Color Case Hardening
Parkwest Arms, formerly Dakota Arms, is pleased to offer color case hardening services to manufacturing and individual customers in search of a truly unique and legendary appearance for the rifle, shotgun, revolver or pistol of their dreams.
Shooters, firearms collectors and firearm historians are drawn to color case hardening as it both strengthens and protects individual gun parts and produces a lustrous, beautiful finish that is truly unique from piece to piece, but many new to the process ask – what is case hardening?
The answer blends the artistry of old-world metalworking; heat treating and surface hardening of low-carbon steel with wood and bone charcoal, with gunsmithing expertise. Case hardened steel components feature a rugged, carbon-rich surface that also happens to be both distinctive and attractive, hearkening back to a time when gun parts were case hardened out of necessity for strength and reliability.
A blend of science and old-world craftsmanship in which metal is heat treated and surface hardened with visually stunning results, bone charcoal color case hardening of firearms is an art form that produces unmistakably beautiful pieces of functional artwork. From historic lever-action rifles and classic revolvers to elegant sporting shotguns, world-class bolt-action hunting rifles and modern semiautomatic pistols, color case hardening produces a finish that elevates an already renowned firearm to an heirloom that can be lovingly and respectfully passed from generation to generation.
Parkwest Arms offers manufacturers and individual firearm owners and collectors the opportunity to go beyond production and standard gunsmithing to create one-of-a-kind, beautifully color case hardened complete firearms or bone color case hardened individual components, without the long lead-times often associated with such hands-on artistry, craftsmanship and expertise. Parkwest color case hardening produces consistent, reliable and trustworthy results worthy of the highest expectations, resulting in firearms that present both first-rate function and the finest form.