black oxide carriage bolts with smooth head?

[whammoed]

Anyone have a source for #10 1/2" black oxide carriage bolts with smooth heads?

I believe I've found a source for #10 1-1/2" and will post back when I confirm.

I can confirm the #8 bolts at quarterarcade are smooth.
http://www.quarterarcade.com/Browse.aspx?c=All.Parts.Hardware

Please post any sources for other sizes as well.

[RayB]

Bob Roberts I think

[whammoed]

Bob Roberts I think

He doesn't have #10 1/2" listed, but some of his other bolts may be smooth?  Haven't ordered any bolts from him.

[DeLuSioNal29]

Try Tornado Terry's.  I recall getting black bolts from him, I just can't recall what size.

EDIT:  Found them:  http://cgi.ebay.com/BLACK-JOYSTICK-BOLTS-ARCADE-JAMMA-WKS-W-MAME-tm-PANEL_W0QQitemZ380083054408QQcmdZViewItemQQptZVideo_Games_Games?hash=item587eb72748&_trksid=p4634.c0.m14.l1262

D

[BamBam]

Thanks for the link.
Just ordered 4 sets for my CP 

[jasonbar]

Keep in mind that some black oxide bolts end up rusting & looking terrible--I'm not sure what the factors are: humidity, abrasion, quality of coating...?

Just something to keep in mind.

-Jason

[MaximRecoil]

If you can't find them, you can always make them yourself. Raised text or markings on the heads can be removed by putting the bolt in a drill like you would a drill bit, and spin the head against sandpaper. Start with course sandpaper and then go finer until you get the smoothness you want.

Black oxide is also known as "bluing" (mainly in the gun industry), and there are a couple of ways of accomplishing that. The easiest way to do it yourself is to get some "cold blue" like is used for touching up the blued finish on a gun. The best cold blue solution is Oxpho-Blue from Brownell's - link.

Hot salt blue is more durable and is the way it is done professionally. This isn't very practical to set up at home, but a local gunsmith may be willing to drop some bolts in the tank for you while bluing a gun or something.

Bluing/black oxide takes on the smoothness of the metal it is applied too, so you can control what it will look like by prepping the metal. You can get anything from a deep polished shine to a course matte black finish. For bolts, I think somewhere in between looks right, i.e., a satin black finish. Satin black is how most factory black oxide bolts that came on arcade machines were.

[whammoed]

Black oxide is also known as "bluing" (mainly in the gun industry), and there are a couple of ways of accomplishing that. The easiest way to do it yourself is to get some "cold blue" like is used for touching up the blued finish on a gun. The best cold blue solution is Oxpho-Blue from Brownell's - link.

I've done this and was unhappy with it.  It is definitely inferior to a true black oxide plating.  If it comes down to it I will have some done professionally, or source the bolts and offer them for sale on my website.

[whammoed]

Keep in mind that some black oxide bolts end up rusting & looking terrible--I'm not sure what the factors are: humidity, abrasion, quality of coating...?

Just something to keep in mind.

-Jason

True under the right conditions it will rust, but I have had machines where everything has rusted: painted, powder coated, zinc plated, etc.  When it comes to bolt heads I prefer black oxide.

[MaximRecoil]

I've done this and was unhappy with it.  It is definitely inferior to a true black oxide plating.  If it comes down to it I will have some done professionally, or source the bolts and offer them for sale on my website.

You used "cold blue"? If so, what brand did you use? When I say that Oxpho-Blue is the best, I mean that it is the best by a significant margin. However, hot salt bluing is superior to even the best cold blue of course, and that is a true black oxide finish; it is the way manufacturers and gunsmiths do it (cold blue is a true black oxide finish too, it is just not the best application method).

Is there a gunsmith in your area? If you want to sell them, I would imagine you could get a bunch of them blued for not all that much money. A typical handgun is about 3 pounds and isn't terribly expensive for a basic blue job; 3 pounds worth of carriage bolts is a lot.

[whammoed]

I've done this and was unhappy with it.  It is definitely inferior to a true black oxide plating.  If it comes down to it I will have some done professionally, or source the bolts and offer them for sale on my website.

You used "cold blue"? If so, what brand did you use? When I say that Oxpho-Blue is the best, I mean that it is the best by a significant margin. However, hot salt bluing is superior to even the best cold blue of course, and that is a true black oxide finish; it is the way manufacturers and gunsmiths do it (cold blue is a true black oxide finish too, it is just not the best application method).

Is there a gunsmith in your area? If you want to sell them, I would imagine you could get a bunch of them blued for not all that much money. A typical handgun is about 3 pounds and isn't terribly expensive for a basic blue job; 3 pounds worth of carriage bolts is a lot.

I used Van's instant gun blue.
According to the OXPHO-BLUE website :Phosphate-like surface forms under the blue.  No cold process is a true black oxide finish.  In other words it is not a magnetite finish.
 
There is a low temp black oxide process called trutemp.

That's not saying the OXPHO-BLUE isn't better than van's.  I have no idea, but it won't be a magnetite coating.

If I do source them I will just specify the finish to be black oxide.  I may try to source all the common sizes so there is one place to get what you need.  We'll see.  If that doesn't pan out I'll just grind down some of the ones I already have and take them to a local plater.  Anytime I have to do extra work for one of my projects I like to ponder the possiblitly of doing things in mass and offering them up for everyone else.  Doesn't always pan out unfortunately.

Thanks for the tip on the gunsmith.  That could be an option.

[MaximRecoil]

I used Van's instant gun blue.

Van's has a good reputation as well.

According to the OXPHO-BLUE website :Phosphate-like surface forms under the blue.  No cold process is a true black oxide finish.  In other words it is not a magnetite finish.
 
There is a low temp black oxide process called trutemp.

There seems to be a lot of general confusion on the cold blue/cold black oxide process. For example, I found this claim about the product you tried:

"Supposedly the Van's actually creates a real (but thin) coat of black iron oxide, akin to hot-bluing"

And then I found this:

"VANS-BLUE Van's Instant Gun Blue, 4 ounce bottle . . . $6.95
     
[...] Blue and Rust Remover won't touch this finish, since it is not an iron oxide."

I think the following is correct though:

"Cold black oxide process
Cold black oxide is a process of non-conversion black finish coating deposited from phosphoric acid solutions containing selenium and copper compounds.

Cold black oxide coating is not really oxide. It is softer than conventional black oxide coating. The color of cold black oxide coating is not consistent and may be rubbed off from the surface. Cold black oxide coating is used as a simpler and less hazardous substitute of hot black oxide process."

I did find a product called "Cold-Ox" though, that specifically claims:

"Safely produces a firmly adherent black oxide coating on steel surfaces as an alternative to the hot caustic processes."

I don't know if their claim is true or not.

[whammoed]

I have a confirmed source for #10-24 x 1-1/2"
010CB150BO here:
http://www.blacksmithbolt.com/gpage10.html

***Make sure you request smooth heads though.  He also has some stock with slight markings on them.