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This is where the polishing happens

This is where the polishing happens

   Greg Paulman

American Bluing & Guns, LLC

Phone: 802-777-7798

Email: greg.paulman@yahoo.com

We are currently not on Facebook due to technical issues.

Have you ever slipped and done some damage to you favorite rifle or shotgun or gone to take it out and found that nature has taken it’s toll on the nice finish on the metal? Then you experienced what has made many a big man want to curl up and cry!

Every have something happen to you favorite rifle or shotgun that made you just want to curl up and cry?!

Ever have something happen to you favorite rifle or shotgun that made you just want to curl up and cry?!

    That nice blue/black finish on your firearm is part of what you take pride in, and if damaged, there is no reason to leave it that way. Mild corrosion, scratches and scuffs are easily and afford-ably fixed to look like new again. But let it  go unattended for several years and it can easily get more costly to restore. It always pays to have someone take a look at it sooner rather than later as a professional service will not only give you back the pride you had in your firearm but will also help maintain it’s value.

This can all be fixed with a matte blue for $100

This can all be fixed with a matte blue for $100

    American Bluing & Guns, LLC was established as Vermont’s only specialty bluing, parkerizing and restoration gunsmith shop. Where other gunsmiths may offer bluing services, most send their hot bluing work out of state. Those who do their own bluing, do so secondary to other services. I do bluing, parkerizing and restorations first, and any other work is secondary to my specialty.

Turn around time for most work is time is currently longer due to Covid 19 delays and the loss of a gunsmith to military deployment. wait time is depending on work flow and whether firearms are arrive complete or disassembled. If you have a project which is time sensitive please discuss that with me ahead of time so I can accommodate your needs.

First you have to find the worse spots

First you have to find the worse spots

    Located in Monkton, Vermont, I do not have a retail shop or cater to walk in business. Everything is by appointment or shipped in from all over the country. I have done work from as far away as Alaska. I also cater to gunsmiths from all over the country and will work with your local smith who may be doing some restoration or custom work on your favorite firearm.

Working this way allows me to better focus on the work being done to your favorite firearm with less interruption. I have my hands on every project and personally inspect all work. I have been restoring and bluing firearms for 25 years since before first obtaining my Federal Firearms license in the early 1990’s.

Give me a call and come on by as I’m always happy to look at your project or heirloom. If it’s cold outside you can even sit by a nice wood fire while I take care of any small job you may have.

Sit down, relax and warm up on a cold day!

Sit down, relax and warm up on a cold day!

    After several years of planning, in 2014 I re-opened my doors to the public. I am a class 7 Federal Firearms Manufacturer which allows me to build, modify, restore and sell firearms (ATF requires a class 7 license for many gunsmith applications including bluing and parkerizing).

As a Class 7 Dealer/Manufacturer I can receive firearms from any state and ship completed firearms directly back to the customer. Eliminating the need for shipping through a local dealer or using expensive UPS over night shipping. Handguns need to be shipped via USPS Priority mail and long guns can be shipped ground or what ever method works best for you. I use FedEx Ground for most long guns.

As I do not stock new firearms and ammo to sell and have little retail space, I do sell a limited number of used firearms and facilitate firearm transfers for the nominal fee of $15/ firearm. I will do special orders on request and can often save you money if you have something you are looking for. Feel free to contact me or look to my links for sights that I have found offer good deals and who can ship to me or a dealer near you. All firearms purchases online must be shipped to a licensed dealer.

I have been honored to do work for customers from all 50 states, from Alaska to Florida and Maine to Hawaii. I would like to take a moment to thank all my loyal customers and the gunsmiths from around the country who have chosen me as their source for bluing, parkerizing and restoration services.

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    My credentials are my years of experience and schooling at Trinidad State Jr. College NRA Gunsmithing program. There I was professionally trained in Hot Caustic Bluing, Rust Bluing, Nitre Bluing, Parkerizing, Restorations, Vintage Metal Restoration. I have also completed the Master Gunsmithing Course by American Gunsmith Institute.

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    The Vintage Metal Bluing & Restoration class at Trinidad State was taught by none other than Chuck Grace, Master Gunsmith and charter member/ past president of the American Custom Gun Makers Guild. Chuck was impressed with my work on the Stevens 520 I restored.

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    I started with a badly pitted shotgun and after many hours of draw filing, reshaping and polishing ended up with a work of art that many of the master gunsmiths at Trinidad were very impressed with. I used a little trick on the magazine tube (mag tubes are much thinner metal than barrels so only limited draw filing can be done) and created a snake skin design. This can be done to any rifle or shotgun to add some unique character to your firearm. Below you can see a picture of Chuck Grace with the Stevens 520 and a picture of some of the parts before bluing including the mag tube with the snake skin design. Please take a moment and check out the tab “Firearms Restoration Services” to see more before and after pictures of the Stevens 520.

Chuck Grace of the American Gun-Makers Guild admiring my restoration of the Stevens 520

Chuck Grace Master Gunsmith of the American Gun-Makers Guild admiring my restoration of the Stevens 520

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    My work involves not  as only bringing back the past but maintaining and improving the future. Many newer firearms can have finish problems most of which are not covered by manufacturer’s warranty so many factors can play a part into cosmetic issues. Recently I was brought a Caesar Guerini Summit ($3,000~ price tag) which had some serious cosmetic issues. The minor part was the scrapes in the bluing at the receiver. The worse part was the finish on what was supposed to be a bright silver receiver which had turned grey and had gotten badly scratched. I was able to polish it back like new and then redid the gold inlay on the receiver. Here’s few pics and a brief note the customer shared with a friend and copied me on.

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p.s. here are the pictures of my new gun…and it shoots pretty well too!  He did a bit of work on my old Marlin 39A too, so that’s in the pictures. The gunsmith‘s name is Greg Paulman, who has his shop near Ferrisburg/Shelburne…phone is 802777-7798Please pass this info. along to others who need a super refinishing job on their gun, and at a very reasonable price and in a reasonable time frame.!  Let me know you got the photos OK.

    Whether your grandfather’s old deer rifle, something fairly new, or some thing that you want to give a face lift to, I can make that happen. Ever thought of something different you’d like to see, talk to me and let’s make it happen. Do you have a flint lock or cap lock muzzle loader you’re like to see the traditional plumb brown on, I can do that too. When it comes to anything with bluing, parkerizing, or browning regardless of the hot caustic method or rust method, at American Bluing & Guns you can have it done. And not just done but done right and timely.

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    I offer a basic “Matte Bluing” service for $100 which includes media blasting all major parts to be blued and prepping any other parts such as bolts, etc. which blasting would not be appropriate. Firearms that qualify for this low cost service are ones that do not require a lot of dis-assembly and re-assembly. Firearms which do require more time for dis-assembly and re-assembly are only charged for the additional time involved. An example would be the popular Winchester ’94 like the one in my logo which has 87 parts would cost an additional $50.  If you look at the work done by my competition online, they often do not do any prep for a comparable cost and you can see the results. You would not paint a car with out removing the rust and prepping, why would you pay to have a firearm blued and not have it look good? Follow this link to see more about what this service can accomplish,  $100 Matte Bluing Service.

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    I have went to Trinidad State for their Sporting Shotguns class where we were taught recoil reduction techniques such as Grey Coil installation and adjustment, barrel porting, lengthening and removal of forcing cones, and other custom shotgun work .

Although the shotgun work takes a back seat to the bluing and restoration, please let me know if you are interested in any custom shotgun work and we can make arrangements. Below you can see a few pictures of the custom shotgun I built for my grandson’s birthday!

Alex with his 20 gauge competition shotgun.

Alex with his 20 gauge competition shotgun.

Alex's Shotgun

Alex’s Shotgun

Alex's Shotgun

Alex’s Shotgun

Alex's Shotgun

Alex’s Shotgun

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I Pride myself on being a resource for my customers. If you need hard to find parts, have a complex situation or some questions on how you can do something yourself, I will gladly share my expertise with you. As no one person can be an expert in everything, work I am not equipped or experienced to perform, I will gladly tell you and help you find the best person to handle your needs. My current shop rate is $60 an hour which is the same for all work including hand polishing which is the best way to prep a gun. Machine polishing will roll the edges of letters and turn round holes into egg shaped holes.

This Website is under construction. Please be patient as we make improvements and visit here again soon.

Greg Paulman

Greg.paulman@yahoo.com

802-777-7798