As much as I don’t care for Glocks, I readily admit that they work as advertised and are tough as hell. Part of that toughness is the Tenifer finish which is probably the best in the industry for a working pistol.
Well, you can’t get Tenifer in this country. Reasons bandied about are 1. It’s a trademark issue or 2. The residue from the Tenifer process instantly turns the area into a Superfund site.
The finish on this pistol is called Melonite QPQ. I believe the S&W M&Ps are Melonited. It is both a surface hardening treatment and a finish (black oxide). It is SUPER hard (Rockwell 70). Since I just got it back, I can’t tell you how it has done with holster wear and use but in the interest of higher learning, I decided to accelerate the process and attack it with my Strider SMF. Started in the mag well (Just in case ;)) and then gave it a mighty hack on the slide. Score: Melonite 1, SMF 0. Thank God.
Tony at Coal Creek Armory in Knoxville, TN did a great job. My trigger job was maintained, something that tends to get lost in a refinish. The best part was the price, $200 with a turn around time of about 4 weeks. This might be the ultimate non-show/all-go pistol, finish right now.
The background is the coolest Christmas gift I got this year. Thanks to John Willis, I have a killer Mulitcam grilling apron. Nice pockets in the front for spices and PALS webbing to attach all sorts of grilling gear. Thank you John (and Amanda)
The entire pistol inside and out was Melonited. The barrel and the guide rod were coated as well but I’ll have to ask to make sure what they were coated with. They are both different in color and texture than the rest of the pistol.
OK, more definative answer on the coating. Everything inside and outside the frame and slide. The barrel (CM) and the FLGR (SS) are coated as well. They look different than the rest of the pistol because of their surface finish. The INSIDE of the barrel is coated as well.
Only a few small parts, like the firing pin stop screw, were not done.
