Gun storage question

[MikeA57]

OK, I'm just now getting back into hunting and shooting after a 25 year hiatus. I've got 2 sons now and they need to know how to handle and care for firearms. I seriously need to get a gun safe but the funds just haven't become available yet. Soon though, soon. My question is:

I've read and heard that it's best to store your guns barrel down so lubricant doesn't drain down into the breech and working mechanisms and gum up. (I guess a second reason would be so that dust doesn't get down the barrel, but I've never heard that stated) Yet, every safe I see is set up to store them barrel up. Why is this? If I buy a safe is there a way to set it up so that the guns are stored the "proper" way, or am I just being way too anal about this?

But I guess the dust in the barrel line of thought would be nullified though if they were stored in a safe, wouldn't it?

 

[545days]

A gun does not have to swim in oil to be protected from rusting. A thin film of oil to protect against corrosion should not cause a problem running down into the action.

That said, you can generally store a rifle muzzle down in a typical gun safe. I tend to stuff in rifles muzzle up and down in order to store more than the safe's capacity. Storing with the bolt open also allows cramming in more than the capacity of the safe.

 

[Shadow 7D]

Depends on how your stacking racks are, some have a turntable or multiple bars so rifles get crammed in up and down to fit, almost every safe I've seen, the owner stacked them facing up, and while I understand the reason to avoid the running oil, I would wonder why they felt the need to put that much in the barrel. There are silica desiccant that are rechargeable, you have VOC rust inhibitors and golden rod dehumidifiers, so you should be able to maintain a good environment.

 

[natman]

It's not difficult to put on enough oil to prevent rust without having it end up in the stock.

If you have a problem with oil running into the wood, you're using too much / too thin oil.