[100968]

hello, this is my first post. My xd 45 acp was stolen some 4 years ago by some scum bag. he did typical scumbag things with the weapon from ga to MI were it was finally recovered. thank you MI police!!! so after many phone calls spanning years , the gun was returned to me, Yes I was surprised too!!!
the gun was chemically treated to pull the said scumbags prints off it which was successful. The evidence box it was returned in had a sticker that said " chemically treated evidence, wear gloves".
initially I disregarded this, hopefully the chemical is not toxic? No warnings were given to me from the Ga crime lab. I will be calling the crime lab on on day to verify. anyway , after I cleaned the gun twice I placed it under a black light where the gun proceeded to glow a bright greenish blue. and I mean bright. it must have been a chemical vapor because the gun is coated internally as well with this residue.

so I guess my question(s) are:

anyone know for sure what fingerprinting chemical fluoresces this color ?

is it toxic?

is it corrosive?

I have a somewhat local smith that will thouroughly completely disassemble, clean, and lubricate for $75.00. any advice if this is needed or if anyone knows somewhere cheaper?? I'm located in central ga.

thanks in advance, I hope I posted my situation clearly.

 

[Chicago2VP71]

hello, this is my first post. My xd 45 acp was stolen some 4 years ago by some scum bag. he did typical scumbag things with the weapon from ga to Detroit, were it was finally recovered. thank you Detroit police!!! so after many phone calls spanning years , the gun was returned to me, Yes I was surprised too!!!
the gun was chemically treated to pull the said scumbags prints off it which was successful. The evidence box it was returned in had a sticker that said " chemically treated evidence, wear gloves".
initially I disregarded this, hopefully the chemical is not toxic? No warnings were given to me from the Ga crime lab. I will be calling the crime lab on on day to verify. anyway , after I cleaned the gun twice I placed it under a black light where the gun proceeded to glow a bright greenish blue. and I mean bright. it must have been a chemical vapor because the gun is coated internally as well with this residue.

so I guess my question(s) are:

anyone know for sure what fingerprinting chemical fluoresces this color ?

is it toxic?

is it corrosive?

I have a somewhat local smith that will thouroughly completely disassemble, clean, and lubricate for $75.00. any advice if this is needed or if anyone knows somewhere cheaper?? I'm located in central ga.

thanks in advance, I hope I posted my situation clearly.

Hmmm..

 

[HodgePodge]

They probably "super glued" it, which is literally heating up a super glue like mixture that adheres to prints. They then likely covered it with a powder that makes the prints visible, possibly a liquid chemical or even put it in a vacuum metal deposition chamber to draw trace silver or gold to the prints. Ask for there recommendations, but a professional cleaning is likely your best bet...or just go shoot the heck out of it!

 

[ajamesp51]

Hmm, you can send it to me and I will completely disassemble, abrasive blast it and refinish it for 55.00. Even after shipping both ways will be cheaper than just cleaning.

www.XDMAN.com

 

[ironmike1378]

Hope I never have to find out the answer to this one...

 

[CarlWinslo]

Can we get a pic? I am interested in what it looks like.

 

[Groo]

CA glue chemically bonds to plastic I think. That won't be toxic, and I doubt the other chemical would be either. The glove thing is probably to keep a bunch of new prints from showing up on evidence. Safest bet would be to ask DPD foresics dept if you are worried.

 

[CopNa454Sierra]

Do you get any dark colored residue on your hands when you handle the firearm?

If so, they just used a phosphorescent powder and there are no ill health effects. You don't technically need gloves to handle it. It's just good evidence handling procedure and will keep you from getting your hands all nasty. Print powder gets into EVERYTHING!

If no residue, they likely used a liquid reagent known as SPR. If they used the same stuff I use as an Evidence Technician, a good solvent bath will clean it up just fine. It might still phosphoresce, but it won't be an issue for your health. There shouldn't be to begin with anyways, but better to give it a good bath anyways.

I don't know of anyone who uses superglue on anything that will be returned or is o any value.

I don't know of any latent printing materials which can't be handled without precautions (except the superglue until dried for obvious reasons...lol). They're all safe as long as you don't ingest them in any way (inhale, eat, or allow to pass through the mucus membrane).

Enjoy having your .45 back! Clean her up and go shoot the heck out of it. Please tell me the scumbag who they caught with it at least got convicted for your troubles?

 

[gunsaddict]

Great you got it back, $75.00 just for cleaning, and lubing? I would send it for total refinish for that money. Send it to James.

 

[bijou]

Great you got it back, $75.00 just for cleaning, and lubing? I would send it for total refinish for that money. Send it to James.

^^This! (provided you are not a troll)^^

 

[100968]

wow,thanks for the quick replies.

to cop454, yes he was convicted and is serving a lengthy sentence from what investigators would tell me. he supposedly left many armed robbery and home invasion victims in his wake from ga to mi. So there were others inconvenienced much greater than I over this ordeal. he is where people like that belong.
also there was no dark residue on my hands after handling.

to guns addict, the 75.00 is for a complete disassembly , ultra sonic cleaning , inspection, lubrication and reassembly.


to groo, what you say makes very good sense bc the bulk of glowing material is on the polymer lower almost in a manner that makes it appear to have seeped into the material.

To James, let me consider this and I appreciate the offer. I am just always skeptical about releasing a firearm over the Internet, for obvious reasons, lol. I'm sure you are a great person , it is just difficult to verify via the net! Thanks for the offer again though.

I will post a pic later if it turns out. the fluorescent nature is hard to capture via photograph, I tried initially but had little success.

To all, my concern actually originated from my handling and firing the gun almost as soon as I could get it from the crime lab to the shooting range lol. I had already worked up 3 powders and 2 weights of bullets progressing from min charges to approaching a comfortable near , near max charges lol.
I gave it a well needed oiling and what I thought was a cleaning( until UV light was introduced) then it was off to the range with the long lost xd. This was my main concern for the possible health effects bc I was not being critical of not rubbing my eyes or eating etc. with possible residue on my hands.

p.s. the xd ran like a scolded dog , like it never missed a beat. except the 10 rd mag that appeared to have been used as a hammer???? yet it still functions minus dropping freely.

Thank you all , I will definetly be using this board frequently.

 

[100968]

okay , James forgive me, I now see you are a licensed vendor etc.
I will definetly reconsider your services. thanks for the offer.

and no I'm not a troller lol. thanks

 

[jblosser]

I've not dealt with James personally, but there are literally hundreds of rave reviews on this site from people that have.

I would not hesitate to send a firearm to him for service...too bad all of mine were lost in that horrible smelting incident.

 

[Acheron2010]

What a story/experience. Did you get any get-out-of-jail paperwork, in case a LEO runs your CCW and pistol serial number?

 

[100968]

I asked the crime lab and detectives that worked to get the gun back to me, and anyone else who would listen lol. All responses said the gun was now cleared and serial would not show up stolen from here on???? I was wondering this myself , actually for months before it was returned.For now, I keep the USPS box it was mailed in inside my vehicle. the box has the case number, serials, the history of the gun, detectives signatures etc. I would hope this would be enough , but who knows???

I even asked the nice lady officer at the Macon crime lab before I took possession of it. She reassured me to have no worries, although tell me that again when I've been detained for possession of my own stolen firearm lol!!!!

 

[gunsaddict]

wow,thanks for the quick replies.
To James, let me consider this and I appreciate the offer. I am just always skeptical about releasing a firearm over the Internet, for obvious reasons, lol. I'm sure you are a great person , it is just difficult to verify via the net! Thanks for the offer again though.

I will post a pic later if it turns out. the fluorescent nature is hard to capture via photograph, I tried initially but had little success.

James is one of the best in the business pretty well known here, fast turn around,and great prices. good luck.

 

[nbk13nw]

Another +1 for James. His work and his pricing cannot be beat!

 

[Chicago2VP71]

I also agree you should send it to James.

 

[mcwsky09]

I would likely have recommended sonic cleaning - especially if you or someone you know has a sonic cleaner.

The strip/refinish sounds like a good deal, but is that just for the metal parts? what about the polymer parts? and maybe a good time to upgrade to a stainless steel recoil rod - and maybe put some traction overlays on the grips.

 

[100968]

Spoke with Bibb county crime lab this morning and there tech said they would only use superglue for any latent print lifting at there facility.
The forensics were performed in Detroit though, and they are a little more difficult to get in touch with, as I'm sure they have much more on their plates!
I will continue to try and contact the ones tht performed the evidence gathering and post what Chem was actually used if not the super glue.

Also I am going to use James, as I have researched his work and he seem very knowledgeable and competent. Not to mention the best price around on trijicon installs . Now to set aside a little money and send it off.

Thanks for all the help and recommendations and I will post the results of the post cleaning and sight install. I may even treat the gun to a nice coating??????