Friday, August 28, 2015
NP3Plus?
I have toyed with idea of having my Browning Hi-Power refinished in hard chrome, primarily for esthetic reasons. I admit, it makes me sound like El /presidente in a bad 1960s Mission: Impossible episode, but I like shiny handguns. Then I noticed NP3+, which Robar does. This is an electroless nickel finish with PTFE bonded into the material, making the gun self-lubricating and easy to clean. This looks good in pictures. Has anyone had it done or owned a gun with this finish? It's a bit prcey, but they do not only the exterior but also the internal parts as well. This review is very positive.
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I had a 1911 done in NP3+.
ReplyDeleteThe review of the coating I did is here: The 1911 Returns.
It was done in 2011 and the finish has held up perfectly since with about a thousand rounds or more later. It works even better than before it got the NP3+ treatment and is a lot smoother. An added bonus - it's easier to clean with that finish, most debris just wipes off.
I'd highly recommend it.
I have a question about the NP3 process and what effect it might have on the value of a vintage firearm. Normally, the values of older articles of any sort are adversely affected by doing pretty much anything (other than cleaning) that would detract from the originality.
ReplyDeleteI have a Colt 1911, manufactured in 1919 [from serial number lookup]; it's a civilian version of the standard military issue. Note it is not a 1911A1, but is the original design. It belonged to my grandfather; he acquired it in an unusual manner. He was on the Board of Directors of a small rural bank, and sometime in the 1920's one of the bank employees embezzled money (I don't know how much) and fled to Mexico. He left behind his pistol, which he couldn't take into Mexico, and my grandfather acquired it as partial payment on the monies lost.
It's been in my family ever since, though for several decades it languished in a gun cabinet at my father's, as a result of which it developed a little rust (this was in the humid South). I cleaned up the rust, but there are still tiny pock-marks on the slide. I actually had it appraised at Antiques Roadshow last year in Albuquerque. Prior to getting it appraised, I looked up selling prices of similar firearms, and decided it was likely worth about $2500. The appraiser told me he thought it was worth about $2500!
Incidentally, this firearm still shoots flawlessly, though I've never shot anything other than ball ammo, and certainly not any +P.
If I had the NP3 process conducted on this firearm, it would look a lot better, but I suspect it would likely lose value. Any thoughts?
Allan: An M1911 (not an M1911A1) is likely a valuable collector's piece, and a non-period coating is probably a mistake unless you only want it for its functionality. I would sell it to a collector, and buy a new .45.
ReplyDeleteI just had a Browning Hi Power MKII done with Mahovsky MetaLife, which is Mahovsky's hard-chrome finish.
ReplyDeleteI couldn't be happier. I paid $173 which included finish, take-down, and return shipping to me, and ended up with a fantastic piece.
If you're on the fence, Cabela's has surplus HP's on sale for $469 right now. For the cost of one of those and the hard chrome, you'd have a hardly-ever-fired, newly-finished, HP for less than $650, which is a tough deal to beat.
RyanDC: Does that include coating interior parts?
ReplyDeleteRyanDC: Yes, it does. The cost is dramatically lower, perhaps enough to get me to do that sooner. But the lubricating qualities of NP3 are seductive.
ReplyDelete