Refinish and other things to look for

[FrankTrost]

I was wondering if someone could explain or point me to where I can find info related to how some rifles seem odd. I am talking about the shiny barrels or barrel bands that seem off when compared to the entire rifle and its worn stock. To my untrained eyes it seems if they have been cleaned. Also, are there examples of factory-fresh rifles so I can see what the original look was? I was on a large site that sold guns and was looking at 1866 Second Allin trapdoors. Many seemed off to me. I am still new, but I have been studying, reading, and comparing. TIA

[daneal]

Until the adoption of the 45/70 series, most shoulder arms produced by Springfield left the armory with a finish described as "National Armory Bright", which in essence meant that all metal parts which were not case hardened or oil-quench blacked were polished bright. The degree of polish varied slightly from time to time and workman to workman, but appeared what I would call, "worn 600 wet-or-dry paper" grit.
The soldier, coming in from the field or from a tour on guard, often found his piece scarred or rusted. In order to spruce it up for the next inspection, he could refresh the bright-metal parts with a little emory or even a rubbing down with sand. Trying to re-do the wood was not a barracks job, and the case hardened or blacked parts were somewhat protected by their own finish, so it's not uncommon for a rifle which has seen field service to sport a barrel and fittings which are not consistent with its other parts. I have especially noticed this on the 1866 series.
Sometimes you can move a barrel band forward and see where the barrel beneath the band, protected from exposure and by an old coat of oil, will show its original polish.
Soldiers issued the fully blued 47/70 arms didn't have such an opportunity to brighten up their hardware, but were luckier in that the slow-rust blue on 45 barrels was remarkably protective against rust. Their barrels just sorta turned brown when uncared for.
No real jewels of wisdom here, just some thoughts and impressions gleaned from examining and stripping thousands of trapdoors over a lifetime.

[Dick Hosmer]

Only thing I can add to the above post is that, even in the .45-70 series, not all parts were blued/browned/colored using the same method, so that even brand-new guns had minor differences in color, tone, polish, etc.

A good many people, some here, have nearly new specimens, with the best ones often being M1884 rifles made in 1889 and laid up in stores when the rod-bayonet model came out. Some of them didn't hit the market, out of their sealed crates, until the 1940s and 1950s.

Of course, probably the major cause of non-matching finish is 140+ years of handling, repairing, upgrading, etc. TRUE virgins are hard to come by, and even then, you really don't KNOW for sure.

FWIW, Don (daneal) and I recently re-connected here for the first time in since 1970(!) nearly 55 years of TD collecting.

[FrankTrost]

Awesome thanks to the both of you for sharing your knowledge. Much appreciated.

Frank