How do I clean grease out of my new Garand?

C

Clead

New member
I just picked up my Winchester Garand from the shop today, and all the nooks and crannies are filled with old, tacky grease. The furniture set is also quite dark and embedded with it. Any suggestions as to how to degrease the whole rifle? This is just in the house, as I don't have a proper shop to work in. Please help!
Thanks in advance,
Clead.
 
I have had very good luck attacking cosmoline grease with straight Simple Green. Let it sit on the parts (metal only) for a few minutes to begin working, and then scrub with an old toothbrush to get remainder of the crud off. Then I rinse with very hot water and blow dry with a hair dryer and apply lube. As for the stock being saturated with oil/grease, others have said they use easy off oven cleaner. I have not tried this though. Good luck!

Nathan
 
The Easy Off oven cleaner method is used to strip the stock for refinishing. If you just want to clean the wood, use Murphy Oil Soap. It is made for cleaning wood and works great. You should be able to find it anywhere that sells household cleaning products.
 
MEK or acetone works very well on the grease just be sure to use it in a well ventilated area and use gloves to keep it off of your hands.

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Carlyle Hebert
 
Lighter fluid works pretty well too.

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Abandon your animosities and make your sons Americans. Robert E. Lee

Beware the three D's: The dumb, drunk, and deranged.

chadintex@hotmail.com
 
Mineral spirits worked pretty well on all parts, wood included, of the Mauser I recently acquired. Admittedly, the stock still sweats oil when out in the sun.
 
Old military trick. Take it to the mess hall and steam clean it.

Don't be like a relative of mine and chuck metal parts into the dishwasher. That grease can clog up the lines and git the wimmen all pissed.
 
I've degreased my share of mausers, enfields, and SKS's over the years. My suggestion, a bucket of Diesel fuel or gasoline if you prefer. Do this outside. Dip the action in about a half gallon of the stuff and use a brush and rag to run it over the rest of the action. Use rubber gloves. I used a stiff-bristled brush of the type you brush barbeque sauce on. Gasoline evaporates quicker than mineral spirits. I never threw the stuff out, but had a can full of Gas that I'd strain and reuse.

For the stock, I used Murphy's Oil Soap also.
 
As a related topic, any good ideas for removing tape adhesive from a wooden stock? I don't really want to refinish it (I kind of like the patina) but someone put duct tape on the stock and there is adhesive left. Will the Murphy's remove this? Is there a solvent that will do the trick but not hurt the finish? (Oiled stock on a CMP Garand). Thanks.

Andrew
 
Limited heat will cook out much of the oil. I've set several guns in the hot sun and would just go out an wipe the oil off the stock every hour or so. A wood stove also works but takes much more attention.
When this stops working I move on to other method already mentioned.
Had a guy say to use kitty litter for the stocks, he said it would really pull the oil out of them. Just pack it in a bag and let sit. Cheap, safe, and easy if it works.

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He who dares wins.
NRA Life Memeber
 
For the duct tape a bit of hot water and soap and a LOT of elbow grease will get it off. As far as baking it in the sun for the grease that will soften it but down here if you leave it in the sun for more than 15 mins its so hot it will alter the temper of the steel! :rolleyes: :D :D

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Carlyle Hebert
 
Two things to add. OK, two and a half.

Acetone and a q-tip should loosen the Duct tape glue and not harm the finish.

The Cosmoline will come out with all the afore mentioned cures, but if you don't have the means to remove the handguards, then how are you to remove all the crap that got into the nooks and crannies? I know that there can be a lot of junk under the handguards because 30 rounds through my mauser in about 15 minutes got the grease hot enough that it literally ran out of the stock (and all over my trousers!!!) THAT is one way to get the grease out! :D

The old timers recommended several coats of whiting applied to the stock to leach out the residue that would ruin a finish if it were left in the stock. Does Brownell's still sell whiting? If not, then I'll dig out my 'Kinks' and get the recipe...!
 
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