Excellent P7M13 with some rust (evidence locker gun)...Refinish opinions

[Greg Bell]

Hey guys

I have a P7m13 I got for a sane price a few years back because it has some surface corrosion resulting from it siting in a police evidence locker for many years. Hopefully the weird rust isn't from blood, lol. But naw, I think cops played with it for years and nobody ever oiled it. Anyway, what do y'all think I should do....


1. Try and get it reblued? This is ok but the old early 90s HKs have a lot of neat silvering around the proof marks that will be lost. I don't know anyone who can perfectly reproduce the factory look. I would do this if I could.

2. Hard Chrome. Full Hans Gruber. I had a Nickel M8 back in the 90s but I never liked that finish because it peeled a lot.

3. Some other finish? Suggestions..

4. Let it rust


Any and all suggestions welcome. However, remember that this gun is kind of weird so this isn't something I can just send to any Johnny Paintbooth gun refinisher.

[Jason M]

The new NP3 from Wright Armory. NT7.

[TGS]

Either Wright NT7 or Ionbond/Decobond DLC.

That gun is worth the cost of those finishes. I have the "old" NP3 on a revolver and it is outstanding, while my duty gun has Ionbond DLC which is also outstanding.

Congrats on the M13! That's a superb P7 variant, I only ever had a PSP.

[WobblyPossum]

I also vote NP3 or equivalent. The satin grey look would work well with a P7.

[BillSWPA]

Either Wright NT7 or Ionbond/Decobond DLC.

That gun is worth the cost of those finishes. I have the "old" NP3 on a revolver and it is outstanding, while my duty gun has Ionbond DLC which is also outstanding.

Congrats on the M13! That's a superb P7 variant, I only ever had a PSP.

I will add my vote to the above.

[JSGlock34]

Hard chrome.

https://www.imfdb.org/images/c/cd/DH-P7M13-1.jpg

[Clusterfrack]

Nitride?

[farscott]

If it is just surface corrosion and there is no pitting, a coating like IonBond/DLC or NT7 would be suitable. Hard chrome would be suitable, but the number of applicators keeps shrinking. Chris Peters has passed, and he was the only hard chrome applicator i would trust with a P7. If the rust has resulted in pitting, those finishes can be used, but the pits need to be removed.

Since the P7 series run very warm due to the gas-delayed blowback and any lube around the gas piston gets turned into carbon deposits, I would opt for NT7. I had a pair of NP3-coated P7M8s that I carried in the middle and late 1990s and the finish made cleaning a snap.

[CSW]

Hey guys

I have a P7m13 I got for a sane price a few years back because it has some surface corrosion resulting from it siting in a police evidence locker for many years. Hopefully the weird rust isn't from blood, lol. But naw, I think cops played with it for years and nobody ever oiled it. Anyway, what do y'all think I should do....


1. Try and get it reblued? This is ok but the old early 90s HKs have a lot of neat silvering around the proof marks that will be lost. I don't know anyone who can perfectly reproduce the factory look. I would do this if I could.

2. Hard Chrome. Full Hans Gruber. I had a Nickel M8 back in the 90s but I never liked that finish because it peeled a lot.

3. Some other finish? Suggestions..

4. Let it rust




Any and all suggestions welcome. However, remember that this gun is kind of weird so this isn't something I can just send to any Johnny Paintbooth gun refinisher.



Definitely hard chrome.

[GJM]

Robar put NP3 on my wife's P7M8. Came out great.

108319

[GJM]

Something to be mindful of, is the disassembly and reassembly process. Robar was very familiar with the P7 and knew how to get it apart and back together correctly. I would want to make sure whoever I used was not going to screw that up.

[GJM]

I have a factory nickel P7M8 too. While having collector value, it doesn't seem any more useful than one with NP3. The Robar P7 lives in a nice neighborhood.

108323

[rd62]

I can't believe we are on page two of this thread without a pic of the P7 in question.

I mean throw me a bone already!

[Joe in PNG]

I'd go NP3.

[Greg Bell]

108372
Although the finish is bad, anyone who knows P7s can see from the grip cocker and other areas that the gun was pretty much new before it got taken into evidence. The guy I got it from said it was a doctor who got into some trouble way back in the late 90s.

I like the idea of the improved NP3 but I want to make sure these folks know how to work on P7s before I ship it off.

[UpDok]

I voted to let it rust but I really meant to was to recommend you carefully wipe your P7 down with an oily cloth and let the HK character of the original HK finish shine thru. Few things in this world are more beautiful or sought after than a worn "plum" finish on an older HK.

Just get yourself a nice high quality leather holster befitting the quality of that fine pistol and carry it proudly. It is one of the finest pistols ever made. :cool:

[fpnunes]

I know you are going to think I'm nuts, Greg. If it were mine I would send it to James Williamson and let him go through it with a deep clean and an oil soak only. The rough finish wouldn't bother me and adds character to the story. Kudos on the find.

[Gadfly]

Lightly rubbing some 0000 steel wool and oil may get a lot of that rust off without damaging the original finish.

I doubt you will ever get the look of the original HK finish from a re blue. But if the steel wool did not work, Robar would be the way I would go.

[tango-papa]

Big 45 Frontier Metal Cleaner and oil for initial scrub.

Bronze wool pad and/or a bronze brush and oil for detail work.

Use plenty of oil.

https://www.big45metalcleaner.com/