Model of 1921 Restoration--Lots of pics

Hi Guys,

I recently purchased a 1921 Thompson with a 20 round stick. Unfortunately, the bolt is cut and there is no firing pin. However, I was able to drill the screw and remove the plug, without hurting the upper receiver. The upper receiver was without a black finish, and was instead gold. The lower receiver was in good shape, and black. I decided to restore this finish down to bare Zamak. After two days of scrubbing with Brasso, and sanding, and abrasive polishing with a Dremel, I got the gun down to raw Zinc. I also worked out all the nasty texture from the factory and all the flashing and seams. Since I knew I could never match the finish on the lower receiver, I decided to strip everything! The magazine is untouched, though it has surface rust and will soon be polished.

Once finished, I oxidized the zinc with Cupric Sulfate, which will turn Zinc anywhere from gray to black. This way, the actual gun is blackened--there is no paint here. What you see is an actual chemical reaction!

I forgot to take a picture of this step, but I'll explain. The Cupric Sulfate is mixed with distilled water. The more water, the weaker the solution. You can simply brush the solution onto the Zinc with a foam brush, for even strokes, and let stand for up to 24 hrs, wrapped in plastic wrap to act as a barrier from air. The longer it sits, the blacker it will (allegedly) become--this is all predicated on the alloy make-up of the metal. You can also heat the metal with a propane torch when applying, this will expedite the blackening to a matter of minutes, and no plastic wrap is needed. I did some heating, and some room temperature applying, though I only let it sit on the metal for about 5 minutes for both methods. I did a few coats, rinsing with fresh water, and drying with paper towels in between.

I'm hesitant about an overnight application as I'm not sure if the CS will pit the metal after an extended period of time. My gun did not suffer ANY surface damage. It's as smooth as silk. I work with chemistry and patina, so I'm comfortable with the torch method. If you are not, use caution and practice on scrap Zinc. The bodies of these models are thick, and can take a flame, but use common sense.

Unfortunately, the Zamak composition is a mystery, and I could only achieve a charcoal gray, and after a while, a hint of copper surfaced in areas. However, I don't mind much at all as what the Cupric Sulfate did do was give the model a perfect raw steel finish. It actually looks like steel. I'll use this as a base, and apply Birchwood Aluminum Black next week. My model is intended to look well-worn and used with exposed, bright edges, as if it saw many battles on the streets of Chicago. After applying the Birchwood, I will polish with a soft Dremel bit expose the zinc on the edges of the detailing.

Next on the list is to strip the cheap stain off the furniture, then apply varying coats of pecan and mahogany so the furniture look worn, faded and darkened in spots.

I also purchased a mint condition 39 round drum, recently from a member of the forum. It also has the internals. I won't be touching the stock finish.

I can't wait to apply the finishing touches! I hope you all enjoy my project.

Cheers,
John


From the auction site I bought it from:



My first hurdle:


Out!


The gold is sexy, however:


The heat-sync took 2 hous:


Done!


That's more like it:


Actual surface finish:




A bit of the copper, though it gives it character:


Looked through many times:

Very nice job!
I had always wondered why mine had a gold colour to it, but not as bright as yours. Mine is sort of like a faded gold.
Looks way better in black.

Thumbs up on the resto progress!

Two more things:

Firstly, I found that the longer the second or third coats sat on the Zinc, the more it brought out the copper tone. If you can do one coat for an extended period of time, it might stay gray throughout.

Secondly, I might substitute the Birchwood Casey, which I've read might wear off quickly, for a mixture of black and gray oil-based gel stain, which works on metal. If you 'dry-brush' it on, it should look like blackened metal, and not like a thick glob of stain. This can also be buffed smooth and polished bright, and will not come off from handling the gun. I bought black and a gray to mix to the precise tone.

Cerwyn wrote:

Very, very nice indeed   I'll look forwards with great interest to see how you progress with this.
Thanks very much for posting this. 

Thank you! I should be finished next week. If you have any questions about the steps, I'd be happy to help.

Ozguns wrote:

Very nice job!
I had always wondered why mine had a gold colour to it, but not as bright as yours.  Mine is sort of like a faded gold.
Looks way better in black.

Yes, this was a deep, rich gold. However, with a little elbow grease, it's comes right off. Even with the Dremel, I wasn't able to log all the gold off around the maker's marks toward the rear, and little hints come through. Last night I was looking at actual Thompsons in Google, and the originals have gold and copper tones that creep through the worn blue finish. So, mine will look more authentic than I originally thought!

ljerr2 wrote:

Thumbs up on the resto progress!

Thank you, Sir! And thanks for the drum!!

Furniture is refinished.

The furniture arrived in pretty good shape, with natural wear and tear that I loved. However, the stain from the MGC factory was simply awful. Thick, monotone, and unappealing. I lightly sanded the furniture with 220 grit sandpaper, wiped clean with a damp cloth, then applied the following three Minwax oil-based stains:

Natural
Red Mahogany
Dark Walnut

I was selective about where I applied the Dark Walnut, as I wanted it to give the appearance of darkened handling wear over a long period of time. I blended all three tones unevenly, to appear natural and aged. After drying overnight, I applied a single coat of Minwax oil-based Polyurethane, let dry for 3.5 hours, then finished with 000 Steel Wool and buffed to a finish with a dry towel.

I love how the Dark Walnut crept into the grain and into the scratches, giving the appearance of old wood and stain.

Only thing left to do is blacken the metal with gel stain or Birchwood Casey. I'll take a break from that for a bit, and finish this up in a week or so.

Furniture from MGC:




My labor of love:

Very nice play on colours! Your hard work resulted in a very appreciable effect :-)