I have a Higgins Model 88 and a High Standard Sentinel that appear to have been made about the same time.
According to John Stimson, High Standard put a coating over the anodizing on the aluminum frames to keep the finish from coming off. The Model 88 appeared to have high gloss paint. Most of that high gloss is gone from my gun. The Sentinel appears to have a dull finish, but it is good.
I had a lot of powder build up on the 88 from a previous owner. I tried many products to remove it without much luck and ended up having to scrape it off.
When scraping around where the barrel protrudes through the frame I ran into weld at the top of the barrel. At first I thought it was powder build up, because the Sentinel was smooth in this area.
What I found out is that you should not use Gun Scrubber or Slip 2000 Carbon Killer on these frames. They will take the coating off the frames of these guns. I also wouldn't use these products on some of the High Standard Derringers have a similar coating.
Tom, I think the area above the barrel and top strap is actually lead instead of a weld. The lead is deposited in thin layers during firing due to the hot gases escaping from the cylinder gap. The gases contain vaporized lead and powder residue. The lead vapors solidify on the metal. The buildup of this residue can become severe enough to affect the turning of the cylinder.
ReplyDeleteWayne,
ReplyDeleteYou may be right. I'm not much of a revolver guy and had not seen that much lead build up. I thought if it were lead, it would have been softer. The bore was clean and sharp and the build up was really hard almost like weld. I'm, trying some lead remover to see if it helps.
Tom, that is the same type of fouling that we have to scrape out of a stabilizer. The lead can be pretty tenacious and can take significant effort to remove it. I once bought a gun with a removeable stabilizer that was so plugged up that there was just a hole left for the bullet to go through. I had to use a drill bit in a drill press to get enough of the fouling removed before I could finish cleaning it with a scraper. I also have a .22 revolver that had enough lead/powder fouling that cocking the hammer was difficult because the cylinder was not rotating easily due fouling. Double action firing was too difficult. I removed the cylinder and used various picks and wire brushes to clean the face of the cylinder and the frame and barrel area. After cleaning, it worked normally.
ReplyDeleteWayne, yow were right. I soaked it down with Lead-Out bore cleaner and scraped with dental picks and got most of it out. I was afraid I was going to scratch the aluminum, but it looks pretty good. I haven't checked my stabilizers. That may be my next project.
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