What does "in the white" mean for a gun barrel? It says condition new, unused, in the white?

Answer 1

It means it's bare metal without any blue or grey parkerizing etc. It's brand new and you get to finish it.

Answer 2

In the white means that the barrel is shipped without finish, so that it's finish can be matched to the firearm in which it is to be installed. During the flintlock and percussion eras curiously, many military firearms were shipped with the barrel and indeed sometimes the action as well left in the white. The reasoning behind this unusual practice was that the soldier who was issued the weapon was expected to keep it clean and maintained and oiled. If the soldier failed to do so, then it would quickly become visually apparent that he was shirking his duties.
Some variations of the Brown Bess Musket were left with barrels in the white for this purpose, as were some Confederate issued rifles and muskets during the civil war.

Answer 3

The barrel has not been blued yet. This is a bare piece of metal.

You will need to have this barrel professionally blued, the kind of bluing you buy at the gun shop is just for touch-ups.

Answer 4

Bound's hubby here:

"In the white" generally refers to a carbon steel product, in this case a barrel, that does not have a finish applied to it.

Good luck.

Answer 5

"in the white" means the barrel has not yet had any surface treatments, eg. bluing or parkerized.

Answer 6

"In the white" means that the rifle is already zeroed in to at least hit the paper (the white) at a 100 yards. You just have to finish zeroing it in to your satisfaction. It has probably been bore-sighted to hit the paper target (about 12 square inches) at a hundred yards. You just do the rest.

H

Answer 7

New guns come wrapped in white paper to protect them from getting scratched. If it says that it comes 'in the white' it means that those little pieces of paper havn't even been taken off yet.