67 Tripower Flame Arrestor

[Dereck S.]

Please confirm the correct finish on the tripower flame arrestor GM#3857476. Should it be black phosphate? The finish is worn off mine. What would be the best practical way to restore the finish to pass judging? Is there a paint or gun blue that would work?
thanks,
Dereck

[Jack H.]

Re: 67 Tripower Flame Arrestor

Sure, you can use paint to mimic a black oxide finish IF you want to guarantee yourself an originality deduction for an incorrect finish... You won't fool a knowledgeable judge by using a 'copy cat' paint on a surface that was originally plated. The difference is simply too obvious!

Let your fingers do the walking with your Google search engine and you'll find folks who sell Parkerizing kits for something like $20. That's the process that replaced traditional guy blue around WW2 (more durable) and it's child's play to use.

Simply get the part's surface down to bare steel, mix the Parkerizing solution per recommendations, heat it to the temperature the mfgr advises and soak the part, moving it periodically, to grow the proper depth of black oxide on...

Remove, rinse in cold running water, apply a little oil by hand and let 'er dry out. You're done!

[Wayne M.]

Re: 67 Tripower Flame Arrestor

Dereck -- here's a couple of pics of an NOS "service" arrestor, so you can examine the finish. I see splatter, (almost) runs in locations, but this may not be TFP.