RJ Arena]

I have S.S. and blued, I did once have a model 19 S&W that was nickel plated, she sure was pretty!

[jhjimbo]

Blue has that traditional look on rifles and handguns. I have only one stainless steel rifle. There are a lot of different 'blue' finishes from the wafer thin finish on something like a NEF, to the deep luster of the action and bolt of a Weatherby Mk V. The pamphlet that came with my Mark V said there is 8 man hours in the bluing and polishing of the finish on the action and bolt handle.
I think Browning also has some real nice blue finishes.
Polished nickel or other bright finishes to me, are nice to look at and show up mostly in the movies IMO.

[99explorer]

Taurus makes a highly polished stainless steel finish they call "Sundance" that looks like nickel, and is very attractive on a single action revolver with synthetic ivory grips.
Real nickel-plating is more expensive and more durable than blue.

[Safado]

For Rifles I prefer the deep blue of the Weatherby Mark V with beautiful wood although I have a few working rifles with matte blued finish that is very functional. I only like stainless in a rifle with a sythetic stock. I would like to own a Colt Python with the nickel plating but that would only apply to revolvers. I like my semi autos to have a matte blued finish.

[99explorer]

Come to think of it, a first generation (pre-war) nickel-plated Colt single action with genuine ivory grips would be a very desirable and expensive collectors' item, but mechanically and esthetically inferior to the modern Taurus clone.

[RJ Arena]

I remember back in the early 90's one of my favorite gun shops had a Colt Python that had such a beautiful bluing, deep rich color. all of my rifles with one obvious exception are blued, my hand guns, 50-50 blued, stainless and one alloy.

[FirstBubba]

Dcast
Amigo
Never, EVER store guns in a foam lined case!
As the gun warms and cools, it will sweat, just like a tea glass on a hot summer day. The foam will absorb that moisture and hold it against the metal, forming rust.
Guns are best stored in the open so they can "breathe". IF you store them in a gun safe, be sure to get a dessicant to go inside your safe.

I've got a couple of S/S guns. Love 'em. Still prefer blued/walnut.

[Carl Huber]

Dcast you know rust is the gift that keeps giving. I have used Oxy-Blue sold by Brownell's. It's a cold blue gel similar to Navel-Gel. It gets under the rust. No need to strip the finish. Just apply, scrub with fine steel wool, let sit, wipe off, apply a thin coat of oil. Will darken over night or apply a second coat. I used it on a Swedish Mauser and a Bollo Machete from WWI. Pics on my profile very good durable finish and touch up.