ANOTHER question about safe storage... Sorry. Surface Rust?

V

Venom1956

New member
So I've asked many, many questions about humidity and storing my pistols in a safe.

But I just can't seem to win, I have Silica, a Golden rod and wiped them down with a Silicon Cloth (Birchwood Casey) roughly once a week. In the summer it gets a bit more humid its usually 40% in winter but in the higher 50's during the summer. Safe is downstairs bolted in to concrete (its carpeted) nothing I can do about the location either.

But the Bluing on my Revolvers and autos is STILL discoloring. Getting a brownish tinge. A little oil and a cotton swab will come back rust brown.

I realize this happens over time but the bluing on my Redhawk which was near perfect when I purchased it is starting to show already, its only been in my safe for two months tops! To a lesser extent with my GP100 but its only been in there a month. :mad::mad::mad: I'm seriously about ready to snap.

I just got rid of the Silicon Cloth replaced it with a Hoppe's http://www.hoppes.com/products/ca_silicone_cloths.html
This one is FAR superior to the Birchwood one. Coating feels much more substantial. Hoping it will help,
Curious to know if this would help remove the discoloring? Without damaging the bluing?
http://www.hoppes.com/products/ca_quick_clean_cloths.html
What is the purpose of this one?
http://www.hoppes.com/products/ca_wax_cloths.html

And how long do all these cloths last? Weeks? Months? Years? Forever?

Also hunting for some of those gun socks for pistols.

I'm sorry about being so frustrated but I'm at a loss, I grow tired of hunting for nice guns and then getting to watch them decay (ok thats a bit extreme) after I own them...
I don't mind spending money to maintain my guns, but I do when it doesn't seem to matter... Having to check on them every few days is getting tiresome. Is there something I'm over looking? Something in the air or anything?
 
Sounds like the humidity from the room is getting into the safe, and it sounds like the room has too high a humidity level. You need to be running a dehumidifier in the basement near that safe, and get a good quality high capacity unit (don't try to go the cheapo route). You say you do not have an option to put the safe somewhere else, OK, if you say so, but apparently that humidity level is damaging the finish on your firearms. Have you looked at the bores? Are they rusting, too? And, what's with the silicon cloth? What's wrong with plain old Rem oil? You can get a box of individually wrapped Rem oil cloths, and just use one of them each week to wipe down the firearms and keep them oiled. But man, you got to do something about that humidity level. Try to get it to 30% or lower year round.
 
rig gun grease

Like you I live in a humid area. You might try rig gun grease, this puts a fine film on the parts in question. The only drawback is you should wipe it off before firing. Of course in an emergency you could fire the weapon without a wipe down. I have used it for years and they have just started making it again.
 
My 2 Cents

I have used a product called Armordillo i think is the name from Blue Wonder (Novum Solutions). It is almost like an auto wax for your guns. Works great for me. Also a friend of mine uses some special bags that look like the kind computer parts come in. I am not sure what they are called but he adds Silica gel packs and seals them up. Hope this helps!
 
Is the silica that you're using the indicating type? If so, is it turning pink quickly? I agree that humidity is likely your problem, but since you're seeing corrosion so quickly, it would be nice to be certain.

Is there anything anything else stored in the same room as the safe that could possibly be putting off any fumes? (fertilizer, cleaning chemicals, etcetera)?
 
+1 on the Eezox.
I do not consider 50% humidity to be bad--where I live it is seldom below 70%, and is often far above that mark. Yet I have no rusting issues with any of my guns. I attribute this to Eezox. Read this:
http://www.6mmbr.com/corrosiontest.html
And this:
http://www.thegunzone.com/rust.html
I have a Goldenrod, but I only wipe down my pistols/revolvers after shooting. My rifles and shotguns (which never get shot :() get wiped down once per year if I think of it.
 
Nope its my old bed room @ my parents house. They need to be in a safe due to the youngens still there. Bringing them with me isn't allowed. :( (YAY School)

Yeah silica turns pink in 2-3 days. its this one. aluminum one on right side.

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/t...&parentType=index&indexId=cat20797&hasJS=true

I have a large dehumidifier that runs in the basement I like to open the safe when I come visit and place the vents into it. pumps it full of dry air around 30% humidity.

They get cleaned and oiled after use, then I wipe them with the silicone cloth before they are stored. Bores look ok? Granted I don't have a bore light or anything.
 
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Eezox what would you recommend decreasing your guns with prior and should I try and remove the surface rust before applying it? This is such a pain in my ass... I never had these problems when I stored my guns out in the open.
 
What oil/grease are you using to lubricate with? Are you applying it to the exterior surfaces before storing?
silicone cloth is good at wiping off fingerprints and other minor things. I would not rely on it to protect for long term storage in adverse conditions.
Birchwood Casey RIG grease is what I use. Apply with a patch of sheepskin. Put it on light if you are taking out in the field, heavy for long term storage.
Spray a little CLP around the internals every few months and don't wipe it off. Using the grease is probably a better idea, but then you really need to clean it before using, not just should as grease gets gummy over time(IMO).

Just realize this is my advice for long term storage. You are going to need to do alittle cleaning on any such firearm before using. All the grease and CLP will pick up particulate and cause you problems in the field.

I have not found a way to keep firearms safe from corrosion during long term storage without gobbing them up with grease/oil.
 
You don't have to do anything special with Eezox. It's not a heavy gunky kind of thing and lots of people use it on the guns they use every day, not just stored guns.

You should be able to get off the surface rust with a nylon brush, then spray the Eezox on internally and externally. You don't need to remove it when you decide to shoot the gun. When you put it away again, just put another layer on.

It's an excellent product.
 
Since you mentioned that you have better results with guns stored out in the open compared to in the safe, I am going to point out one more thing that you might not like to hear: Many people have the same problem that you have, because the humidity inside the safe is coming from INSIDE the safe. Apparently, the fire-rating of the safe comes from water-saturated panels (I think it is dry wall board that has been saturated in water, but I'm not sure) that is between the outer steel and the inner lining of the safe. That is what actually "absorbs" the heat during a fire. So, some of that humidity can leak into the the inside of the safe. I suggest you look up the manufacturer of your brand of safe, and call them on the phone and say, "Some guy on the Internet says there is actually water in the insides of the safe and I'm having rusting issues, can you please assure me that the guy on the internet is full of it???" And, see what they say. And then get a new safe.

By the way, please report back to us what the manufacturer tells you because I would, genuinely, love to be WRONG about this point, but i don't think I am wrong, so let us know what you find out.
 
That's a really good point. I have a fireproof "Sentry" safe that caused rust blooms to form all over one of my pistols because of the moisture-impregnated fireproofing material.
 
Well, Sentry is a big company, and possibly not all of their safes have the impregnated fire-retardant material, but mine sure does. It's the model that has about the same interior capacity as a large microwave oven, with an electronic keypad on the front and a little shelf and document slot in the door.

If yours does have the impregnated material, it would certainly explain why even desiccant and a GoldenRod isn't working to keep the moisture away from a bedroom safe.
 
Rem Oil bore bright to clean
Click to expand...
I started with Rem Oil products. Absolutely the WORST products I have used. Like a man who lived throughout the depression and hoards food I think my period using rem oil has caused rust paranoia.
 
I am almost positive mine does it was one of the reasons I bought it. Go figure. Ill get the model number next time I'm over there.

I have several bottles of Oil that need to be used up I don't use Rem Oil exclusively.
 
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Reason I said that is I had a 10/22 stock barrel on a shelf next to my safe... It rolled off and fell behind a desk to the floor rested not 3 feet from my safe... For almost 12 months I had forgotten about it. I expected its bluing to be ruined but it looks far better then whats in my safe.
 
Someone should correct me if I'm wrong, but my understanding of the golden rod is that it maintains a constant temp which prevents condensation from forming on the gun surfaces when it gets cold, such as at night or during the winter. In your case, I wonder if the golden rod is just heating the safe interior and letting the moisture wick out of the fireproofing material. I had a golden rod in my safe for about 24 hours and then decided that I do not like electric hot things in contact with surfaces such as carpeting, important papers, ammo, etc, and I threw out the golden rod. Have not had any problems with rust, but that may or may not be due to the golden rod.
 
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