takeing rust off an old gun

[thebigc]

i have an old eli whitney 1816/42 conversion to percucssion the lock says new haven 1842 but there is the brass peice that shows it was once a flintlock.
that i bought at an antique store the barrel was chopped and a new front sight added there is no rear sight and it appears the forearm was allso shortened though in a quality manner when i got it the paperwork said it had the lock factory galvinized for the owner when i took the barrel off the stock number and barrel number match so it appears to be origonal the lock works as in it cocks and releases when you want to manualy lower it but it appears the spring is busted or removed and i dont know how to take it apart to check its definitly a wall hanger.

it has like a layer of rust on it mixed with the patina on the breech end where there would usualy be markings i guess
i cant read anything do you think its allright if i gave it a soak in this rust remover made for antique cars that removes rust and kills active rust but does not get rid of the patina i dont think this thing has much collectable value as it is i guess sporterized is it worth it to give it a soak and see if i can lift any markings or would it damage the value of the firearm if it even has any

 

[rcmodel]

I know nothing about rust removers used on antique cars.

But it seems to me anything that will take off rust & kill rust is going to do the same to the patina.

Patina is rust, combined with dirt & dried oil & sweat & blood, and a few other things you simply cannot replace.

I would use nothing that involved soaking.
I would clean it lightly with 0000 Extra Fine steel wool & oil.

Go easy and it will leave the brown patina in place.

rc

 

[GrammatonCleric]

copper removal?

I couldn't find where to put this question, my apologies if misplaced. A week or two ago, I was practicing my draw-stroke with my parkerized M1911. I was wearing the holster over jeans, and the copper rivets scratched some copper into the end of the slide on the right side. Is there any way to remove this without ruining the weapon's finish? For the record, I was using a belt-slide holster that does not fully cover the pistol.

 

[rcmodel]

Copper Solvent bore cleaner will remove copper.

If it scratched into the rough parkerized surface, you are SOL.

rc

 

[Shadow 7D]

This would be better in gunsmithing

I have used everything from a dremil and steal wool, navel jelly and blue/rust removers to attack rust.

The problem is that any chemical to remove rust, will also remove bluing, if you're trying to save the finish (not refinish) copper/brass brushes are about the best bet, then find a finish friendly (usually says so on the bottle) copper bore fouling remover (blue otter etc) and wipe the brass/copper color off of the gun and protect, protect protect, if you just want a pretty wall hanger, and are willing to spend the time/money consider refinishing it, also can take it to a industrial metal or paint shop, they have vats of nasty stuff to eat rust or sandblasting, then you start with bare metal to refinish.

 

[Jim K]

On that old gun, I would just kill any active rust and pretty much let it go. I like G96 Gun Treatment for general cleaning and it should do the job.

BTW, before you do anything, make sure the gun is not loaded. Drop a ramrod in the barrel and measure how far down it goes vs the outside of the barrel. If there is an inch or so difference and a steel rod drops with a thud instead of a clang, the gun may be loaded.

Jim

 

[caduceus]

+1 G96 Complete Gun Treatment.

 

[caduceus]

+1 G96 Complete Gun Treatment

 

[Pyro]

I've been using WD-40 to kill the rust off my old revolver, been working pretty good.

 

[Taniwha]

Now, Don`t laugh but a friend of mine who restores old guns, uses a solution of water (H2O) and Molasses. Leaves the parts in there to soak and they come out beautifully de-rusted. For really bad ones it can take up to a couple of weeks, or a couple of days for lightly rusted. And it dosn`t mar any finishes.

 

[Jim K]

I don't know about molasses, but you can kill active rust by boiling the part in distilled water; that won't remove any rust but will kill it.

Another way to remove rust without damage to a finish is with oil and brass or copper wool. A lot of folks use steel wool, but steel wool will scratch a blued finish; you can't see the scratches with the naked eye, but they show up under magnification.

Jim

 

[rondog]

How about electrolysis? Or will that remove bluing too? I've seen some fantastic results on some rusty M1 Garand parts off a rifle that was in a fire, but they were parkerized.