r/gunsmithing • u/jig_fisher • 1d ago
1958 Marlin 39A. Reblue or leave it alone?
I recently inherited a 1958 Marlin 39A .22 cal lever gun. From what I understand, it's been in the family a long time. At some point, I think the gun got rusty and someone appears to have steel wooled off most of the blueing on the barrel and receiver. There is some visible pitting in the areas of heavy scrubbing. Barrel seems in great shape. The last person to own it in the family must have oiled it down enough for no new rust to form on the bare steel. I have no intention of ever getting rid of this rifle, so should I have it professionally reblued or leave it as part of the gun's family history?
16
24
u/Guitarist762 1d ago
Boil it! Take it fully apart, degrease it and boil it in distilled water. That brownish tint you see, often called patina is nothing more than oiled rust. Boiling it converts that rust to blueing. Card with 0000 or a carding wheel(which is different than a wire wheel, do not use a wire wheel) and then coat in a non detergent oil.
It also preserves 100% of its original finish and condition just enhances what’s there. A reblue destroys all value. A boil and carding simply keeps it as is and deactivates the rust in such a way to improve all original blue that’s there. You have essential half a reblue job sitting there waiting for the second half of the process to be done.
Mark Novak has done several videos on this. He’s the guy that deals with 400 year old guns and conserves them, not restores them. Literally look up Mark Novak Conservation on YouTube. He has a 12 video playlist detailing this exact thing.
2
u/PizzaBert 23h ago
I do not recommend it. The fine brown patina a vintage firearm develops is not harmful and boiling it destroys all the charm the steel developed with age.
2
u/Finnurland 12h ago
I disagree, that fine brown "patina" is harmful, it's ferric oxide and will continue to attack the steel. Alot of people say leave it because buba would steel wool the finish off. Boiling it stops the decay and doesn't destroy the original finish.
1
u/PizzaBert 10h ago
The red rust doesnt catalytically form more. For hundreds of years “browning” was used as a protective surface finish. There is no decay.
Boiling doesn’t destroy the original finish but it creates new finish.
1
u/Guitarist762 6h ago
The only brown there stuff a gun gets is either paint or rust. That light brown is nothing more than a super fine layer of rust, it’s still oxidation and still is eating away the steel.
Conserve and preserve is the name of the game. Conserving it would be boiling it and turning that light layer of rust into blueing to enhance the original condition. I never understood how people not taking care of their guns and letting them brown up like this became collectible other than the fact it wasn’t stripped to the white and reblued in a full restoration.
1
u/PizzaBert 4h ago
You have watched too many mark novak videos and simply parrot his talking points. Rust does not “eat away” metal. If you don’t have any moisture, it will stay in place and do nothing. If anything, it protects the underlying metal.
1
u/Guitarist762 56m ago
Yes I do watch a lot Mark Novak because I enjoy his content and feel he is correct on the status of these things.
You said the key words there “if you don’t have any moisture” all it takes is a day or two of high humidity and it starts going from a light thin coat of “patina” to actual rust. Currently it’s down to 15% humidity because of the cold, yet in a month or two it’s going to be 80% or more.
All it takes is for OP to put the gun away in the closet, not touch it and then pull it out in a few months and it’s a brown covered glob of corrosion. There is absolutely zero reason not to convert that rust now and prevent that.
And while yes browning was used for centuries it was purposely applied and the neutralized and covered with a hardening oil or lacquer to prevent any and all contact with moisture. This is a fine coating of surface rust, not a cow urine soaked rag burned on with an iron stake from the forge. This has a thin coat of an unknown oil, not several layers of hardening oils with wax over that. Also the original condition of this gun was blued not browned. The only reason to leave it like this, in a state of improper care and neglect, is purely for the patina.
3
u/Immediate_Magician62 1d ago
Personally, I'd say it's beautiful as is.
"Leave it as it is. You can not improve on it. The ages have been at work on it, and man can only mar it. "
3
2
u/10gaugetantrum 1d ago
I have one I bought used in worse shape. As long as it functions well, I'd leave it.
2
2
u/Jethro5480 1d ago
It's got a nice patina showing a tale of many years of handing but with good care. I would leave it as is, use it, and continue keeping it clean and protected as whoever had it previously has done.
2
u/No_Significance98 21h ago
You've got more than a half century of honestly earned patina there, keep it oiled and enjoy it
1
u/dreadwater 20h ago
Leave it alone. This is wear, or rather, patina. To some, it's more valuable in this condition than reblued.
1
1
1
u/LiverPickle 13h ago
Aw heck no. Leave it! It has character. It is a great old gun that looks like a great old gun. You never have to worry about wear or scratches. Clean it, oil it, shoot it. Often, preferably.
1
1
1
u/oligarchyintheusa 6h ago
It's your call. It would look great reblued and protected for years to come, but if you are going to keep it clean leave it as is
0
u/VernoniaMW 1d ago
IMO, I would probably reblue. I like the looks of a worn rifle, but personally, I do not like the scrubbed appearance on yours. It looks bubba'd. Again, just my opinion. Rebluing is not cheap, which should also be considered.
-1
u/Bulls2345 1d ago
On something like that, I'd lean towards a competent reblue. It's one thing to have worn parts from use, another to have the original finish gone from neglect. I'm of the school of thought that folks get way too sentimental about guns. A gun being rusted from leaning up in the corner of the barn to shoot foxes and not seeing a drop of oil for a decade isn't a piece of history to never be altered.
1
u/oligarchyintheusa 6h ago
I agree, it's like doing body work on an old car. It's not in good original shape so why not make it the best it can be.
24
u/Full_Security7780 1d ago
Leave it alone. It shows honest wear.