Barrel rust..

[Rsadams]

I inherited a 1903 colt from my grandfather. The gun turned 90 this year. I don't shoot it much but it's in perfect working order. When I got it I oiled it up and put it in my safe. He didn't shoot 2 boxes of shells through it the whole time he owned it. Just leaving it loaded for home protection. He probably had it since it was new, made in 1927.

I pulled it from the safe last night and noticed rust in the grooves not on the rifling. Its surface rust. I soaked it with slip 2000 and brushed some out then soaked it and put it away till I can get a better brush today to try and remove it. These little guns have sky rocketed in price not to mention the sentimental value and I have never had a barrel get rust in it , of course he didn't take care of it like I do mine and it's 90, he just had it in his dresser as long as I have been alive and I am almost 50.

Any ideas on how to clean it up? Seem like working it with the oil and brush then fireing some fmj through it would do it, any ideas??

 

[1raggedhole]

Rust is corrosion of the material. Not much you can do without removing material from the rifling, which you don't want to do. I suggest just scrubbing the heck out of it with a bronze brush and some bore solvent, removing as much of the corrosion as possible. Then use a good oil to prevent further corrosion.

 

[Lapua40X]

Rust is never a good thing but inasmuch as yours is in the grooves and apparently has not corroded the lands I don't believe you have much to worry about in terms of the serviceability of the handgun.
Once you've removed all of the rust you can you'll still have some rust residue in the pores of the metal.
Rust is insidious however so once you've removed as much as possible I'd suggest you remember this. The compound most necessary for the creation of rust is water. Without it, oxygen can't ignite oxidation. When I've cleaned rust from machinery I make certain it is VERY dry (no microscopic H2O in pores) and then coat it with WD#40. I know all of the jokes about WD#40 but it is, after all, primarily formulated to displacer water (W=water, D=displacement). Contrary to popular belief it is not a long germ lubricant; it is a water eliminator.
An annual cleaning of the WD40 treated equipment and another coating of it keeps my machinery glistening.

 

[Shaggy357]

Kroil is your friend in this case. Soak it good, let it rest, scrub, repeat. Follow up with good gun care lube. My fav is G96 brand gun cleaner/protectant. Birchwood Casey makes a good one as does Hoppes and a few others.

My nickels worth.

Steve

 

[Rsadams]

Thanks guys, I keep my guns in socks in a humidity controled safe and pull them at least once a year and clean and inspect, this is a 16 hour job. I hate scratches and rust so I try and stay on top of both. This gun as stated was my grandfather's pistol and his idea as he got older of cleaning firearms was to just spray some wd40 on them and wipe them down..

Altho we laugh at this idea now, the rifles he had made in the 50s and 60s are still rust free and he was a hunter. It did take about 3 good cleanings to get the barrels clean. Once that was done they were lubed very well with slip 2000 ewl before storeing in my safe. Of course when he had them back in the day , they were stored on display in a gun cabinet in the living room. Can't do that anymore..lol

But the pistol stayed in a rug, stuck in the bedroom dresser for at least 60 years. The only time it was cleaned was maybe twice since he didn't shoot it. I think I cleaned it a few times when I was a kid. After I get the rust out I think I will take it to the range and put a few fmjs down the tube and re clean it before store in it again.