Gorgeous work. Although I personally despise the blackened checkering (I strongly prefer to be able to see the grain of the wood through the checkering pattern), I've never seen anything that wasn't absolutely beautiful come out of Doug's shop.
Too bad the tv producers ignored the full color case hardening process. Just a small mention. Doug Turnbull and company are recognized as the best. Too bad I'm in Canada.
The color case process is a VERY closely guarded secret process at Turnbull. While I too was disappointed, I wasn't surprised that they didn't show any of it.
The process is centuries old. You pack the part in an airtight container with charcoal, heat it until it would oxidize if it could, quench. Any number of gunsmiths and hobbyists can do it. There's nothing "Secret" about it. It's possible they use a proprietary carbon mixture for their colors (Charcoal and bone are the standard), but that wouldn't show on TV. It's not shown here because they only had 10 minutes and there isn't much to see in the process.
Just because you live in Canada, doesn't mean you can't get one of his rifles. I looked into it a few years back, and found some importers who would get them into the country for you. Don't quote me on it, but I think Prophet River Firearms in western Canada was one of the importers. Do a Google search and you'll find lots of importers who can take care of you.
@@ronalddavis No, they do not. They use the colored case hardening process, with bone and wood charcoal. They can, if a customer requests, do a cyanide case coloring, which lasts just as long, but is NOT case hardened. They can also so traditional carbonia bluing as well. Their basement restoration price for a rifle STARTS at $3,500.00, and goes up from there. Turnbull does museum grade work, and they do it accurate to the period. There is a reason why museums and major collections seek out Doug and his company for their expertise.
I once owned a Turnbull-restored Marlon 1893 and an RF Sedgely built 1903 Springfield sporter. They were absolutely gorgeous. I bought them at a gun show at a really good price. The seller had gotten them from the window of one of Turnbull's customers. Fortunately or unfortunately both eventually were sold for WAY more than I had paid. Lol, of course I should have kept them. They were absolutely gorgeous.
How much practise is needed by new guys before they feel comfortable tackling their first engraving on a client's rifle? Great work. My preference is case hardening and rust blueing - simple but elegant and timeless...
Firearms with fancy engraving and gold inlay work usually wind up in a display case or safe. I'd rather have the understated but well done finish and take the firearm out in the field with me.
If I ever become rich I vow to buy two of each of my favorite guns. One that is for display/posterity and the other for the family to enjoy and shoot, engravings and all.
I have been a customer of Turnbulls for over 20 years...they are the BEST in the business!! BAR NONE!! yes it does cost quite a bit to restore these guns, but I appreciate all the hand work it takes to accomplish the task, they don't just lock it in a CNC machine and push a button, it takes many many hours of painstaking hand work to get your old gun looking like it did when it left the factory 120 years ago...I shoot my guns, and there is no greater pleasure than to drop a deer at 100 yards with a 120 year old Marlin with a vintage tang sight!! Ricky B
Ok that's amazing. I've drooled over the options on y'all's website for years and just now seeing this I truly understand where the money goes. Now it seems like a bargain!
It's a bit of a trick.. you use a template to lay out the outline and cut the first lines. Once you have done this, a double cutter is used that sits in the original groove and cuts another one parallel to it and at a set distance. You then cut the next line using the last one as a guide. Not saying it is easy to do, but it's not really free hand..
I would restore every Winchester I have if I had the money. Why would I let my rifle rust away or keep the old cracked stock because its original? That's dumb. Restore it and enjoy it the way you would if you were back in the 19th century and make the rifle or old colt new again. That's how I think.
James Ross It really depends on how far gone the gun is. If it has gone so far it's lost most of it's value. Why not restore it. But to redo a gun because it has some wear. Makes no sense to me.
If the average shooter could afford it, it would not be special. Hell, people 500 years ago people would marvel at the guns you can buy at walmart today. scarcity (in terms of people being able to purchase one) is a major part of the appeal. Back in the day you had to be rich to own a small color tv with no remote, but now 99% of people on welfare have a 50" high definition tv with all the bells and wistles and nobody bats an eye.
They do custom pistols for about twice the factory cost. Well within the budget of anyone who wants one. If you mean the entirely custom and gold inlaid is expensive, yes. But they also do much simpler work.
It usually doesn't. The hardening process shown on the rifle's receiver is what is known as bone & charcoal color case hardening. That particular heat treating process is done by packing the parts in a steel box full of a fine wood & bone charcoal, heating it up to around 1,500°, keeping it there for awhile and then quenching it in water. It imparts both carbon and hardness to the outer surface of the steel, and, as a side benefit, it also creates the beautiful colors that the process is known for. On the rest of the rifle, the blued parts, the finish has nothing at all to do with hardening the steel. All it does is make it pretty and help protect against rust. Most of the 'color casing' that you see on modern firearms, the lower cost models anyway ('lower cost' being very relative), is actually a chemical treatment done to the surface specifically to produce the colors and has nothing at all to do with hardening, which is why it's called color casing rather than color case hardening. On the older guns -- like those being restored by Turnbull -- as well as on much more expensive guns it's usually true color case hardening which is not only more beautiful than chemical color casing but is more durable as well. Doug Turnbull does the best bone & charcoal color case hardening on Earth! He has spent years developing custom recipes to perfectly match the original finishes of the late 19th century, and he uses different recipes for different brands of firearms. Colt's didn't use the same recipe as Winchester or Marlin or Remington, and neither does he.
It was originally done to supplement the lack of era-timeframe higher quality steel. It was a process necessary to strengthen the metals of the day. Today it's entirely unnecessary for strength but it has remained for its beautiful appearance.
Its interesting how many guys are obsessed with the "colored case hardening" given that process was one of the first "traditional" practices replaced and greatly improved on when mass production and modern techniques were developed.
not the best company to work with. Had a turnbull 1886 on order, they attempted to call me whule i was on vacation for payment, when i returned 2 weeks later and called them back and explained i was out of the country they said i missed my chance. assholes.
I have a Turnbull 45 Colt SA revolver made by USFA and given the Turnbull engraving and color case process. Its a real joy.
Gorgeous work. Although I personally despise the blackened checkering (I strongly prefer to be able to see the grain of the wood through the checkering pattern), I've never seen anything that wasn't absolutely beautiful come out of Doug's shop.
Too bad the tv producers ignored the full color case hardening process. Just a small mention. Doug Turnbull and company are recognized as the best. Too bad I'm in Canada.
The color case process is a VERY closely guarded secret process at Turnbull. While I too was disappointed, I wasn't surprised that they didn't show any of it.
The process is centuries old. You pack the part in an airtight container with charcoal, heat it until it would oxidize if it could, quench. Any number of gunsmiths and hobbyists can do it. There's nothing "Secret" about it. It's possible they use a proprietary carbon mixture for their colors (Charcoal and bone are the standard), but that wouldn't show on TV.
It's not shown here because they only had 10 minutes and there isn't much to see in the process.
they use potassium cyanide in their process is why
Just because you live in Canada, doesn't mean you can't get one of his rifles. I looked into it a few years back, and found some importers who would get them into the country for you. Don't quote me on it, but I think Prophet River Firearms in western Canada was one of the importers. Do a Google search and you'll find lots of importers who can take care of you.
@@ronalddavis No, they do not. They use the colored case hardening process, with bone and wood charcoal. They can, if a customer requests, do a cyanide case coloring, which lasts just as long, but is NOT case hardened. They can also so traditional carbonia bluing as well. Their basement restoration price for a rifle STARTS at $3,500.00, and goes up from there. Turnbull does museum grade work, and they do it accurate to the period. There is a reason why museums and major collections seek out Doug and his company for their expertise.
I once owned a Turnbull-restored Marlon 1893 and an RF Sedgely built 1903 Springfield sporter. They were absolutely gorgeous. I bought them at a gun show at a really good price. The seller had gotten them from the window of one of Turnbull's customers. Fortunately or unfortunately both eventually were sold for WAY more than I had paid. Lol, of course I should have kept them. They were absolutely gorgeous.
How much practise is needed by new guys before they feel comfortable tackling their first engraving on a client's rifle? Great work. My preference is case hardening and rust blueing - simple but elegant and timeless...
Firearms with fancy engraving and gold inlay work usually wind up in a display case or safe. I'd rather have the understated but well done finish and take the firearm out in the field with me.
Darth Belal I agree with you
If I ever become rich I vow to buy two of each of my favorite guns. One that is for display/posterity and the other for the family to enjoy and shoot, engravings and all.
I have three like that, dating back up to 200 years. I shoot them. Then I clean them very carefully.
What kind of varnish do they use for the color case hardening ?
I have been a customer of Turnbulls for over 20 years...they are the BEST in the business!! BAR NONE!! yes it does cost quite a bit to restore these guns, but I appreciate all the hand work it takes to accomplish the task, they don't just lock it in a CNC machine and push a button, it takes many many hours of painstaking hand work to get your old gun looking like it did when it left the factory 120 years ago...I shoot my guns, and there is no greater pleasure than to drop a deer at 100 yards with a 120 year old Marlin with a vintage tang sight!! Ricky B
I have a Turnbull rifle and have to say it is a pure joy both to look at and to take out in the field.
Such beautiful artwork.
Beautiful craftsmanship. Well known in color case hardening used in gun receivers. Well Done 👍
These guys are artists!
Ok that's amazing. I've drooled over the options on y'all's website for years and just now seeing this I truly understand where the money goes. Now it seems like a bargain!
Does Turnbull clearly mark their work so collectors can identify refinished firearms from originals?
Will Mathieson they document the model and serial number and you can always reference a restoration back to them.
Yes.
how do they free hand those checkering and make the lines so perfect?! blows me away!!
It's a bit of a trick.. you use a template to lay out the outline and cut the first lines. Once you have done this, a double cutter is used that sits in the original groove and cuts another one parallel to it and at a set distance. You then cut the next line using the last one as a guide. Not saying it is easy to do, but it's not really free hand..
I would restore every Winchester I have if I had the money. Why would I let my rifle rust away or keep the old cracked stock because its original? That's dumb. Restore it and enjoy it the way you would if you were back in the 19th century and make the rifle or old colt new again. That's how I think.
James Ross It really depends on how far gone the gun is. If it has gone so far it's lost most of it's value. Why not restore it. But to redo a gun because it has some wear. Makes no sense to me.
I clean them when they get dirty, steam, sand and seal when they get dings. Cement and clamp when they get cracked. It's called "maintenance."
It depends on the condition. Sometimes restoring a firearm will seriously damage the value. Other times it will greatly enhance the value.
Man.. I'd love to have a stock straight off of the router.. leave it rough, that looks awesome
They do such good work. It's ashamed the average shooter can't afford his creations.
If the average shooter could afford it, it would not be special. Hell, people 500 years ago people would marvel at the guns you can buy at walmart today. scarcity (in terms of people being able to purchase one) is a major part of the appeal. Back in the day you had to be rich to own a small color tv with no remote, but now 99% of people on welfare have a 50" high definition tv with all the bells and wistles and nobody bats an eye.
They do custom pistols for about twice the factory cost. Well within the budget of anyone who wants one. If you mean the entirely custom and gold inlaid is expensive, yes. But they also do much simpler work.
Wow never knew that the finnish on the rifle is what made it hard...amazing.
It usually doesn't. The hardening process shown on the rifle's receiver is what is known as bone & charcoal color case hardening. That particular heat treating process is done by packing the parts in a steel box full of a fine wood & bone charcoal, heating it up to around 1,500°, keeping it there for awhile and then quenching it in water. It imparts both carbon and hardness to the outer surface of the steel, and, as a side benefit, it also creates the beautiful colors that the process is known for. On the rest of the rifle, the blued parts, the finish has nothing at all to do with hardening the steel. All it does is make it pretty and help protect against rust.
Most of the 'color casing' that you see on modern firearms, the lower cost models anyway ('lower cost' being very relative), is actually a chemical treatment done to the surface specifically to produce the colors and has nothing at all to do with hardening, which is why it's called color casing rather than color case hardening. On the older guns -- like those being restored by Turnbull -- as well as on much more expensive guns it's usually true color case hardening which is not only more beautiful than chemical color casing but is more durable as well. Doug Turnbull does the best bone & charcoal color case hardening on Earth! He has spent years developing custom recipes to perfectly match the original finishes of the late 19th century, and he uses different recipes for different brands of firearms. Colt's didn't use the same recipe as Winchester or Marlin or Remington, and neither does he.
It was originally done to supplement the lack of era-timeframe higher quality steel. It was a process necessary to strengthen the metals of the day. Today it's entirely unnecessary for strength but it has remained for its beautiful appearance.
Awesome
Its interesting how many guys are obsessed with the "colored case hardening" given that process was one of the first "traditional" practices replaced and greatly improved on when mass production and modern techniques were developed.
Pretty coloring, much like Damascus steel knife blades.
I'm thinking about sending my classic 1895 for a make over....
Would be worth every penny
Last time I checked a couple years ago, there was about a two year waiting list to get a 1911 restored.
Give me a restoration by vulcan anyday
I'd take the original they started with over the restored gun in a heartbeat.
That depends on what history the original has. Would you take a rusted, primered, dented 64 Mustang running on 6 cylinders over one that was restored?
DEEREMEYER1 that's cause your an idiot, or don't have the monies for such services..
I'm a Turnbull
not the best company to work with. Had a turnbull 1886 on order, they attempted to call me whule i was on vacation for payment, when i returned 2 weeks later and called them back and explained i was out of the country they said i missed my chance. assholes.
6:49 hot salty water?
Thanks for correcting that!
You didn't show us how to turnbull what the f***