[Pit4Brains]

My fairly new RCBS FL .25-06 dies are beginning to show signs of rust. Theres a tad bit on the top and some speckling around the brand / caliber stamp on the side. I looked at the resizing ball and it was spotted as well. I have kept my dies on top of my safe, in a closet, in an air-conditioned house, in Arizona. Our Monsoon just got going but it has been rather dry here, and the ac keeps the house fairly dry anyhow.
I disassembled the die and I have it drenched with G96 CLP in a tin can.
I know a lot of you are in the east and the south where the humidity is high..
What do you all do to keep your dies from rusting?

[ArchAngelCD]

Here in PA it is humid but I've been lucky not to have a rust problem with my dies. That G96 should do a good job removing and preventing rust. Like with guns just leave a very thin film of G96 on the dies. A friend has rust problems with his dies and all he needed to stop the problem was to spray a little Remoil on the dies before putting them away.

[bds]

Fine grit walnut media with some NuFinish does wonders on surface rust and leaves a nice residual coating that prevents future rusting (Since the media will pack inside the dies, you'll need to do some manual cleaning/polishing of inside the dies).

http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=586563

Rusty dies before:
http://www.thehighroad.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=140187&stc=1&d=1302417801

And after some aggressive rust removal and polishing in walnut/NuFinish:
http://www.thehighroad.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=140202&d=1302422148
http://www.thehighroad.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=140205&stc=1&d=1302422450

[Pit4Brains]

That walnut shake really did a job on those dies.
My dies aren't remotely as corroded as those.. have you checked the inner bore of those dies for pitting or any other corrosion damage?

[bds]

have you checked the inner bore of those dies for pitting or any other corrosion damage?
These belonged to a friend and fortunately the inside of the dies were well oiled and had no rust. All the rusting was on the outside of the dies. I had doubts but the die surfaces polished up very well.

As to long-term rust prevention of NuFinish, these dies were polished in April 2011 and they are still shiny with no surface rusting!

[blarby]

Something like BDS's method....

Throw them in your vib tumbler with a good helping of bore cleaner.

Run it for a few hours.

Then throw it in your vib tumbler with Nu-Finish for a few hours.

I treat all the dies I pick up second hand this way, and periodically clean my collection as well.

It works amazingly...it really, really does.

Nufinish does a great job of preventing oxidization of many materials... tool steel being one of them.

I restore and clean socket sets and steel hand tools the same way..... bore cleaner is great stuff... I use hoppes elite.

[777TRUTH]

Thanks for the tip BDS. Funny I never thought about doing it that way.

I use WD-40 for rust prevention on my dies. Works for me in the humid Florida summers.

[mgmorden]

One warning about putting them in the tumbler: make absolutely sure every single piece of media is out of the threads before reassembly. I had a 7.5x55 fl sizing die seize up beyond repair once when I tumbled it and put the decapping rod back in and a piece of media (crushed walnut hull) was still in the threads.

[cfullgraf]

I have kept my dies on top of my safe, in a closet, in an air-conditioned house, in Arizona.

Depending on where the closet is in your house, it may not be as dry in there as the rest of the house. Generally, closets do not have air supplied to them and the air does not circulate in them.

[ColtPythonElite]

Is Arizona so humid that dies rust in a climate controlled house?

My dies have been kept in my basement for 20 years with no rusting. With a dehumidifier, the humidity is usually under 50%....I wouldn't think the living quarters in an AC home would be higher.

[wild willy]

I would think in Arizona your dies rusted where you handled them.I just wipe mine off with an oily rag before putting them away .I've never had any problems.Don't know about the expander ball

[243winxb]

Break Free CLP is good for storage. Military uses it.

[Pit4Brains]

Throw them in your vib tumbler with a good helping of bore cleaner.

Run it for a few hours.

Then throw it in your vib tumbler with Nu-Finish for a few hours.



Is this done with the same media or do you have some that is use with the bore cleaner and some that is used with the new finish?

Definately some good ideas here.. Thanks

[Pit4Brains]

Break Free CLP is good for storage. Military uses it.

I know..:D

[jr_roosa]

I like Eezox, but only because it's what I have for my guns.

No rusting yet.

-J.

[ranger335v]

I've tried a LOT of 'gun' oils. The very best light fishing reel and gun oil I've found in my 60+ years of toying with real guns (and reels) is any brand of Automatic Transmission Fluid; it has excellant lubing qualities, good penatration and very good film strenght that effectively prevents rust, all without leaving a film of gooey varnish when it evaporates as all oils eventually do. ATF not only works as well as any and better than most costly "gun" oils, it's quite inexpensive too; I get it by the quart from Walmart's automotive oil department.

[rcmodel]

Generally, closets do not have air supplied to them and the air does not circulate in them.Also generally, closets get slightly damp clothes put in them from the dryer every laundry day.

rc

[Pit4Brains]

Also generally, closets get slightly damp clothes put in them from the dryer every laundry day.

Actuall its the closet at the end of the hall. I't's my sporting goods locker with gun safe, ammo, compound bow, holsters, cases fishing poles, etc. I have hardwood floors and plenty of ventillation under the door. I don't think it's a humidity problem, but more along the lines of just being plain, exposed steel.

[brickeyee]

Put some VCI (Vapor-phase Corrosion Inhibitor) treated chips in the die boxes.

Replace about every year with a new chip.

[Friendly, Don't Fire!]

I have never oiled my dies at all, some are nearly 30 years old and look as good as ones that are one year old.

The secret?

I have my reloading bench in my basement which is extremely dry all year 'round! Of course, in the most humid summer months (June, July & August), I run a dehumidifier as I also store many construction and woodworking tools down there which I do not want to rust, and which also have no rust at all. I do not have to coat or treat them with anything at all.

The other months of the year, my boiler with many zones and many, many feet of zone piping within the basement keeps the basement very dry.:fire:

[rcmodel]

I have never had a die rust either in 50 years.

Stored in the basement, which leaks through the cracked wall occasionally.

However I am blessed with nontoxic sweat.

I know folks who can rust the chrome off a trailer hitch ball just by touching it with sweaty hands.

Seems like you might be one of those, only just not quite as severe a case.

A good wipe down with a RIG-RAG, or even a wipe down and spritz of sizing lube should prevent it.

rc

[tnguyengp]

Have you considered moisture barrier bags (http://www.protectivepackaging.net/moisture-barrier-bags)? Moisture barrier bags, (also known as foil bags, alufoil bags or mylar bags), are one of the most effective packaging solutions on the market today to protect against corrosive damage caused by humidity, moisture, oxygen, salt spray, aromas, grease and other airborne contaminants. Products bagged and sealed in properly controlled production environments will remain protected indefinitely, as long as the correct moisture barrier materials remain intact.

[NeuseRvrRat]

you can make your own little silica packs to throw in your die boxes. they sell silica in hobby shops and places like michael's. it'll be with the flowers and stuff because people use it for drying flowers. get some of those cone coffee filters and pour some of the silica in the there. trim it off and glue it closed. put one if every die box and replace it every so often. you can put them in ammo cans with your rainy day ammo too.

whenever you know you're not gonna use a set of dies for a while, put a good film of CLP on them, inside and out. you might want to wipe them off before use the next time, so put a note in the box to remind you.

[Pit4Brains]

!!!

[Pit4Brains]

Well I went and checked my .30-06 dies and whattaya know!

I know folks who can rust the chrome off a trailer hitch ball just by touching it with sweaty hands.

Seems like you might be one of those, only just not quite as severe a case.

A big ol' fingerprint in rust..
168120

I think I'll do the tumbler thing with the nu finish this evening and give em a little CLP.

you can make your own little silica packs to throw in your die boxes.

I can get those at work for free. A lot of aircraft parts are shipped with them in the package.. Thanks for the tip!

[redneck2]

FWIW..all dies are not created equal IMO. I've had a couple of sets of RCBS. They rust while you watch. The only reason I'd take RCBS is if they were free and I could re-sell them for a profit.

This hard to type.....but....Lee dies seem to rust way less than RCBS. Actually, I've gotten rid of most everything else and stick with the Lee Deluxe sets that have the collet neck sizer.

[Peter M. Eick]

I hose them down with triflow oil and toss used oil patches on them in the box. Kind of a mess but I have not had any rust in Houston since I started that process. Works great but it is a mess.

[Mauser lover]

I leave mine sitting in a puddle of motor oil. I wipe them off, and out, with a little acetone before I start sizing. I re-lube with some case lubricant after I clean off the motor oil. When I am finished, I apply a generous helping of more motor oil, and set them back in the tray that they came in. (Lee Deluxe, RCBS, and Herters)

[germ]

I had a few dies showing some exterior surface rust, so a few months ago I cleaned them up real well and gave 'em a coating of Eezox inside and out. So far so good.

[RainDodger]

Wow. Now I'm pretty amazed. 40+ years of reloading and I never thought to drop anything other than brass cases in my tumbler. :)

I live in an extremely wet area (a very wet area of WA state) and despite the fact that my reloading bench is in a heated workshop, some of my L.E. Wilson case holders and case gages have (had!) a slight patina of rust.

Just today, I dumped a bunch of spare Hoppes #9 into my tumbler that had some older media in it, and then tossed in a couple of the Wilson gages. My, oh, my, are they pretty now. No rust patina anymore, and they're clean and shiny.

Previous to this, I was keeping them in small plastic bags sprayed with the oil of choice - generally WD-40 or something. Now I'm simply submerging them in a glass jar of nice clean motor oil. I know that sounds drastic, but it's easy enough to fish one out, wipe off and use. There is literally too much moisture here for dessicants to work well. (a qt. size desicant can lasted maybe 3 days in my safe, so I went to one of the rod-type heaters).

Anyway, that was a long story to say something simple - tumbling tools can work well! Thanks for the tip.

[bds]

Glad to help. :D

[Pit4Brains]

A lot of different methods coming up here... cool.
I tumbled mine last night with nu finish ( which I am using for the fist time) in some virgin lyman green corn cob. I know walnut was specified but all I have is corn cob. The nufinish seemed to clump rather quickly and even after a half hour, I could stir the vibrating media and get clumps to surface. I assume this is normal and I'm going to keep this media separate for dies, collets and loaded ammo.
The dies came out with a noticeable slick finish to them. I think this will do the trick..

[bds]

For rust removal, I would recommend walnut media which has very hard and sharp edges/corners.

I use NuFinish primarily with fine grit walnut media on the "dry" side. For new batch of media, I add 2 capfuls and run the tumbler 10-15 minutes until the clumps are gone. I even use a wooden stick to stir the media while the tumbler is running which helps with polish distribution (5 minutes).

Once the polish is fully distributed in the media with no clumps, I add brass cases until the tumbling action starts to slow down. Some add an additional capful of NuFinish to each batch of brass but I don't. I add a capful every 3-4 batches. If you add too much polish, it may leave spots on the case surface.

Use of cut up used dryer sheets or paper towel will extend the life of media.

[Pit4Brains]

I add brass cases until the tumbling action starts to slow down.

Is this the initial cleaning of the brass or are you referring to using fine media and wax for loaded rounds? I keep my original "cleaning" media in a different coffee can to tumble recently fired brass.

[bds]

Is this the initial cleaning of the brass or are you referring to using fine media and wax for loaded rounds?
I clean/polish spent brass case before resizing. Keep in mind that NuFinish is not a wax, but a "paint/finish cleaner/polish" that helps remove fouling and tarnish/stains.

I tested other carnauba wax based products and I got shiny but dirty/dark looking cases. :banghead:

The added bonus is that residual polish left on the surface of the case acts like case lube and decrease resizing efforts along with keeping the case surface from tarnishing over time.

[handyman163]

The Walnut media (lizard litter from the pet store) with NuFinish sure works wonders. I usually add a capfull to fresh media, then every other time tumbling, add a half cap or so of odorless mineral spirits. That mineral spirits really speeds up the cleaning process, and it seems to give brass a much lighter/brighter gold color that's almost as bright as nickel. It rejuvenates the polish in there too so it saves from adding more - and it's cheaper than the nu-finish.

I'm sure the mineral spirits would aid in breaking down corrosion too.

[JLDickmon]

I hose mine down with PB Blaster in the box when I'm done.. never thought of the tumbler thing..

Freakin A Dittybag! that's a good idea!

[elkslayer4x5]

I lined the interior of my die storage boxes with VCI paper
http://images.imagelinky.com/1351702546.JPG (http://images.imagelinky.com/1351702546.JPG)

[HEAVY METAL 1]

I coated the outsides of mine with Johnson's paste wax and store in die box with VCI chips-no problems.

[blarby]

Disassemble, and tumble in walnut and mineral spirits for 4 hours to remove corrosion.

Transfer to corn cob grit , and tumble overnight with nufinish.

I treat all of my dies this way since fixing the first, and it has yet to let me down.


Its also a great way to treat hardware such as nuts and bolts.

[GaryL]

I forget where I read it, maybe here....

Anyway, in the old days, guys would put camphor pellets in their tool boxes to keep their tools from rusting. I noticed a slight patina on a couple sets this summer, so I figured I'd try doing that in my reloading die drawer. Got some granulated camphor several months back, so now it smells like camphor in there. Too soon to tell how well it's working, but we do get crazy humid here.

[HOWARD J]

http://imageshack.us/a/img202/9183/dsc03265md.th.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/202/dsc03265md.jpg/)
I store mine in plastic containers from super market or dollar store.
If they will be in container for more than 6-8 months I spray Barricade rust preventor into container.
Never have any rust

[bob4]

What great ideas here. Mine are beginning to rust a bit and not that old. ( SW Florida) Can't wait to try some ideas here. I do know that I'm one of those people who's perspiration is more toxic to steel and other metals that others. This is a fact.
Just a guess here. But if your a salt-aholic your sweating it out. Salt and steel is a no no.

[mtrmn]

Do a search on Fluid Film. I bought a case on ebay and find more uses for it every day. Will have to buy another case soon...
Also VPI paper works well. It comes packed with many automotive parts, bearings etc.
VPI=Vapor Phase Inhibitive

[Float Pilot]

I use the old RCBS case lube in my dies. It does not ruin powder or primers like petrolium based lube/cleaners.
Not much, just a light wipe down with a rag if they are going to be stored for awhile.
If they get sticky I clean them with de-natured alcohol.

I started hand-loading in 1970. I still own those dies. They have never rusted.

[10 Spot Terminator]

REM OIL to keep the rust off. Saw test results on bare steel plates of all the common oils and touted rust inhibitors and the REM OIL beat them all. This is my go to oil now for all my firearms as well .

[thump_rrr]

Boeshield T-9 and Boeshield rust free.
They can be found as a combo pack at Sears in the tool section.
Rust free is used to remove rust while T-9 is used to prevent corrosion.

[george d dennis]

i use rig in the spray can.