Cosmoline is my friend!!

[Yugo5966]

Can anyone tell me the best method for removing cosmoline from a rifle stock?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[oneshooter]

Spray on oven cleaner seems to work well. BE CAREFULL it is caustic and will burn you!!

Remove all metal and spray the stock well with cleaner. Allow to set in the sunshine for 10minutes per side. Wash off with a water hose. Repeat as needed.

Oneshooter
Livin in Texas

 

[lacoochee]

I would post this question on the ODCMP forum

They have a lot of experience removing cosmoline, just look/search the various threads it comes up over and over again. BTW Oven Cleaner can seriously damage the wood in the stock, it seriously caustic and if you miss any of it it will continue to eat away the wood.

http://www.odcmp.org/new_forum/

 

[candr44]

I wash the heavy stuff off with mineral spirits then wipe it down. Then I use a heat gun to boil out the cosmoline. The boiling cosmoline takes a lot of dirt with it also.

 

[lacoochee]

Here are a couple of strings on the subject

http://www.odcmp.org/new_forum/topic.asp?ARCHIVE=true&TOPIC_ID=5287&SearchTerms=cosmoline,removal

http://www.odcmp.org/new_forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=18624&SearchTerms=removing,cosmoline

 

[Yugo5966]

Thanks...

I appreciate all the great info.

 

[mrmeval]

http://www.surplusrifle.com/

Build an 'easy bake' oven for them. Yes them. It's a disease called milsurpitis, you've got it it's just a matter of time. Muh Ha Ha Ha

It bakes out cosmo just fine.
http://www.surplusrifle.com/shooting2006/lowheatmethod/index.asp

 

[Warren]

Offer to buy him lunch? At some point while he is eating he should let go long enough for you to get the stock away from him.

 

[1 old 0311]

Dishwasher.

 

[mete]

Somewhere there's a website showing an oven made of garbage cans heated with a few lightbulbs. 150 F will melt the cosmoline removing most of it and a solvent will take the rest.

 

[Mac Attack]

Ditto the Dishwasher method. I have used it on all my cosmoline covered stocks and each time they came out great. No only does it remove the cosmoline but it also raises any small and medium sized dents in the wood.

If you plan to use the Dishwasher method, be sure to cover any stock markings which you want to preserve. I made the mistake of not covering various markins on my first M1 Garand from the CMP which had a whole bunch of proof marks. After I sent it through the wash many of the marks were gone :banghead: Use duck tape to cover them up before sending your stock through the cycle.

If you can't fit your stock into a dishwasher like in the case of a CMP 1903, then I would use mineral spirits and lots of elbow grease.

 

[dracphelan]

Heat is the best way to remove it. You can:
1. If in a warm climate, wrap it in paper towels, place in black plastic bag and then place on your roof This method works real well in the southwest in August.
2. I've used a steam cleaner to get cosmoline out.
3. Bake it on low heat.
4. Dishwasher.