I have a stainless barrel I'd like to matte black and have it put on a matte black action that I already have. Anyone no how this is done? Is this something that is feasible to try yourself? Thanks

You can "cold blue" yourself...some get excellent results, others don't and it won't be as durable as a hot/rust blue (but you can simply reblue in a couple of years) You might look as parkerizing the barrel if you're going for a matte finish as its cheaper than having it blued.

You really can't cold blue stainless. There is a certain way to hot blue them, but it doesn't come out as nice as regular CM steel. Most people just get the stainless barrel bead blasted. Looks great. You could also get a finish such as Duracoat or Roguard applied. These are quite durable and can match the action very closely.

Roskoe hit it right on the head- bluing is nothing more than a controled rusting- it doesnt work on stainless steel alloys. The products he mentioned are excellent, but you might also try gunkote or a similar products availible at Brownell's if you want to do it yourself. I did my 7mm that way and was pleased with the results. Just follow the directions to the letter, degrease the snot out of it and then degrease it again (wear gloves too), and keep your hands off of it until its cured at the proper temp. Good luck!

Having the gun Black Iced or T-coated also works very well on SS. There are several such guns in my deercamp and the owners LOVE them and they match black components very well. The orginal Tcoat was kinda olive drab at first but will essentially turn black in a year or two.

The finish likewise makes them impervious to practically ANYTHING as well,
RA

What is Black Iced or T-coated? Is it something you can do yourself?

Most of these kind of finishes can be applied yourself - provided you have a bead blaster (prep work), an airbrush, and an oven big enough to hold a gun and that your wife never wants to cook anything in again.

Thanks, got all that stuff. Appreciate the help.

Will "cooking" your gun's metal work in the wife's oven hurt the oven? Does it leave an odor that can't be eliminted?

You cannot cold blue stainless, and even most hot bluing won't work onit. The Winchester company used to iron-plate their stainless barrels on the .220 Swift and .264 Win. Mag. rifles. Then they'd blue that iron plating. It came out pretty "matte", if I recall.