What do you do to avoid rust?

[TheFirearmEnthusiast]

Hey guys

I live in Victoria
And I would describe the Victorian weather to be generally quite dry
However
I was thinking about putting a dehumidifier in my safe anyway
(Just to be safe/just in case)

And that got me thinking
- Apart from a dehumidifier
- Apart from regular cleaning/maintainance of the rifles

Is there anything else that you guys do to avoid rust?

Do you guys believe that anything else is necessary to avoid rust?

Cheers

[SCJ429]

Grease, for lack of another word, is good.

[fenderstrat]

X-rust is a company that makes rust inhibitor, comes in several different forms (capsule for the safe, tubes that go inside your bore, pistol bags, etc). They're pretty good, haven't had any rust issues since I started using it.

[in2anity]

Put one of those big-w moisture absorbers in there. Replace it every now and again. At least that’s what I do.

[bladeracer]

Hey guys

I live in Victoria
And I would describe the Victorian weather to be generally quite dry
However
I was thinking about putting a dehumidifier in my safe anyway
(Just to be safe/just in case)

And that got me thinking
- Apart from a dehumidifier
- Apart from regular cleaning/maintainance of the rifles

Is there anything else that you guys do to avoid rust?

Do you guys believe that anything else is necessary to avoid rust?

Cheers

I pull the action out of the stock and grease all the hidden surfaces before reassembling (this includes stripping the handguard off the RPR and greasing the barrel), reassemble, then lightly grease all external metal surfaces, including the bolt. Any steel parts attached to the stock also come off so I can grease their hidden surfaces (sling swivels, butt plates, inside nose caps). When I say "lightly grease", I mean you can still handle the firearm without getting covered in grease, but it has a definite film of grease over it. You don't really want grease in moving parts that are open to dust ingress, the grease will hold the dust and become a grinding paste, but the moving parts that are not in contact I also smear with grease purely for surface rust prevention. Then the moving parts, slideways, pivot pins, bottom of the bolt, etc get a few drops of oil. I also put a _tiny_ dab of grease on bolt cams. I also grease any "permanent fasteners" and oil the ones that come out regularly for maintenance. Wooden stocks get a rub with gun oil.

[Skinna]

Lots of dessicant in safes.
I collect it if i ever see it. hell im so bad I saw a pouch on the floor at 'Good Different' today & bent over to pick it up
It all dries out over summer, & if unsure just chuck it outside on a warm day in the sun with low humidity.

Aside from that, what scj said is the ultimate. being grease.

I use lanolin. I have a tub of lanolin grease & ive melted a glob of that down & mixed with alcohol, squirt on a rag & wipe down--beeyoodifool.!
It stays there!!
Or just a aerosol can of a lanolin spray will do ya. I like it because once the dispersant/carrier has dispersed, lanolin is actually a grease & sticks without running Unlike many oils do.

And just to add--as said just above ^^, every year i pull the stocks off, clean all the steel off & rub a coat of lanolin grease (only very thin) over all the areas covered by the stock & all under scope where its hard to get to.

Im not sure if its any good, but thats also the grease i use on my bolt lugs--happy to be told to stop doing that if its not a good idea for any reason.

[Oldbloke]

I live in southern Vic and have never use a moisture absorbers. Just ocassionally spray and wipe the lanox type product. Never had rust.

Someone here suggested some sort of boot polish for the underside of barrels and actions a while back. Sounded interesting as would not need to remove the stock as often. I've been thinking a bees wax and oil mix maybe.

[Blr243]

If a Blued barrel is clean dry And has no fine film of oil on it , will fingers deposit anything that is likely to lead to rust?

[Skinna]

If a Blued barrel is clean dry And has no fine film of oil on it , will fingers deposit anything that is likely to lead to rust?

Im my experience, YES !
As it can with stainless too.!!

[bladeracer]

If a Blued barrel is clean dry And has no fine film of oil on it , will fingers deposit anything that is likely to lead to rust?

Absolutely, that's why gun shops hate people wandering around fingering the firearms, they have to constantly go around making sure they're oiled up.

[marksman]

l have a gun room out in the old tin shed and use a leather product called coachaline on outside surfaces that inhibits rust
l am on the southern coast of Vic and only need to apply around every 2-3 yrs

any waxy coating will do the job including car polishes but remember about smells if you are going to hunt using the rifle

[Blr243]

I thought as such. Whenever I handle anyone’s firearms I Have always made an effort not to touch any steel

[deye243]

I have two cerakoted rifles have never even wipe them down with an oily rag no problem best thing invented since sliced bread

[Skinna]

l have a gun room out in the old tin shed and use a leather product called coachaline on outside surfaces that inhibits rust
l am on the southern coast of Vic and only need to apply around every 2-3 yrs

any waxy coating will do the job including car polishes but remember about smells if you are going to hunt using the rifle

Maybe thats why i get so many foxes, because my rifles smell like a dirty sheeps arse

[deye243]

l have a gun room out in the old tin shed and use a leather product called coachaline on outside surfaces that inhibits rust
l am on the southern coast of Vic and only need to apply around every 2-3 yrs

any waxy coating will do the job including car polishes but remember about smells if you are going to hunt using the rifle

Maybe thats why i get so many foxes, because my rifles smell like a dirty sheeps arse

[Oldbloke]

Yes, the smell of most of these products is an issue. Thats the benefit of the lanolin based stuff

[deye243]

lanolin and he is me thinking lanolin was Kiwi cologne

[CAVEMAN]

Living in north QLD always used one of those cheap dehumidifiers, plus a light coat of CLP all over. Never had dramas including going through some wet periods.

Moved further south now, still keep a dehumidifier in the safe, but doesnt need changing anywhere near as often. 6 months now vs 6 weeks.

[Ziege]

if i see rust coming i walk down the opposite side of the street

[Oldbloke]

lanolin and he is me thinking lanolin was Kiwi cologne

That's what is says on the can I use. Lol




I feel sorry for the Kiwi's. They really cop it don"t they.

[Ziege]

lanolin can attract water, i never use it, lesson learned long ago

edit: should add depends on the product specifically used.

[Oldbloke]

lanolin can attract water, i never use it, lesson learned long ago

Please explain .

[Ziege]

some of the other chemicals, thinners and propellants used in lanolin oil aerosols are hygroscopic and thus can end up contaminating your rifle/shotgun/pistol with moisture, especially if stored for long periods of time,

had to replace my 22 as a result of this once.

my new method for protecting my rifles long term now is gear oil and silica moisture traps.

cheers

[deye243]

lanolin and he is me thinking lanolin was Kiwi cologne

That's what is says on the can I use. Lol




I feel sorry for the Kiwi's. They really cop it don"t they.

I used to work with a few of them 30 odd years ago and they can handle it not a problem they're like us Aussies got a thick skin and a good sense of humour ......

[Rwd22]

I use a couple of the Sunfresh 600ml?? moisture absorbers from bunnings in our safe, usually one at the base of the door and one up high, also have a couple of the medium sized dessicant bags bought from bunnings in there, give them the occasional hit in the microwave to dry them out, but the big ones certainly do the job.

I usually just keep an eye on them and see how they're filling up, couple that with a good run over the rifles inside and out with G96 periodically. I did notice a little rust on the thread protector on the mrs 22 rifle, must have handled it while putting it back in the safe. Gave it another G96 and hasn't re-appeared since.

Just got ourselves into a bigger safe, so may look at a golden rod or some sort of equivalent in the future as there is a wee bit more air volume in this one.

[9.3x64]

For years I stuffed about with those magic moisture absorbers. They worked fine if I checked them regularly, problem is the rate of change required varies so much throughout the year. Great in winter but when you get weeks or months of wet weather and very high humidity I found they needed changing to much. Throw in a trip away from home for a month and I was getting caught out.
In the end I drilled a very small hole in the side of safe, just big enough to force a power cord through. I now run a permanent dehumidifier inside the safe all year round. I have been doing this for the last ten years and never touched it and never had one speck of rust, and I live on the coast in Queensland.
I think it cost me $180 initially back then, very cheap when you consider what we spend on the stuff inside the safe.

[TheFirearmEnthusiast]

Awesome
Thank you so much for your advices everyone
I made a comprehensive list of everything that everyone recommended
A lot of great recommendations here


- Grease (lanolin)
- Rust inhibitor (by x-rust)
- Big-w moister absorbers
- A few drops of oil (for moving parts)
- Desiccant bags (silica gel)
- A light coat of CLP oil or gear oil all over
- Sunfresh 600ml moisture absorber
- G96 periodically all over
- Magic moisture absorbers (from bunnings)
- Occasional spray & wipe of lanox type products

[boingk]

Hi mate, I've just got back into shooting after 5 years out of the game. My firearms were stored in a safe and bought out every 12 to 18 months for a quick patch out with some light oil and then a clean patch again.

I got back into regular activity this year and found all the rifles were fine. The action on my cheap-as-candy JW15 22LR had gummed a bit, but a quick reoiling and a wipedown fixed that. Everything else was fine after a proper brush and patch-out, the worst was my old Mossberg New Haven 22WMR which got a bit of external surface rust. Its had a hard life and the blueing is thin, but cleaned up just fine.

So... no. No special treatment here. Make sure you wipe down any metal surfaces with prints on them before storage and keep the actions lightly oiled, you'll be fine.

[TheFirearmEnthusiast]

Hi mate, I've just got back into shooting after 5 years out of the game. My firearms were stored in a safe and bought out every 12 to 18 months for a quick patch out with some light oil and then a clean patch again.

I got back into regular activity this year and found all the rifles were fine. The action on my cheap-as-candy JW15 22LR had gummed a bit, but a quick reoiling and a wipedown fixed that. Everything else was fine after a proper brush and patch-out, the worst was my old Mossberg New Haven 22WMR which got a bit of external surface rust. Its had a hard life and the blueing is thin, but cleaned up just fine.

So... no. No special treatment here. Make sure you wipe down any metal surfaces with prints on them before storage and keep the actions lightly oiled, you'll be fine.

Thanks boingk
That's really good advice here
Like others here have said; fingerprints can lead to rust
I wasn't aware of that before talking to some of the folks on here
From now on
Whenever I put my rifles back in my safe
I'll definitely make sure to wipe down all the prints
Thanks again

[Oldbloke]

Sooo, for underside of barrels, wax type products have been suggested. Makes sense if you prefer to not pull the stock off too often. After reading a couple of SDSs I came up with a simple solution,,, I think.

3 parts candle wax (mostly parrafin wax)
1 part kero, or there abouts.

Melted in a can in a pot of simering water.

Result was something like the texture of dubin or boot polish. Rubbed it on the underside of my Brno and left a nice waxy layer. Used a tooth brush and cloth.

After a short time most of the kero smell dissipated. So showing promise.

At a guess I think you could use diesel or turps instead of kero if you wanted.