Black Phospate at Home

[doubleyellow]

Anyone find a home black phosphate kit that does a decent job?

Want to do a bunch of my car fasteners but read many mixed reviews on the DIY kits. Many say the color comes out brown or grey and not black.

Thanks

 

[Challenger RTA]

Caswell Inc I used it and it works ok. the longer it in the darker it gets. Then wd 40. But on the other hand if it's going to be painted it makes no sense. It has to be scuffed or it won't stick. So may be do a little for some protection. Just my 2¢.

 

[floyd]

I’ve had good luck with Caswell (black oxide I believe). I use boshield oil to coat afterwards and heat it up a bit after applying. When the Caswell solution gets old and tired it takes longer to get a deep black and it can end up with a brownish tint. I actually got a decent brown out of some old stuff that was a pretty close match to the hood latch color.

 

[doubleyellow]

Thanks guys, I was looking at the Caswell system so I’ll give it a try.

 

[Challenger RTA]

As the others said about browning. I think it is because it becomes diluted. I don't know.

 

[doubleyellow]

Well now I have another question. According to the Mopar Restoration guide, many of the bolts/fasteners with a black finish were “Phosphate”.

What I read comparing Black Phosphate to Black Oxide is that Phosphate is more of a matte finish (which would look more factory correct), and is very porous primarily to hold oil while the bolts were in storage. Says Phosphated fasteners will rust pretty quickly (as we all know from our Mopars).

Says Black Oxide is more glossy finish, but much more effective at preventing corrosion.

Guess if going for Gold certification you would do the Phospate.

Any feedback on the comparison between black phosphate and black oxide from experience ? Caswell is oxide. Haven’t searched for a black phosphate DIY kit yet.

Thanks

 

[dadeo1852]

I've done all mine with Caswell - worked great. If you just black oxide them they have a sheen like the pic of the '38' bolt but if you put them in the oven they turn to a matte finish like shown. The longer in the oven the flatter the finish.
Andy

 

[Adam]

Manganese Phosphate Parkerizing Solution

duracoatfirearmfinishes.com

I used to re-parkerize gun parts magazines, etc. using this stuff, very tough, durable, and looks right (black, not brown). It’s expensive, but it can be reused many times over. With one gallon I refinished 13 complete M1 Garand rifles & other stuff, and the solution is still good.

Metal parts, ideally, need to be sandblasted to bare steel & completely oil free.
The parts and solution need to be in a stainless steel container, an old stainless kitchen pot would be great for small parts. I use a steam table pan for larger parts.

The solution only needs to be heated to 180 degrees (easy on the stove top) and then the cleaned parts get added. The parts will begin to bubble/fizz; when the bubbles/fizz stops the parts are done (5-10 minutes). The parts need to be rinsed, dried, and then sprayed with WD40.

 

[1973]

I used the Caswell kit, but i didn't have the good results like pictured above, between the bolt and washer it turned a rusty color, i thought i had followed the directions, for the price of the kit i found it didn't do very many bolts before it wore out (maybe 20) i went back to just thinning down some epoxy primer, and painting the heads