throw me into the group now

[GasTiresOil]

Originally Posted by lightfighter

mako if you get a chance email me at llamboy74@aim.com... the old email i had for this site nolonger works..

IF they replaced the finish with melonite.. well its not holding up well.. the end of the barrel is already showing signs of metal again.. granted no rust sofar... think ill look into an after market company that can provide a much tougher finish

I'd say leave it, finish wear is sweet. adds character to the gun, granted, as long as its not rusting away. I have been recently been neglecting the finish on my XD45 duty gun. I keep the slide rails lubed but do nothing with the outside finish. Rain soaked in a suede lined holster and no rust at all.

[mgeebs]

I don't think any finish is going to keep from showing wear on parts of the pistol that always get worn out. My XD was made in September 2008, so I think I probably have the newer finish, and after the first use my barrel was showing metal where it locks. As long as you keep your barrel well lubed at key points, I don't think you need to worry about that rusting.

[Owl]

wow. i'm rethinking even buying an XD now....granted I don't know much about handguns, but I don't think I've ever seen such a concern for rust? Is this common with other handguns? Sorry for being an ignorant doof....

[gunnut1]

Rust is a non issue for me. Just use a good gunoil like CorrosionX on the gun and rust will be a non issue. And you also have to consider the amount of rust these guys are talking about. Very little and from what little I have read, most of it is surface rust.

ANd BTW, WD40 is NOT a good gun oil and should never be used on a gun unless you want it to gum up the works.

[Ctkelly]

Look into Ionbonds W-DLC finish if you want a tough finish. They use a small hard chrome base layer (only 1 to 2 microns thick) and then apply the W-DLC finish over it. I believe they have stated they could apply it over electroless nickel also. Don't think I want to shell out for the double finish job though.

Black T is also a good finish. It will wear....however the parts that wear will not rust. I have two 1911's refinished in Black T and both exhibit holster wear around sharp edges and in some other places. Still haven't seen a spot of rust and I put no type of lube there either. Walter says his finish penetrates the metal pores hence it is still protected even after the visible black T is gone. I thought hogwash at first but he has been correct so far.

Coal Creek Armory does a melonite QPQ finish that seems to hold up very nicely also. There were quite a few people on the 1911 forums that had guns done when they were offering a refinishing special. Most seemed happy and I dont think anyone has complained of rust issues with it. EGW e-treat is a melonite finish also if anyone is wondering.

I'm looking at having my XD refinished soon. Trying to figure out what I want to have done. I am leaning towards black nickel from fords guns but I have the ionbond rolling in the back of my head also. I have one of the original XD's that rust if you look at it funny. I've been spending more time with it lately as I like to carry it more so than the full sized 1911.