My setup is rusting!

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Shrinkmd

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I was out in the garage working the press when I noticed some surface rust on my case gauge, the sides of the powder measure (LNL), even on a powder rotor in storage I had degreased.

I am in the process of disassembling everything and CLP/steel wooling off the rust. Will my setup be safe in the basement (finished, climate controlled, humidity 55% or so) as compared to the garage? (we have had a lot of rain lately, and it is summertime)

I was hoping to load in the garage instead of the house, but not if my equipment rusts away! Once I get the rust off and then degrease the dies, powder tube, etc, should they be ok in the house? I haven't had any rusting issues in the basement otherwise.

I am upset.
 
Well, I would certianly guess your setup will be better off in the basement. You could also look for a (or 3) dehumidifier at garage sales etc. That might help if you want to leave it in the garage. I think I personally would just take it inside though.
 
Before I had a climate controlled basement, Dies, blued sides of my Uniflow measure, bare steel areas of my presses; anywhere there was steel that could be treated, got a very light coat of Lee Liquid ALOX. Even coat my blued CCW with it, and no rust even with skin contact.

Lots of other uses around the house/garage, and it stays put like cosmoline until removed with solvent... It's basically the same compound as used in Ziebart, Waxol, other car treatments.
 
I moved everything inside for now, and I will disassemble it all over the next day or so and scrub off the surface rust, examine my dies, etc.

Do you think I will be able to lightly coat with CLP and set it up again in the garage, or should it just stay in the climate control? I was hoping to keep it in the garage...
 
Just out of curiosity, why do you want to be in the garage? I hate loading in the garage,I have a spare room in my house setup as my gun/reloading room.
 
Reload in the house...

where the climate control is, fer cripes' sake! Your equipment and supplies will last longer with less maintenance. Your stored ammo will do better too.

Nothing inherently dangerous about reloading in the house--Keep the kids and pets off the equipment and supplies, of course; don't smoke in the reloading room, of course; use all the normal safety precautions, of course.

But the reloading supplies aren't going to spontaneously explode on you; they don't give off toxic gases.

Properly stored smokeless gunpowder doesn't explode in a fire, either. It burns, rather enthusiastically, but unless it is confined so as to build up pressure, there's no particular danger. Lead in its metallic form is not well absorbed through skin--just wash your hands after handling bullets/shot, and before eating or smoking. Be careful to pick up ALL spilled live primers before they go through the vacuum cleaner--they won't explode the vacuum, but they might damage it, and anger your wife. Better yet, have a vacuum with the filter in front of the fan, and do your own vacuuming in the reloading room.

Now, OTOH, the PVC pipes in your house, and the synthetic carpet, will kill you with their vapors if they burn. So will bleach combined with some detergents--chlorine gas is released.

I'm not trying to scare you, just to put the handling of smokeless gunpowder and the hobby of reloading into their proper perspective on a safety basis. It just isn't as if you were juggling vials of nitroglycerine, while standing in a cage of kraits and bushmasters.

Probably the most dangerous aspect of reloading is driving your car to the shop to get supplies.
 
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very lite CLP will work, to much is never good as it leaves a thick gunk after a while. just clean CLP off everything before powder comes in contact with it.
 
very lite CLP will work, to much is never good as it leaves a thick gunk after a while. just clean CLP off everything before powder comes in contact with it.
Click to expand...

When you say clean off the CLP, so you mean degrease with brake cleaner, or just use a paper towel or patch to wipe it out?

I feel like such a fool letting my equipment get rusted. I've been busy with so many other projects.

I was hoping to reload in the garage due to lead concerns, as the kids play downstairs in the basement and keep me company when I exercise down there. I am concerned about the primer dust from depriming, and contaminating the area with lead. I'm less worried about the bullets. If my kids were grown I wouldn't worry as much, but with little ones it is more of a concern.

Once I douse everything with CLP, do people think I could return equipment to the garage, or should I just change the cartridge on the HEPA vac and vacuum up any powder/dust after each session? It would be nice not being in the freezing garage...
 
I live in hot and humid FL....my gear is in my garage and has been for over 6 years....no rust......when I lived in NV, there was never a worry..........
 
rust

My Redding instructions say "no lube"...clean with alcohol. I keep equipment covered.That seems to do the trick. I think the problem with lube is powder fouling however we do use "case lube". Maybe you could coat your stuff with that. The wax sounds like a good idea too. I'm gonna call the Redding and see waht they say and will post here.
 
The better choice might well devolve into why you want to load in the garage instead of inside.

If it's "safety" related there is no valid reason for concern. Cans of ladies hair spray, PAM cooking spray, spray paint, etc, are far more flammable and dangerous than smokeless powder and other reloading components.

The lower humidity - and other climate controls - would sure make your reloading more comfortable, and reduce rust, inside.
 
Stupid Stupid Stupid

Did I neglect to mention that after degreasing my parts as per instructions, I never thought to oil the parts that don't touch the powder or primers. I assume that is why I ran into trouble. Duh.

Well, three and a half hours of breathing CLP, Remoil, and Kroil fumes later, I have cleaned and oiled every screw, every thread, every die, every part I could possibly take apart on both presses. I have newspaper spread out with a zillion little parts, all gleaming with CLP on them.

I think I could put my presses back together with my eyes closed at this point, which is a good thing. No more manual for me!

So, assuming that I actually coat everything in CLP and inspect it, do you think I could get my setup back into the garage? I built a whole nice workbench with backwall and cabinets just for my reloading setup (and it looked sweet) I wasn't planning on installing everything on a crummy old desk. Actually, it is all mounted on a board made of layers of plywood and 2x8, and I finished the top.

I will post pictures once it is all dried off and put back together later in the week. For now I want to take a break from reloading. Making 50 or so 38 specials has consumed about 7 hours today! Although it was my first run on the Hornady LNL, and it was fun. Powder check worked nicely, the measure was right on each time, and even their lame powder through expander was doing enough so that my lead bullets could seat ok (although the LNLPTX is coming in the mail and I will compare to see which does a better job...I had some more lube smeared than usual, although no lead shavings)

I know that years later I will laugh and look back on the knowledge learned "the hard way." Is it the only way we really learn?

I just read this article on The Gun Zone testing all the different gun oils to prevent rusting. It looks like Eezox is #1, and Breakfree CLP a close second (assuming you aren't planning on misting your equipment with salt spray daily for a couple of weeks!) Check it out:http://www.thegunzone.com/rust.html

Looks like I might be able to get my setup back where it belongs after all...
 
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Shrinkmd,
You're focusing on your equipment but I would be worried about my components if I were you. If the conditions are bad enough to rust your hardware what do you think is happening to your open powder and especially your primers? The above mention of a dehumidifier is a good idea. It's a small investment to protect all your equipment and components. Also, wide temperature swings going from Winter to Summer isn't good for primers and powder either. If your garage isn't heated or insulated that might be a problem too.
 
I live in Houston and load in the garage as well. Sometimes I load in the house, but everything is stored in the garage. (As far as I'm concerned, it's my wife's house and her rules.)

Anyway, everything that stays out has a light coat of rust that does not affect operation and i don't worry about it. Who cares if the press handle is rusty? I keep the toolheads wrapped in a cloth that I sprayed with silicone oil and then tucked away in a .50cal ammo can. The powder measures stay in a drawer when not in use. I've found that this effectively stops the rust.

I started storing this way after finding surface rust on the outside surfaces of the dies I left on the press. The insides weren't affected at all. The rust on the presses is cosmetic and does not bother me in the least. I will not ever be trying to sell the things since I have two boys that already have their eyes on my stuff.
 
Remoil!

my reloading setup is in my basement and i do keep a vent open in the room so the furnace in the winter and the air conditioning in the summer helps keep it drier in there.... but i also use a cotton cloth sprayed with REMOIL to wipe all the cast,steel, and anything else that might rust down.... a coat of remoil has kept everything rust free for years..... avoid useing wd40 on your stuff as it has some kind of water displacement agent that also dries the protection of oil and promotes rust...........
 
I use Eezox. One of the best rust preventatives there is, and it leaves a dry film rather than an oily film so powder, dust, and grit doesn't stick to it.
 
I use Eezox. One of the best rust preventatives there is, and it leaves a dry film rather than an oily film so powder, dust, and grit doesn't stick to it.
Click to expand...

I will be ordering some as well, once my next Midway order goes in. It looks like the perfect preservative, if there is such a thing.

Tonight I need to reassemble everything and stick it out there again. Crossing my fingers.

Also, for dies not being used, is the Hornady box a good idea? Or the foam insert? I thought you were not supposed to leave guns in foam cases because the foam can hold moisture against the metal or something like that. Of course, the dies were soaked nicely in CLP, so hopefully this will not be a problem moving forward.
 
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