1920s vintage 1903 finishes

[mitchell6776]

Probably a question for John Beard...
When did SA start applying the asphaltum (?) coating over the parkerized finish on 1903s? When did this practice stop? I have come across 3 very nice 1920s vintage 1903s in the last year which I have picked up. I have a 1925 vintage rifle and two 1923 vintage rifles in really nice shape, and all three have the coating over a parkerized finish. One of the 1923 rifles is essentially factory new with full covering, and the 25 vintage rifle is pretty darn close. Seems like my 1920 vintage Mark I has traces of it in the small spaces over the parkerizing. Thanks in advance.

[Johnny P]

I have a virtually new original condition DCM Sales service rifle in the 1.211 million range with a 12-20 barrel that has the coating.

There are quite a few DCM Sales rifles in the 1.20 to 1.22 million range, with a lot of NM rifles starting to show up in the 1.23 million range.

[John Beard]

The earliest I have seen the asphaltum coating was on a Mark I rifle, but I no longer recall the serial number.

J.B.

[98src]

I have friend that has a 1919 NM rifle that has the coating. The serial number is in the Mark I range of course. I have owned a 1920NM and a 1921NM that had the coating.

[P51MUSTANG]

What exactly is the coating?

[JOHN COOK]

What exactly is the coating?


Asphaltum...


john in SC

[Ironlip]

Does Asphaltum have a black almost shiny appearance, like black shoe polish?

[John Beard]

Asphaltum is black asphalt-based paint. It was used back in the last century to paint automobile brass radiators. It is not glossy. It can also oxidize with age and turn a dark grey-ish color. Asphaltum is still used as a pruning seal when pruning trees because it suppresses wood deterioration and fungal growth. You can get it at Home Depot under the Spectracide brand pruning seal, as I recall.

J.B.

[P51MUSTANG]

Thanks for the great info as always JB......

[Sunray]

Read this. Slowly, it's kind of vague. Asphaltum predates the 19th Century by about 700 years.
https://texasbeyondhistory.net/coast/nature/images/asphaltum.html
I like this definition the best though. "another name for asphalt". snicker.

[GJB1903]

Regarding the asphaltum finish. My reference books all say that after parkerising, the rifles were dipped in a black oil. Is this the asphaltum or was that something different? Also i understand that this finish will come off if you wipe the gun down with gun cleaning solvent. If this is true, why would the Armory put such a fragile finish on a service rifle?

[John Beard]

I am unable to read the minds of those who wrote your reference books. So one can only speculate what they meant by "black oil." Asphaltum is black paint. And it will indeed come off if cleaned with petroleum-based solvents. Until such time as archive documentation is found, one can only speculate why asphaltum was used. But one can be reasonably assured there was good reasoning behind it.

J.B.

[GJB1903]

Thanks for the information, John. Most everything I know about Springfields, I’ve learned from writers such as Flayderman, Brophy, Campbell, Canfield, Poyer and forums such as this. There is so much to learn about these fascinating rifles.

[lyman]

I am unable to read the minds of those who wrote your reference books. So one can only speculate what they meant by "black oil." Asphaltum is black paint. And it will indeed come off if cleaned with petroleum-based solvents. Until such time as archive documentation is found, one can only speculate why asphaltum was used. But one can be reasonably assured there was good reasoning behind it.

J.B.

Commonwealth countries used green paint (admittedly for tropic conditions mostly) and Suncorite

wonder how far in advance Asphaltum was,, as in was it improved upon later and replaced (by suncorite etc)