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M40 needed a Greenie

TGH89

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Minuteman
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Apr 4, 2022
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Indianapolis
So I picked this rifle up a couple months back from a fellow hide member. I followed the build thread on here and had to have it once it was posted. So I grabbed it, took a week or so to get it, threw it in the safe next to the other members of my M40 family. All was right in the world..........................................so i thought. My anxiety wouldn't let me forget it would look much better with a Redfield Greenie on top. So after searching to the end of the internet for a source on a greenie I was empty handed. This is where it escalated quickly. I started researching anodizing, it didn't look too hard. I had to figure out how to get a priceless accurange Redfield apart. After tearing down a couple cheap ones from eBay I was ready to give it a shot...............................................Below is the result of an insane amount of research, destroying a couple scopes, fabricating some tools, mixing chemicals in my garage, 5 gallons of sulfuric acid (I have to be some kind of watchlist now from buying all these chemical), possibly some tears, lots of Bourbon, and somewhere around 100 gallons of distilled water............................oh and many weird looks from the wife when she saw me looking like Walter White cookin shit up in the garage. I finally got a decent greenie for the M40. I still think this is too bright green, may try adding some black to the dye and doing another one. Let me know ya'lls thoughts. pretty pumped that it turned out green at this point.
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Have you tried fading the finish with artificial uv light? Sorta how some older leupolds turn plum.

Not sure how not eye safe you’d need to see a quick result.
 


Good attempt!

Wouldn’t change a thing on that… time to build a cool green rifle around it! Dare to be different!!

Sirhr

PS: love the ‘73 in the background!!!

LOL, my dads old schoolness rubbing off on me. That 73 was literally a bag parts when I got it. It shoots now but the chambers shot out of it.
 
Love what you're doing here. I have some spare scope parts if you want to practice on a couple. I can remember when Toki was doing these and I'm pretty sure that he did several batches before getting the desired color. Also the different parts of the scope take the anodizing differently, so you may need a different formula for the different sections of the scope. Please keep us posted.
 
I bought one of these from eBay to try to get a paint color to rattle can my scope. I’ve done a bunch of practice with layers and diluted brush over washes. Not there yet, but I’m getting closer. Right now I just don’t have the patience or workspace to attempt anodizing. Maybe after retirement.

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If you have one handy, enlist the help of a woman. Or borrow one 😂. They are generally better with color tone and variation. My daughter can describe things, that I don’t notice. More blue, wrong green, less yellow, etc. It goes back to their primitive instinct to choose the right berries and flowers for the tribe.

I sent you a PM. Reply with an address and I’ll donate a correct vintage 3-9 1” Redfield for the sake of science. Toki mentioned that along with dye color, timing in the baths also came into play. Keep it up, you’ll figure it out.

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Greg
 
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Finally got around to getting another one anodized. Im digging the darker green of Caswell OD. I did purge this one best I could with Argon. Put it in the freezer then took it out into 90 degree heat, the vice versa, no moisture on the inside. getting the glass spotless enough for me has been a challenge but i think i found a solution. Been a fun project so far, wish I had more time for this stuff. 3 toddlers really require a lot of time and attention. LOL. Let me know your thoughts on the coloring.
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GREAT RESULTS!!

The color variation of the objective looks like the photos of actual Greenies. Did you do that by design or is it a result of some difference in the materials?

Let me be the first to ask, “Are you taking on outside work, yet?

RIGREG
 
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GREAT RESULTS!!

The color variation of the objective looks like the photos of actual Greenies. Did you do that by design or is it a result of some difference in the materials?

Let me be the first to ask, “Are you taking on outside work, yet?

RIGREG
Id like to say i did that by design, Pretty sure that is a difference in materials. Everyone i've done that objective end piece wont take the dye as well as the other pieces. I was going to get a meter to read the thickness of the anodize layer to confirm this, however I think the color difference make it look more authentic.

I have not decided on outside work yet. I am considering it though.
 
Were the originals bi/tri tone, or is that a bi-product of age?
Most probably aging, or more accurately, sun and UV light wear on the anodized finish.

Edited to add info from a lot more reliable source of knowledge than my own brain cranium:

“New old stock unused greenie scopes have different shades of green for different parts. It's only partially caused to aging or UV light, but it's mainly caused by slightly different alloys of aluminum used in each of the parts (pretty much just different batches of aluminum being produced and each batch has slightly different impurities), and having those parts anodized in different batches (the percentage of green dye in the bath is very difficult to keep even, the time the parts are submerged can be slightly different, etc.). Those are the two main causes of the various shades of green on individual scopes. Age and UV light will have an effect on all these parts, but they need to start out slightly differently for the age/UV light to have this type of effect.”
 
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Most probably aging, or more accurately, sun and UV light wear on the anodized finish.

Edited to add info from a lot more reliable source of knowledge than my own brain cranium:

“New old stock unused greenie scopes have different shades of green for different parts. It's only partially caused to aging or UV light, but it's mainly caused by slightly different alloys of aluminum used in each of the parts (pretty much just different batches of aluminum being produced and each batch has slightly different impurities), and having those parts anodized in different batches (the percentage of green dye in the bath is very difficult to keep even, the time the parts are submerged can be slightly different, etc.). Those are the two main causes of the various shades of green on individual scopes. Age and UV light will have an effect on all these parts, but they need to start out slightly differently for the age/UV light to have this type of effect.”
What he said………..it’s def different batches of metal. I keep playing with anodizing and dying times for the different parts. I’m getting closer on each one keeping it a more uniform color………….i personally like the color variations makes it feel more authentic. I will most likely start this up a side gig here at some point. I’ve got a couple I’m going to post up for grabs here soon as well.

Can anyone tell me the proper way to post this as an offered service? Guessing I need to do it in the vendor threads?
 
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I sent one to Toki to get done but I never got it back and he stopped answering my emails about getting it back. So there is definitely a need for someone to do this service for people.

Your scope looks great. You should really consider doing a side gig. :)
Seriously he still has your scope? He should at least send it back if he doesn’t want to finish it.
 
Can anyone tell me what Toki was charging for this? It takes me about 6 hours per scope to disassemble, clean, prep, anodize, reassemble, and purge. It’s quite the process, but I’ve got nailed down now. I’ve got some travel for work the next couple weeks so I may be slow to respond but if your interested in getting a scope done please message me.

The last one I completed is for sale as well. If you’re interested send me a message.
 
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