I picked this up at a small local auction, a WC Scott 12ga:





She is pretty from a distance, but has some problems:

Used to be a straight grip:


And she has a bit of cast:


A restock will eventually be in order, but I am a left eye dominant righty, so I am planning on giving her a try as she is, although I certainly don't think it will do any favors for my shooting.

The barrels have some pitting, [/i]very[i] minor inside, and my gunsmith said I'm safe with the proper loads. There is more external pitting. Since the gun isn't worth much, I thought I would try my hand at barrel browning. Right now I am just working on polishing.

One polished, one not:


And again, showing the heaviest pitting.:


My question is, before I move on, do I have to polish away all the tiny spots in the below picture?


I have done a lot of polishing near the breech, but some of the heavy pitting remains. I want to take all of this off, but I don't want to polish off too much and have it look uneven against the receiver. Should I take the rib engraving off?



I have been using 200 grit and plan to finish with 400, is this enough or should I go up to 600+?

Appreciate any insight.

Best,
Alex

Get yourself a fine, single cut file and go in ONE direction. If the funds are available a quality draw file from brownells would be a great start to your "barrel refinishing kit" Otherwise Nicholson files are pretty good for the $$ these can be had at Lowe's/Home Depot. Start by gently filing the pits out. I would stay away from the engraving if you can stand it. You will need to remove all "pin" prick pitting as this will show through like a red bra in a wet t-shirt contest. Make sure the bbls are smooth. For your final polishing go in one direction only. Usually 400 is plenty smooth for rust blue but I have never browned bbls. I use muslin wheels dressed with Polish-O-Ray from brownells in various grits untill I reach the desired polish. This polish can be obtained completely by hand, it will just take longer. Remember ONE direction only and take your time. When it comes to applying the finish gloves are a must and the bbls need to be absolutely clean and dry. I soak in acetone and hang from the lump in a dry place for 24 hrs. This will also help get any oil that has seeped under the rib out. If there is any oil come finishing time it will show on your bbls when you are done. For soaking in acetone the cheap plastic wall paper trays (available at paint stores Lowe's/Home Depot) come in very handy. Hope all this babbling has helped some....

Alex: You are aware that those barrels are a nice Laminated Steel?

1860s W & C Scott & Sons in 'black & white'



'Browned' Laminated Steel

I've done a piece on how I do it if it is of interest.
T

http://www.vintageshotgun.com/?cat=21

Given the laminated barrels Ballistix's directions are a good point of departure.

The easiest browning solution to use is from Laurel Mountain Forge (as in, I've used it successfully). It's a good product, but is primarily intended to produce a plum brown matte finish, as one would find on a percussion rifle. But, with care, it can be worked both lighter and glossier.

Jeepers, that was sure a neat job of adding a grip to the gun. Very professional looking and darned difficult to mate the curved profiles of the cut. Very interesting.

Too late now but I would have voted to just leave the barrels the way they were and said, "they are what they are." Even now, I'd leave some of the deeper pits rather than reduce the profile even more. Doubt you'll want to go to the expense but the engraving should probably be recut. Might now be too expensive--you might ask around on this board for an estimate.

Incidently, those laminated steel barrels are of high quality and generally stronger than damascus.

Thanks for the input guys. Ballistix, I love the website, I'll be following your directions and might have more questions for you.

Joe,
I thought I was going to leave them as it, but I got bored and need a winter project. Hope I don't regret that decision.