Good place to send a revolver for chroming?

[Standarte]

I just helped my girlfriend purchase her first smith, a nickel plated 581. She loves it, but the finish is starting to flake a little on the back of the cylinder. Does anyone have any recommendations for a good place to send the gun for refinishing? Bonus points if I could get is hard chromed for a similar price.

[Bill DeShivs]

http://www.mahovskysmetalife.com/
http://www.fordsguns.com/
Or, you could send it to S&W.

[tulsamal]

APW brush chromed my old S&W M28. I ended up with a gun that looks like factory stainless. Not shiny. Smooth and easy to clean. Not ever going to come off. Everybody who sees it wants one just like it.

http://www.apwcogan.com/Greetings.htm

Gregg

[kamerer]

I have personally had excellent work from APW/Cogan. I have SEEN outstanding work from Ford's, and I have HEARD rave reviews of Mahovsky. Any would be very, very good.

S&W also offers outstanding finishing services themselves. A 581 in nickel is gonna be somewhat collectible someday, and already fetches a nice premium over a 586 or 686. I'd seriously consider sending it back to S&W for a factory re-nickel to preserve that value. Factory re-finishes, if documented, don't ding value like aftermarket ones do. Also, if you call ahead, they issue you a shipping label, it saves ALOT of hassle and money on shipping.

Also, another angle, is if your 581 is a "no dash" or -1, and has not been modified for the firing pin bushing recall, you can send it back for free for the bushing recall. Have them refinish it while there. This will make it much more affordable, and they'll check out the whole gun. Recalled guns have a red-circle "M" on the box, and a "-M" after the model number in the yoke area if the recall has been done. Check to see if yours has already had its "free ride" to Springfield.

[Hammer It]

Does anyone have any recommendations for a good place to send the gun for refinishing? Bonus points if I could get is hard chromed for a similar price.

Hello Standarte
I have used Ford's refinishing in Florida for Year's on many diferent styles of finish's they Offer and all of their Finishes are Impeccable. They are the only refinisher out there that Offers a full one Year guarantee on the quality of their work. I Picked up this Pre-30 S&W revolver in .32 S&W Long Cartridge. It was a mess with its Shake & Bake amature applied finish to say the least with it's original finish deeply Pitted. I also had Ford's re-stamp the Original Factory S&W Trade Mark Logo as the Original was weak and Pitted as shown. Before I sent my revolver to any one for a refinishing job, I contacted Ford's Refinishing and spoke with Larna the Owner and she said Hard Chrome was the way to go for daily carry and durability of daily carry would by Far out last any other finish they had to Offer. Here is Pictures of it before it went to Ford's for it's refinishing and after it came back from Ford's with it's New Hard Chrome finish applied. The Third set of Pictures is of the same gun but with 10 Months of hard daily carry on it and there is not one scratch or blemish on the revolver to be found. I am sold on their work and if you should call , ask to speak with the shop Owner Larna and tell her you were Referred by a Guy from Knoxville, Tennessee for a 10% discount on refinishing needs. I do know about a Year ago, S&W retired their last in house custom refinisher who did all their High Polished bluing jobs. At that time they Offered no other finish work and Nickel had not been done for a long time since the Federal EPA Regs. came around & I have heard since they have opened a New refinishing service but I have not seen any of the work or heard anything about it. This makes me wonder just who is doing the refinishing work there, and how long they have been doing it ? and if a gun get's messed up what recourse one would have ? I know of one guy in the Past that sent his Old Revolver to S&W for a refinish and when it returned they had stamped the newer style trade mark and barrel markings on it before refinishing it, and he was very upset as the original looked nothing like what they applied to his revolver. When he called and asked Just Why they did this to his revolver, ? their reply was because they do not have the Older style stamps to use any more. He now has an Old School revolver with very modern stampings that looks very out of place on it, and he is very disatisfied with the work. I do know that Ford's have been doing refinishing for many, many years and I have had many done by them well above my expectations. They stand behind all their work and you deal with them directly not a spring off company or a side division of a larger company. Here is what my Pre-30 looked like before, after and way after I carried it daily for well over 10 Months of daily Carry. Click on the Fords refinishing Link under my Pictures to see more of their work visit the Customer Testimonial section of their Web Site. I hope this helps, Hammer It



Pre-30 S&W revolver Before Ford's Refinishing applied Their Hard Chrome Finish











The Day it returned from Ford's refinishing


















Ten Months after daily carry of the same Gun















http://www.fordsguns.com/

[Flame Red]

Both Fords and APW do outstanding work. Last time I did some refinishing, Ford's was bit less $ but had a much longer wait. You should call both and find out their current backlog. Last year, it was like 5 months @ Fords's and 6 weeks at APW. I think that Ford's might have a slight edge on quality over APW, but I am not sure now.

[j-a-r]

Fords does excellent work. Be prepared to wait though as thier turnaroundtime is long. Like anything if you want it done right it's worth the wait.

j-a-r

[Rich Miranda]

Can a semi-auto be chromed?

I was thinking about picking up one of those super-cheap European Sig 225/P6s that are beat up and make it unique by chroming.

[Rich Miranda]

Originally Posted by Hammer It

Ten Months after daily carry of the same Gun

Hammer It, it looks even better with a little wear/break in on it!

[tulsamal]

I have to make a comment here. The gun Hammer It showed is very attractive. But I don't want people to think that's what a "typical brush chrome" looks like. I've had people tell me they didn't want to go brushed chrome because they didn't want it to reflect like a mirror. And that's what HI's gun looks like. It looks like a nickel finish. Super reflective. I'm sure that's what he wanted and what he asked for. And actually that type of finish costs more money because the surface preparation has to be more intense.

But a typical brush chrome will look much more like the factory S&W stainless. A nice soft look without any of that mirror finish. So if you are looking at his gun and thinking that's not for you, just be advised.

Here is what my old beater M28 looked like when it came back from APW.





I also took a photo of it with a couple of actual S&W stainless guns just to show how close the finish is to factory stainless in appearance.



That M28 was a real beater with lots of surface problems. Not just holster wear. It was embarrassing to show to people so it lived in the back of my safe. Now it is one of the first guns I show to anybody wanting to see some of my guns.

HI, seriously, no disrespect to your gun intended. It's amazing how much that gun looks like a nickel finish now. I just know lots of people don't actually want that flash!

Gregg

[Hammer It]

HI, seriously, no disrespect to your gun intended. It's amazing how much that gun looks like a nickel finish now. I just know lots of people don't actually want that flash!

Hello
I don't know what you would call it as you obviously slammed the finish of mine all the way through your response. I simply offered a finish solution to the original Poster as he asked for Nickel or High Polished Chrome finisher's out there, Not the Matte style stainless Brushed Chrome look. I did notice that your Trade mark appears weak in the one picture or is that the camera angle of the shot, or was it over polished by the refinisher ? Ford's are capible of re-stamping the trade mark like they did mine if it needs to be redone. They also now offer it in Black High Polished Chome finish as well. There is no difference in the amount of Preperation time before doing this finish or the matte style finish your gun has if the shop you choose cares about their reputation. If Pit's and Blemish's are left behind before the finish is applied they will show no matter what finish is applied. This finish will cost you an Extra $40.00 to have applied over the dull looking brushed chrome Look. I know a lot of people that are wanting Nickel finish's again like the Original poster here, but the problem with nickel is that it is soft and a lot of carry will eventually wear the nickel finish off so High Polished Chrome is more durable on the Long Run.I did mine like this because I like Nickel finish's and am not fond of the stainless look, If I was I would Buy a stainless gun to start with. I Guess it is a matter of what you want your gun to look like. I like the Flashy Look as was stated over a dull matte looking finish, I was Just trying to help and stay with what the Original poster was asking for here.. Hammer It

[tulsamal]

I don't know what you would call it as you obviously slammed the finish of mine all the way through your response.

Look, I tried to say I wasn't dogging on your gun. I think it looks very nice. The little carry guns look nice in a nickel style finish. I like the look of the new S&W Lemon Squeezer in nickel. I'm sure I would enjoy owning your gun myself. It's a fine looking job. I could sprinkle some bold text through my response and then maybe you would hear me?

It seemed important to me to point out that your gun isn't what people are generally going to get when they send in a gun to be "chromed." I think hard chrome is a wonderful refinish option but I've had dozens of people tell me they wouldn't do it because they didn't want their gun to "look like a car bumper." Once they see my M28, they almost always change their mind. IMO, there is a broader market for the finish that you see on my M28. More of a general use type of finish. If somebody wants a hard chrome job and they want it to shine like nickel, that can be done.

I did notice that your Trade mark appears weak in the one picture or is that the camera angle of the shot, or was it over polished by the refinisher ?

I told you that gun was in poor condition when I got it. The trademark looked like it was OK on one side but nearly faded away to nothing on the other side. Scratches and dents and gouges here and there. It looked like it came out of a motorcycle cop's holster at 70 mph and skidded down the pavement! APW asked me if I wanted them to use a special tool to re-engrave the trademark but it didn't seem that important to me.

So no, APW didn't screw it up. I was thrilled and surprised by how good a job they did. And I would send them another one of my guns anytime. But I don't own stock in the company. I don't have any relatives that work there. I don't even know any of the people that work there. I wasn't trying to recommend one place over another. Just show an example that I actually had in my possession. I don't know why it always has to turn into a giant "my guy is better than your guy" type of thing. I don't care!

Gregg

[Buckmaster]

Hello All:

That chrome job is great HammerIt! I have an old colt police positive special (first issue) that was my Great Grandfather's. My father had it reblued about 1970 or so and took off the factory hard rubber grips. I recently found a clean pair of grips which are the correct style for the period. I believe I will check into having the gun hard chromed. While I do not shoot this gun much any more, I would like a good eye appealing sturdy finish that will last when I hand the gun down to my children.

How expensive is it to have the engraving restamped? Some on the top of the barrel needs attention.

Again, thank you for sharing!

[maikell77]

Hammer It, You may have inspired me to have my 627 Pro chromed. I think yours looks awesome, besides the bead blast looks good but its a pain to clean.

[Hammer It]

How expensive is it to have the engraving restamped? Some on the top of the barrel needs attention.

Hello Buckmaster
It cost's $75.00 to re-cut the factory Logo and mine look's as good as the factory Job. I dont work there, or know the people on a personal basis or hold stock in their Company, But I see a good job done on my weapons and try to pass the word to guys wanting a nice Job done. They do a great job for todays throw away attitude that most have, they are still old School and take their time to place the much earned pride in all their work.. Hammer It

[Buckmaster]

Hammer It: Thanks for your reply. I agree that the work is "top notch". I have seen other guns on the "smith & wesson forums" done by Ford's. My colt is headed that way! Thanks again for sharing!

[Hammer It]

Hello Buckmaster
No problem, Glad I could be of help. I know you will be very Pleased with their work and in most cases the Longer wait, tells me just how good a shop is by the long line of waiting customers. I also sent you a P.M. Regards, Hammer It

[Hammer It]

I have an old colt police positive special (first issue) that was my Great Grandfather's. My father had it reblued about 1970 or so and took off the factory hard rubber grips. I recently found a clean pair of grips which are the correct style for the period. I believe I will check into having the gun hard chromed.

Hello Buckmaster
Another Refinishing Option you may like the look's of, is their "Master Bluing" Finish. I sent them a very beat up 1948 K-22 shown and was thinking of having it Nickel plated. They said I may like their Master Bluing finish instead. After I saw how well it looked on a couple of other guns they had done, I decided to let them apply their Master Bluing Finish and here is what it Looks like. I was at the Range a few months ago with it & laid this gun Next to a Colt Python owned by my Buddy and it exceed's the finish of his Python for Depth, Black color and shine In closing I want to get some thing's straight here with anyone looking at these job's on my revolver's, I am not related to anyone at Fords, I do not have stock in their Company, I am Not an employee of their firm, I just believe in passing the word to Guys in Need of a place that really excells ior truly Cares about their Work and Ford's sure do that in any refinishing they have done for me they have all been much more than I ever expected when they returned..Hammer It



Before









After

[Buckmaster]

Wow! Thier master blue job is quality work as well! That is one great looking revolver!

[Flame Red]

Can a semi-auto be chromed?

Yes, they can and they hold up very well. I have several that have been. Just don't expect to get your money out of the refinish. You will actually have a harder time selling it than leaving it all original.

[Rich Miranda]

Originally Posted by Flame Red

Yes, they can and they hold up very well. I have several that have been. Just don't expect to get your money out of the refinish. You will actually have a harder time selling it than leaving it all original.

Wow! I thought that it would make it a little different and therefore more desirable. But I guess not!

I still like the idea though. I'd have a gun as unique as I could dream up.

[maikell77]

Customizing rarely returns much. Case in point my 57-1. It was hard chromed (brushed), magna-ported, crown ressesed, trigger and timing job, chambers numbered, hammer and trigger chromed and engine turned, and to top it off it looked as though it had never been fired since the work. With all that work it sold for little is any more than a good condition 57-1 would in this part of the world.