Fighting corrosion on your gear How do you do it?

[Rancid Crabtree]

Recently I did a review of cold bluing products and in that review I included corrosion resistance the the various bluing chems but used only BC Barricade. I stated that I intend to do a review of a variety of gun-centric rust inhibitors. Im amassing (my wife says hoarding) quite a stock pile of CLP products focusing on the “P” aspects Protecting from rust. To that end I want to make sure I have a comprehensive list of products gun owners might use to stave off rust on their firearms so Im coming to you for suggestions of which products I should secure for this evaluation. Ive scrubbed the store shelves of Gander and Cabelas and Bass Pro and Farm and Fleet and Fleet Farm and harware stores as well as online outlets for rust inhibitors that cant easily be found. Id like to do a side by side evaluation of about 40 products and want to know what everybody uses to keep your gun rust free. I figure that by the time I buy the most common 40 or so that would cover the lion’s share of what the average guy uses.

Im focusing on manufactured/commercial brands and wont be evaluating home brews or gunsmith “secret recipes”. So please list em up and tell me that no evaluation would be complete without including brand “X”. Thanks for your help.

[Jack]

I have used Break Free since it first came out, many years ago. It's done the job for me, so I haven't looked at newer products.

[skeet]

I too have used Break Free for many years. As far as a gun oil.. I used Browning oil for many years..till they changed the formula. And in my opinion.....WD-40 Sucks..but it will displace water..usually

[GoodOlBoy]

I agree WD-40 shouldn't be used on a gun unless you are trying to break loose something to break it down, Liquid wrench is in the same boat for me. Or at least I won't use it on MY guns. With all the fancy dancy new gun oils floating around I still prefer good old 3-in-1 household oil to anything else. I have tried the various others, and while I WILL use a squirt of rem oil here and there during shooting etc. Before my guns "go to bed" per say they ALWAYS get a wipe down and lube with 3-in-1. There was a rust kill liquid WAY back in the day my great grandfather used when welding and I have seen it as a kid used to stop rust dead in its tracks on old guns, but I couldn't tell you what the name of it was to save my life.

Richard

[Rancid Crabtree]

Originally Posted by skeet

I too have used Break Free for many years. As far as a gun oil.. I used Browning oil for many years..till they changed the formula. And in my opinion.....WD-40 Sucks..but it will displace water..usually

Actually WD40 does not displace water. Not by a long shot. As the products I buy come in I am doing preliminary work with them to check out the claims made. WD40 floats on water and in no way displaces it. Nearly all the products claim water displacing attributes and almost all of them do nothing of the sort. So far only 3 products I have looked at actually displace water.

[skeet]

Many years ago I had a friend who worked as a courier to our Russian Embassy. They didn't check his diplomatic pouch so I had him get me a quart..well 2 liters...of true Sperm Oil. I still have 8 ounces of it and still use it..sparingly on the good O/Us and SxS guns I have. It never gets thick or gummy..and it will displace water..But since the late 60s you can't get whale oil any longer. But it is for internal use.. It is not runny. I do have an old rag I keep in a tin can with that oil on it to wipe guns down. It will attract dust etc like any oil. When I said WD 40 displaces water..When you wipe a gun down with a rag after spraying WD..it does bring the water and salt with it. but after it dries it leaves a brown film that is really hard to get rid of around and under vent ribs and in crevices.. Nasty stuff. It is not a spray the gun and forget it kinda stuff. Even gun scrubber won't melt it away

[Rapier]

I can cut your search down a bit by telling you the winner, without any question. Well I can tell you about it. It does not really have a name just a military stock number and a maker's name. It is used by the USAF ammo guys in the ammo dump (a Chief told me about it) to re-package and store the Am-ram missiles that are returned unused on aircraft. It preserves the rocket motors after exposure to the elements. It is an aerosol, it sprays on as a light tan color fine spray then when the carrier / solvent evaporates it looks like Rig, brown and sticky. It cuts itself, so to get it off you just spray it again an easily wipe it off. I got an empty can and looked the company up. They are or were in New Orleans, LA. They sell it by the 12 can case at about $10 per can. But, they may be gone, after Katrina and all.

In a military test of polished bare steel, exposed to fresh water and then salt water for 3 weeks each, the steel sprayed with this stuff had NO rust. The way I found it was looking for a preservative for my Ruger OM SA collection that stayed in the safe for long periods. I sold all of the guns to other collectors some years ago.

But for my light weight everyday gun use, come rain, shine, etc, I use G-96. I carry my O/U guns all over the world, rain or shine, they get sprayed down with G-96 and a shot down the bore, two hours set, and a bore snake makes them shine like a new penny, the gun's outside is a G-96 rag wipe down. I have the golden touch, a very acidic system, so I pay attention to preservatives, I use W-D to cut crud on tools or heavy equipment, never touches my guns.
Ed

[Rapier]

The military rocket motor spray is:

8030-00-938-1947
Corrosion Preventive Compound
Water Displacing
Ultra Thin

Bulk Chemical Ltd.
Gretna, LA 70033

Ed

[Gil Martin]

For many years I have used RIG (Rust Inhibiting Grease) and a bit of gun oil on a cloth to wipe firearms inside and out. Guns treated this way have been placed in storage for decades and never rusted. Oil is a lubricant. Grease is a rust inhibitor. Just the idle thoughts of an idle fellow. All the best...
Gil

[Rancid Crabtree]

All the products have been secured and the evaluation is under way.