12-14-2003, 05:38 PM
In my experience fire bluing and forge bluing is dull and not shiny at all even when coated in oil. The reason a gun is shiny when it is blued is it has been machine polished to a mirror finish before it is blued.<br>
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I remember reading somewhere that Apicus said in his cookery book<br>
Clean your pots the same way solders clean their armour with powdered chalk.<br>
<br>
Powdered chalk is what most metal polishes have in them today so it might ( note the word might ) have been possible to clean the armour to something approaching mirror finish. They certainly could polish their mirrors to mirror finish. Maybe only brass/bronze could be polished this way.<br>
<br>
The Re-Enactor group The Ermine Street Guard (ESG) armour is not mirror finish except for one person who tells me that it is easier to keep it clean if it is well polished.<br>
<br>
AlusCladiusMaximus <p></p><i></i>
<br>
I remember reading somewhere that Apicus said in his cookery book<br>
Clean your pots the same way solders clean their armour with powdered chalk.<br>
<br>
Powdered chalk is what most metal polishes have in them today so it might ( note the word might ) have been possible to clean the armour to something approaching mirror finish. They certainly could polish their mirrors to mirror finish. Maybe only brass/bronze could be polished this way.<br>
<br>
The Re-Enactor group The Ermine Street Guard (ESG) armour is not mirror finish except for one person who tells me that it is easier to keep it clean if it is well polished.<br>
<br>
AlusCladiusMaximus <p></p><i></i>
Bernard Jacobs
Any opinion stated is genally not the opinion of My group or Centurian
Any opinion stated is genally not the opinion of My group or Centurian