Perfect timing! I just got started on my latest RTI resto. Im taking the plunge into hot blue with the mark lee #1 blue solution. They wire wheel the hell outta mine so why not.
Very nice restoration. Nice blueing. I redid an Enfield Dispersal /sporter a few yrs ago. Wasn’t impressed with it as it was keyholing at 25 yds. I said what the heck and shortened it to about 20 inches. Moved the barrel band back, cut the forstock and did a duffel cut repair under the barrel band as I didn’t want to have to inlet that complicated nosecap. Doesn’t keyhole any more and looks cool. Lightened the mainspring and its very slick.
I've done my M1 in boiled linseed oil, it took a over 13 months. (19 applications) 3 applications on week one, 1 app,/week for a month, 1 app./month for a year. The advantage of BLO is the ability to freshen up the finish with little or know prep. The extractor spring is easily damaged if a round is inserted into the chamber and the bolt slammed home, always place a round in the magazine and allow the bolt to properly feed the rim of the round into the extractor then into the chamber. Forcing the extractor claw to ride over the rim of the round will eventually cause spring breakage.
Randomly came across this video and I think you do a really good job thoroughly explain each step and the reasoning behind it. Idk if you already know this or not but you might want to consider using something other than h2o2 as a catalyst/oxidizer, especially when heat is involved. It will cause hydrogen embrittlement which is something you certainly do not want when it comes to case hardened steel. That's like the reason why none of the rust blue solutions intended for use on firearms contain or recommend the use of h2o2. Heating the metal parts(250 degrees if manageable) prior to applying the rust blue solution will accelerate the rusting process substantially by itself. If you do continue to use h2o2, an excellent source for high concentration(37%) is your local gardening/hydroponic store.
Have never had any issue, even with the high temps. What i do know is that boiling/steaming almost always helps remove hydrogen to prevent embrittlement. I prolonged the time I steam the barrel/receiver to help with this. Prolonged exposure to elevated temperatures is generally more effective in driving out hydrogen. It's possible there could be a degree of hydrogen embrittlement, but if there is, it will only be an extremely thin layer of the metal. I'm pretty sure case hardened steel is less susceptible to embrittlement compared to through-hardened steels? And from what I've found again, while heating with a torch can introduce thermal stress, the subsequent boiling/steaming step is pretty much sufficient to release any absorbed hydrogen
Only thing ido different is to not wear gloves around the wire wheel. It can pull you into it if it grabs. I understand they are nitrile but they can still grab and the black ones can be tough...I had a drill press almost cut my wrist with nitrile gloves.....I was lucky to be using a foot control but it left a bad burn and bruising. It looked like I was arrested and had a cuff mark. Your prep is very good, especially for rust bluing. I usually do heat bluing or oxpho for my screws and small parts. It saves time and can be easier to get more done with less trouble. A little trick, you can put your peroxide in the ultrasonic to get it into everywhere uniformly. It will help your rust form in a sheet.
With SMLE always attach the buttstock first and remove last. Otherwise the buttstock attachment screw breaks the thin piece of wood at the end of the lower wood hand guard behind the receiver.
I purchased one a number of years ago that had a synthetic hunting stock on it. I ordered a parade rifle and canabalized the stock, nose cap and rear sight wings. Still trying to get all the cosmoline out of the stock to "brighten" it up a bit.
I used true oil and get a great results. I do use hot water and degreaser allowing the furniture completely dry before using the True Oil. I allow the oil to dry overnight.
Any chance you could get pictures of the bores? I’m very interested in buying from RTI, but many of the videos I see say that barrels come so worn out that the rounds will keyhole. I feel like in many cases, though RTI is almost the only option to get certain rifles for reasonable price. Any way another great video, love your work.
@@saviorsloth7784 appreciate it! Yeah so getting decent shots/videos of the bores has been a little tough but did it for this one just forgot to add it in. Will start adding going forward, well at least what they look like after cleaning. I think out of all 40+guns I’ve gotten from them only 2 were really bad with no rifling and another with just a ton of pitting. Almost all the other I’ve gotten have had solid rifling but little to some frosting. I always pay extra for the “select overall condition” to be guaranteed a good bore. Or, I choose from their hand select firearms they have so I know exactly what I’m getting and how good the bore is. Once again, a little more $ but always worth it.
@saviorsloth7784 I have bought 3 rifles from them over the last 3 months. Their description of the bores in the listing so far has been pretty accurate and after cleaning them up I an very happy with what I received.
I have one just like this, dated 1916. I've been wanting to restore it for ages. Quick question, does the blowtorch ruin the factory hardness when you're doing the bluing?
You said rust bluing makes a rougher finish. Do you think it would make a flat surface sanded to 3-400 grit appear rougher than the grit? As in would it detract from the sanding done on it? I need to start on a milled ak build and have to get it blued but want it to look as good as it can with DIY methods
I’m a month late but just a bit of info You can easily put the sear spring in… like insanely easy with just a flat blade screw driver…. Put the long end in first make sure it slips into its retainer grove on the mag release… and then slip the screw driver head under the bend in the spring… and cam the screw driver up against the sear and it will slide the spring into its grove in the sear… you’ll hear it snap in….. No pliers No squeezing the spring no fuss I do the same thing to remove them ass well… wedge the screw driver between the curve of the spring and sear and they pop right out…. Someone else had already mentioned the infamous stock bolt so I won’t bother
RTI definitely sent you one of the best rifles they had! I have seen quite a few and this is not how they look to start. They are in much worse shape and missing original parts and parts in general.
Great video. It's obvious that RTI hooks you up with rifles with nice stocks. I've bought a couple to restore and the stocks aren't near that nice. I suppose if I were them I would do the same.
@@joejohnson4147 not necessarily, just depends what we’re doing for the video. I’ve purchased over 30 of their guns prior to any sponsorship deal and worst I’ve gotten was a c grade level with a slipt buttstock. Most of the other stocks have been decent, of course some cracks here and there and some missing pieces like on the no4 I just did but nothing that has not been reparable!
I’ve restored a few of these over the years and after getting off most of the gunk on the stock/wood parts as you did I put the parts in the dishwasher and run it a couple times, it comes out beautifully clean as well as slightly swelling the wood that allows me to sand out the dings while not reducing the overall dimensions of the wood. To simulate various stock colors I’ve done some by using two different wood stain colors, one was barn red then once dried I applied an extremely light coat of onyx black wood stain, this just tones down the red to a more muted tone, this is effective for replicating a Lithgow stock. Thankfully, the Brits painted most of the rifle so I can use ceramic coatings/paint and even Alumahyde II on some parts. For non-painted parts I used manganese phosphate to parkerize the parts like the bolt (sometimes the magazine as well, just depends on the rifle) and trigger assembly. There’s other options to blacken parts, just ensure it’ll be the right shade you’re going for, if it doesn’t look right, you can wire brush the finish off with a bench grinder and start over. Obviously it’s better to use a sand blast cabinet or a vibratory media tumbler but a bench grinder with a wire brush wheel works fine for small parts. If the wood finish has an uneven finish with slightly glossy patches, use some two part Duracoat flat clear coat but just one good coat only and it’ll look great and be resistant to oils and solutions.
Hmmm, WWI enfields were oil blackeded not blued or browned and it appeared you were actually cold bluing even using hydrogen peroxide. ..a shinny stock on a combat rifle ?
I got a number one, Mark 3 1918 Enfield. I got it for free it's been sporterized, I wanted to buy some furniture for it but they want too much money more than the rifles worth , the rifle is in decent shape anybody knows where you can get some furniture OEM?
The only error I saw was that you finished with the butt. You should have started with the butt. See the squared nose on the long butt bolt? That fits in a squared indentation in the forend. It can crack the wooden forend if installed lastly. Otherwise, a very good video.
Would you recommend an “original condition “ grade from RTI to be a better grade shooter? Or better barrels? I got B Grade no4 m1 with a very carotid barrel. I’m just curious if you’ve had any lucky on a specific grade from RTI with decent barrels? I know it’s a tossup but just curious
SMH... Time, effort, materials... = waste... Just to cosmetically polish a RTI turd. Dont be inspired by this anyone. Find yourself a original that aint a Turd... Plenty of originals out their to be found in good or better shape that can be shot. Advoid RTI... They are con artist....
Not for everyone that's for sure. However, no major pitting, bore is in great condition and it shoots amazing. Honestly one of the most rewarding/satisfying things seeing these babies come back to life. Also don't have to worry about dinging it up since it's a resto!
Love this concept! Make a short on the restore methods, chemicals and cleaning solution recipes?
This video comes in handy for us who want to restore surplus guns.
Ahh , to restore or preserve , theres the difference.
What a nice job! Came out great. Nice detailed video too!
Wonderful craftsmanship👍👍👍👍
Perfect timing! I just got started on my latest RTI resto. Im taking the plunge into hot blue with the mark lee #1 blue solution. They wire wheel the hell outta mine so why not.
Very nice restoration. Nice blueing. I redid an Enfield Dispersal /sporter a few yrs ago. Wasn’t impressed with it as it was keyholing at 25 yds. I said what the heck and shortened it to about 20 inches. Moved the barrel band back, cut the forstock and did a duffel cut repair under the barrel band as I didn’t want to have to inlet that complicated nosecap. Doesn’t keyhole any more and looks cool. Lightened the mainspring and its very slick.
I've done my M1 in boiled linseed oil, it took a over 13 months. (19 applications) 3 applications on week one, 1 app,/week for a month, 1 app./month for a year. The advantage of BLO is the ability to freshen up the finish with little or know prep. The extractor spring is easily damaged if a round is inserted into the chamber and the bolt slammed home, always place a round in the magazine and allow the bolt to properly feed the rim of the round into the extractor then into the chamber. Forcing the extractor claw to ride over the rim of the round will eventually cause spring breakage.
I'm in the same field I use a tea ball or tea steeper for my small parts it works really well
Randomly came across this video and I think you do a really good job thoroughly explain each step and the reasoning behind it. Idk if you already know this or not but you might want to consider using something other than h2o2 as a catalyst/oxidizer, especially when heat is involved. It will cause hydrogen embrittlement which is something you certainly do not want when it comes to case hardened steel. That's like the reason why none of the rust blue solutions intended for use on firearms contain or recommend the use of h2o2. Heating the metal parts(250 degrees if manageable) prior to applying the rust blue solution will accelerate the rusting process substantially by itself. If you do continue to use h2o2, an excellent source for high concentration(37%) is your local gardening/hydroponic store.
Have never had any issue, even with the high temps. What i do know is that boiling/steaming almost always helps remove hydrogen to prevent embrittlement. I prolonged the time I steam the barrel/receiver to help with this. Prolonged exposure to elevated temperatures is generally more effective in driving out hydrogen. It's possible there could be a degree of hydrogen embrittlement, but if there is, it will only be an extremely thin layer of the metal. I'm pretty sure case hardened steel is less susceptible to embrittlement compared to through-hardened steels? And from what I've found again, while heating with a torch can introduce thermal stress, the subsequent boiling/steaming step is pretty much sufficient to release any absorbed hydrogen
Looks great, nice job.
Only thing ido different is to not wear gloves around the wire wheel. It can pull you into it if it grabs. I understand they are nitrile but they can still grab and the black ones can be tough...I had a drill press almost cut my wrist with nitrile gloves.....I was lucky to be using a foot control but it left a bad burn and bruising. It looked like I was arrested and had a cuff mark.
Your prep is very good, especially for rust bluing. I usually do heat bluing or oxpho for my screws and small parts. It saves time and can be easier to get more done with less trouble.
A little trick, you can put your peroxide in the ultrasonic to get it into everywhere uniformly. It will help your rust form in a sheet.
With SMLE always attach the buttstock first and remove last. Otherwise the buttstock attachment screw breaks the thin piece of wood at the end of the lower wood hand guard behind the receiver.
Great Video !
I purchased one a number of years ago that had a synthetic hunting stock on it. I ordered a parade rifle and canabalized the stock, nose cap and rear sight wings. Still trying to get all the cosmoline out of the stock to "brighten" it up a bit.
I used true oil and get a great results. I do use hot water and degreaser allowing the furniture completely dry before using the True Oil. I allow the oil to dry overnight.
Awesome
Any chance you could get pictures of the bores? I’m very interested in buying from RTI, but many of the videos I see say that barrels come so worn out that the rounds will keyhole. I feel like in many cases, though RTI is almost the only option to get certain rifles for reasonable price. Any way another great video, love your work.
@@saviorsloth7784 appreciate it! Yeah so getting decent shots/videos of the bores has been a little tough but did it for this one just forgot to add it in. Will start adding going forward, well at least what they look like after cleaning. I think out of all 40+guns I’ve gotten from them only 2 were really bad with no rifling and another with just a ton of pitting. Almost all the other I’ve gotten have had solid rifling but little to some frosting. I always pay extra for the “select overall condition” to be guaranteed a good bore. Or, I choose from their hand select firearms they have so I know exactly what I’m getting and how good the bore is. Once again, a little more $ but always worth it.
@saviorsloth7784 I have bought 3 rifles from them over the last 3 months. Their description of the bores in the listing so far has been pretty accurate and after cleaning them up I an very happy with what I received.
I have one just like this, dated 1916. I've been wanting to restore it for ages. Quick question, does the blowtorch ruin the factory hardness when you're doing the bluing?
You said rust bluing makes a rougher finish. Do you think it would make a flat surface sanded to 3-400 grit appear rougher than the grit? As in would it detract from the sanding done on it? I need to start on a milled ak build and have to get it blued but want it to look as good as it can with DIY methods
I guess my only comment I’d only use brass brushes. Stell might scratch.
criterion barrels makes a replacement barrel for these rifles I think around $300
I’m a month late but just a bit of info
You can easily put the sear spring in… like insanely easy with just a flat blade screw driver….
Put the long end in first make sure it slips into its retainer grove on the mag release… and then slip the screw driver head under the bend in the spring… and cam the screw driver up against the sear and it will slide the spring into its grove in the sear… you’ll hear it snap in…..
No pliers
No squeezing the spring no fuss
I do the same thing to remove them ass well… wedge the screw driver between the curve of the spring and sear and they pop right out….
Someone else had already mentioned the infamous stock bolt so I won’t bother
RTI definitely sent you one of the best rifles they had! I have seen quite a few and this is not how they look to start. They are in much worse shape and missing original parts and parts in general.
Great video. It's obvious that RTI hooks you up with rifles with nice stocks. I've bought a couple to restore and the stocks aren't near that nice. I suppose if I were them I would do the same.
@@joejohnson4147 not necessarily, just depends what we’re doing for the video. I’ve purchased over 30 of their guns prior to any sponsorship deal and worst I’ve gotten was a c grade level with a slipt buttstock. Most of the other stocks have been decent, of course some cracks here and there and some missing pieces like on the no4 I just did but nothing that has not been reparable!
Removed way too much material on that forend; now the trigger guard is proud.
What color stain did you use?
Will it still shoot?
Are there gunsmiths that can machine replacement bolt heads?
nice
I’ve restored a few of these over the years and after getting off most of the gunk on the stock/wood parts as you did I put the parts in the dishwasher and run it a couple times, it comes out beautifully clean as well as slightly swelling the wood that allows me to sand out the dings while not reducing the overall dimensions of the wood. To simulate various stock colors I’ve done some by using two different wood stain colors, one was barn red then once dried I applied an extremely light coat of onyx black wood stain, this just tones down the red to a more muted tone, this is effective for replicating a Lithgow stock. Thankfully, the Brits painted most of the rifle so I can use ceramic coatings/paint and even Alumahyde II on some parts. For non-painted parts I used manganese phosphate to parkerize the parts like the bolt (sometimes the magazine as well, just depends on the rifle) and trigger assembly. There’s other options to blacken parts, just ensure it’ll be the right shade you’re going for, if it doesn’t look right, you can wire brush the finish off with a bench grinder and start over. Obviously it’s better to use a sand blast cabinet or a vibratory media tumbler but a bench grinder with a wire brush wheel works fine for small parts. If the wood finish has an uneven finish with slightly glossy patches, use some two part Duracoat flat clear coat but just one good coat only and it’ll look great and be resistant to oils and solutions.
Hmmm, WWI enfields were oil blackeded not blued or browned and it appeared you were actually cold bluing even using hydrogen peroxide.
..a shinny stock on a combat rifle ?
I got a number one, Mark 3 1918 Enfield. I got it for free it's been sporterized, I wanted to buy some furniture for it but they want too much money more than the rifles worth , the rifle is in decent shape anybody knows where you can get some furniture OEM?
The only error I saw was that you finished with the butt. You should have started with the butt. See the squared nose on the long butt bolt? That fits in a squared indentation in the forend. It can crack the wooden forend if installed lastly. Otherwise, a very good video.
@@gregwilliams386 ahhh that def makes sense, good to know! Thanks for the advice!
Mk 4 Long Branch
Would you recommend an “original condition “ grade from RTI to be a better grade shooter? Or better barrels? I got B Grade no4 m1 with a very carotid barrel. I’m just curious if you’ve had any lucky on a specific grade from RTI with decent barrels? I know it’s a tossup but just curious
B grade rifle????
Yes!
SMH...
Time, effort, materials...
= waste...
Just to cosmetically polish a RTI turd.
Dont be inspired by this anyone.
Find yourself a original that aint a Turd...
Plenty of originals out their to be found in good or better shape that can be shot.
Advoid RTI...
They are con artist....
Not for everyone that's for sure. However, no major pitting, bore is in great condition and it shoots amazing. Honestly one of the most rewarding/satisfying things seeing these babies come back to life. Also don't have to worry about dinging it up since it's a resto!
Hey sent you a message on instagram about some help with a Gras I’m doing . Thanks