black blade

[spike]

Does anyone know the best way to make a folding knive blade black? Will the coating take any abuse?

 

[vaquero57]

Most people Blue their blades like a gun barrel is. Whether or not a guy can use cold blue from the sproting goods dept at your local Wal Mart I do not know. This stuff only works on carbon not stainless. I have used it to touch up some of my gun barrels. Look for Perma blue or Hoppes cold bluing solution. Give it a try in fact I was eventually gonna try it myself when I made my first tactical knife. The other option is to have a friendly gunsmith hot blue the blade for you. I have a gunsmith locally who makes his living as a bank pres. He is damn good and very busy. He has people from 4-5 counties bringing him stuff and he charges about 1/4 what a regular gunsmith does cause he has no overhead(den of his basement is his shop) and does not need the funds(hobby) If you could find someone like that you could probably get a blade hot blued for less than 10 dollars. I bet my gunsmith would hot blue a small blade for me for under 10 dollars.

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" I am a shootist."
Clay Allison
" Does this mean we are bladists?"
Vaquero57
McAlpin Bladesmithing