Long Term At-Ready Storage

S

SerenityNetworks

New member
I have a rifle, a nice rifle, that I would like to keep at my parents' farm. It is out-of-state and even when I visit it is rare that I have the opportunity to go shoot. Still, having a rifle there gives me more opportunity than zero. There are out buildings where I can keep the rifle secure, but none have heating or air conditioning. This is in Iowa, so the temperatures will range from well below zero to over 100 degrees. How can I best keep the rifle properly stored (pushing maybe even a year at a time) and yet have it ready for immediate use?

Will cleaning it, oiling it, and putting it inside a piece of threaded PVC pipe with a box of dessicant do it properly? Should I put it in a sock or leave it free? What can I pad it with that won't stick &/or cause other problems? Should I put a nipple on the PVC, take it to the tire place, and have them fill it with nitrogen? - These are the kind of things I'm wondering.

I've searched and seen a number of threads on proper storage, but I haven't found one that quite fits this circumstance. I'd appreciate any guidance on the matter.

Thanks in advance,
Andrew
 
The best reasonable arrangement I've found so far, is to liberally lube it with a good oil and put it in a silicone sock.
A mix of good old STP and gun oil seems to be about right.
Then put that inside a hard case that's waterproof and air tight.
Something with seals.
I once did that with a shotgun, forgot about it for eight years, in a semi heated and cooled basement.
It was fine with only one spot of surface rust, under the fore-end, that didn't get lubed.
 
The best/easiest way is the way the military now does it.
Wrap the gun in a couple of sheets of vci paper and seal in a special plastic bag.

Then if you want you can seal in a plastic tube to protect it from getting banged around.

The paper gives off a vapor that drives out moisture and surrounds the gun with a vapor that totally prevents rust for at least 10 years.
You do HAVE to use the special "hard" plastic bags because these won't pass moisture and allow the vapor to escape.
All standard plastic bag will pass moisture and air.
Best, if you want to use the gun all you have to do is open the bag and take it out.

To store, apply a thin coat of a good lube like CLP Breakfree to neutralize fingerprints, wrap with a few sheets of the paper and tightly seal in the special bag.

http://www.brownells.com/gunsmith-t...ls/gun-wrap-paper/gunwrap-paper-prod1197.aspx

http://www.brownells.com/gunsmith-t...iple-tough-premium-storage-bags-prod1154.aspx
 
Thank you for both suggestions, although I'm certainly going with the VCI Paper and Impervious Bag strategy. It's easier and less expensive than what I had in mind. To leave the scope mounted I would need to use 6" PVC and that is significantly more expensive than the paper/plastic solution. In addition, it does exactly what I want; that is, take the gun out and shoot it - not spending a good share of the time I have just getting it ready to shoot.

I am so glad that I asked.

Thank you,
Andrew
 
Try here...

There are a few US military FMs(field manuals) or TMs(training manuals) meant for SOCOM(spec ops or Rangers, SEALs, SWCC, ParaRescue, SF, etc). These operators & commandos are trained to hide or "cache" weapons & supplies(food water ammo etc). :cool:
Some online sources for military FMs(the newer web or CD Rom types) include: www.deltapress.com www.paladin-press.com www.uscav.com www.actiongear.com www.gunvideo.com .
Top CLPs good for long term storage include Eezox, LPX, Gunzilla & the museum grade Breakfree.

Brownells, www.Brownells.com & MidwayUSA.com are good sources.

ClydeFrog
www.gunzilla.us www.weaponshield.com www.eezox.com www.nra.org
 
Since you're transferring it to your parents why don't they just keep it in the house? The worries are much less that way.
 
Sport45 said:
Since you're transferring it to your parents why don't they just keep it in the house? The worries are much less that way.
Click to expand...

It's simply circumstances. Worries would be significantly greater with the rifle at the house. Although I ordered the paper and bags (they will be perfect for off-season storage) I may not take the rifle to the farm anyway. I was just thinking of convenience.
 
If you don't care for the cleanup, good old Cosmoline or RIG grease. However, if you have a good tight box or case to store them in, say made from wood, or a cabinet, you can use several good sized bags of Desiccant, after oiling them well. Once a year, the Desiccant needs to be taken out, and run the a clothes drier, but they will remove the moisture from the atmosphere around the guns, and stop the rust. Last, you could use a combination of both.

I also read about somebody packing them in plain Vaseline, and they didn't rust. Plus, a good paste wax before any of the above will help.
 
Yeah, I'll avoid the greasy substances. My goal is to be able to store and use the rifle much as if I just had it at home. The BreakFree Collector seems like it will be an excellent second assurance. I love the fact that it is a grab-and-go protectant; that I don't need to clean anything off before shooting the rifle.

With the input I've received, it looks like I can meet the goal of keeping it simple with the following:
1) Run a patch through the barrel and wipe down the rifle with BreakFree Collector.
2) Wrap the rifle in the protecting paper.
3) Seal the rifle and paper in the impervious bag.
4) Place the bag, paper, and rifle in an inexpensive hard case (along with some BreakFree, patches, rod, cloth, paper, etc.)
5) Secure and store.
6) Take the rifle out and go shooting.
7) Repeat starting at Step 1.

I don't see how it can get much easier than the above process.

I'll want to keep supplies in the case that will allow me to store the rifle again without needing to take it home. Therefore I'll keep in the hard sided case a cleaning rod, patches, wipe cloth, BreakFree Collector, and a vapor protectant of some sort. I do see there are several different vapor based protectants available that are similar in function to the paper. I've ordered the paper, so I'll use it initially. But I don't know the details on its shelf life. Depending on the instructions I find when I get it, I may need to swap to some other vapor type protectant that will allow me to keep what I need in the storage case along with the rifle.

Does anyone note any issues with the strategy above?

Thanks again,
Andrew
 
Air tight pelican case and a bottle of drierite or similar drying agent should work just fine for your application, even if you have temperature fluctuations you're still storing it under cover, not burying it.
 
mapsjanhere said:
Air tight pelican case and a bottle of drierite or similar drying agent should work just fine for your application, even if you have temperature fluctuations you're still storing it under cover, not burying it.
Click to expand...
True. but the paper and bags are significantly less costly than a Pelican case. With the above strategy I'm getting supplies that I can use for this purpose and at home for less than one top quality case.
 
SerenityNetworks:

If you, or someone you know, take certain medicines, they have the small tubes or bags of Desiccant in the bottle. I save these, when I can get them, and throw a few in the gun case with a gun. I think they're putting them in aspirin bottles now too.

However, the larger bags thats sold last a long time, and you just throw them in drier about once a year, then back into the gun case. They will catch any moisture from temp. changes and humidity that get within the case. I use these in my gun cabinet also.

Last, a good coat of wax on the metal surfaces will help a lot. Just let it dry, and use a cloth to buff it off, just like applying it to a car.
 
You mentioned storing a scope with the rifle.
There's a caution with the protective paper, concerning possible damage to aluminum.
 
g.willikers said:
You mentioned storing a scope with the rifle.
There's a caution with the protective paper, concerning possible damage to aluminum.
Click to expand...
Hmmmm. That could be an issue. The scope is a Bushnell. It most certainly has an aluminum body - powder coated, but aluminum nonetheless. Are all the vapor products alike in that regards? If so, I may have to remove the scope, which isn't awful but it's not what I had planned. My brother &/or his kids may end up shooting the rifle and they are not as iron friendly as me. Decent quick release bases &/or rings just increases the cost of this idea and the Bushnell isn't that great of a scope to place that kind of investment into.

Perhaps I need to skip the paper, use BreakFree Collector, and place a desiccant inside the bag. Thoughts?
 
If I were you, I would get a couple of 100 gram desiccant bags and throw in the bag with the gun. Make sure to try and get most of the air out before sealing it. Anything to keep moisture away is a plus. A bag of 10, 100 gram, bags will run about $14.00 or so. You can always run them through the drier each time you open the bag, and they work good as new.
 
1. PVC Pipe big enough to store what you want to in it.

2. Solid end cap at one end and threaded at the other, teflon tape or teflon pipe dope on the threads.

3. Drill and tap 2 1/8" pipe thread holes on it, one for a shrader valve and one for a pressure guage.

4. Cement your ends on correctly and let them dry till they no longer have any odor/fumes after being closed up for a day or 2.

5. Do a practice fit with the screw on end and pressurize the tube and let it sit for a week and watch the pressure, if it doesn't drop it's air tight.

6. Liberally spray the gun down with the gun oil you like, sock it, seal it and take it to a car dealer that has Nitrogen in a tank (It's like .02% humid) and pressurize it. If it makes you feel better about it drop in a bag of dessicant with it.

7. Stored

Keeps ammo nice too FWIW.
 
The PVC strategy was how I started, but I found that I'd need a 6" tube. The total cost ends up being more than a good quality rifle case. If I removed the scope then I could use a 4" tube, which would be cost effective but no more so than the bag strategy. Plus the bag strategy doesn't require a trip to the filing station. I think the PVC strategy would be good if I wanted to bury the rifle, had to keep it stored for a longer time, or keep it in a harsher environment.

Thanks,
Andrew
 
If you guys use PVC be sure to get the thin wall stuff. Its cheaper and lighter and will probably suit your needs of being waterproof.

I have a couple cz 455 rimfire barrels only stored in some 1" pvc with one end having a threaded pvc plug for access. Painted O.D. green no doubt.

I realize you guys are trying to stash a whole gun but thought I'd add the part about thin wall......so you will know it comes in differnt weights AKA pipe schedules.

I know more about PVC than I want to.:D
 
Yeah, the foam core pipe is about 1/2 the price of the solid and I believe more than adequate to the task. PVC just isn't as good a solution as others for this particular scenario. For other scenarios I can see it being the best solution.
 
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