What is the real stuff??

[RWG]

Anyone know what Savage put on their #4* rifles for a finish? I have read somewhere about something called "Du-lite" then others have said they were simply blued. I have a very nice '44 Longbranch which looks like blueing. Wonder if Savage followed Longbranch's method. I have a 1944 Savage (according to serial #) which is FTR (F) to 1/3 in 1952. It appears to have been Suncorited at Fazakerly so I have no clue to what was the original Savage finish. I do not intend to change the Suncorite as doing that would change the originality of the FTR it received back in 1952. Just simply want to know what Savage used for finish. Thanks for any advice!

[mack]

Du-Lite was a process that is best described as like the inside of an oven. The process was common in the Connecticut River Valley both before and after WWII. Stove manufacture was common in the region. Wasn't Johnson a stove manufacturer before building the now famous rifle. Anyway, it was fired onto the metal inside of a stove and was very durable reportedly. Kind of rough and gritty and a dull, flat grey color

No doubt you are absolutely correct not to disturb the Suncorite that came with the FTR rework. That's also the reason not to run pell-mell in restoration of any rifle, and particularly military stuff. I have two untouched CMP Service Grades that could be easily restored to their WWII configurations but never will be. They came to me that way and will remain so as long as I have them.

[RWG]

Thanks Mack. I Googled Du-Lite and they have a very informative website. Been around since 1939 so their process certainly cant be ruled out as far as what may have been used on the wartime Savage rifles. Also they have Gunsmithing equipment for applying a black phosphate coating which, from what I see is applied similar to hot blueing process with all the tanks. Appears to be a proprietary form of Parkerizing.
Most of the Enfields I have were Bubba-jobs and I made sure they were not molested metalwise before purchase. All I have needed was basic woodwork and fittings. Some of the parts were scarce and I waited for considerable time before I got the exact right item. I can say that even though my rifles are restorations they are correct as possible when taking into consideration the liberties taken by military armorers making hasty field repairs. The only "Sin" I have comitted is matching up the wood colors. In that process after ordering pieces from here and there I have amassed a file drawer full of butts and top guards which werent quite right for what I needed. That's ok, cause there's always that next Enfield just around the corner!

[George in NH]

Sir,
I have a fairly well worn Savage; the remaining finish is medium to darker green paint. The paint seems to have been baked on. Worn areas show no other finish below the green paint.
HTH.
George in NH

[John Sukey]

The green paint is a anticorrosion treatment for wet climates.