Remington 572 finish question

bullshot

I recently picked up a 1971 572 Fieldmaster and noticed that the barrel looked a little strange in spots so I scrapped a small spot with my finger nail and it flaked a bit like a thin layer of clear coat.
Did the factory clear coat the barrels or is it more likely that someone coated it with something after the fact?
I'm thinking that I may wipe the barrel down (Not the receiver of course as it's painted) with some Acetone to remove the coating if it's not factory.
Can anyone tell me anything helpful?

Grasshopper

Helpful. maybe not, but I have had several of these and not any had what you say. Yours is an early one. Also I have had many firearms, older ones that people "coated" with something like that. I took it off carefully and never had any problems.
One was a Jap Arisaka that was COMPLETELY covered in varnish. After some hours of work I had a 95% Arisaka that was nice.

bullshot

I believe that you are probably correct, the more I look at, the more I think its a very thin coat of varnish or BLO or lacquer.
I took a Q-tip and a dab of Acetone under the barrel and it came off pretty easily.
I'll strip it and then clean all the metal (non painted) parts.

Any ideas on how to get it off the painted receiver safely?

nmyers

I prefer Formby's furniture stripper for wood; it's not as volatile as acetone, & not as dangerous to use. (Still, wear gloves & eye protection.)

For the receiver, you are on your own. We have no way of knowing what type of paint was used; just start with gently solvent & a nylon scrubber, get more aggressive if that doesn't work.

Reminds of the used Corvette for sale I looked at; previous owner had repainted it with latex house paint. I walked away, fiberglass is not very forgiving. But, neither is aluminum.

Neal

bullshot

Whatever is on the rifle is not paint per se, it is sort of a Carmel color on the q-tip and not black like a paint. I think that I clean the steel parts and leave the receiver alone. This "stuff" is not thick and is barely noticeable.

bullshot

Well, I completely disassembled the rifle, cleaned all steel parts with Acetone, did a thorough cleaning of all internals and reassembled and ............ new gun. [:D]

All of whatever was on the rifle came off, turns out that stuff just kept the rifle in excellent condition.

Love a happy ending.

rmill

If your receiver is original, it is likely anodized and not painted. I have an older 572 as well, but the receiver HAS been repainted because the anodizing has faded to purple and was scratched up. Just a thought for you...