Long term Mobil-1 immersion effect on bluing?

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Chindo18Z

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Will long term (months or years) immersion of firearms in Mobile-1 Synthetic Oil cause any damage to bluing on older revolvers?

I am describing completely submerging entire handguns into a container filled with a quart or three of oil (minus any wood grips).

Are there any additives in synthetic motor oils which might react to and damage bluing?

How about non-synthetic motor oils?

I'm not asking about what the best protectant/lubricant is...just the effects on bluing if stored in this manner.

I've been unable to find a definitive answer through the search function.

Thanks in advance...
 
An SAE oil that's designed to constantly saturate bearing surfaces in an internal combustion engine would not contain any caustic elements or chemicals that would eat away the bluing on a gun.
 
I have several guns that were stored for many years after being wiped with whatever 10-30 was available at the time. They were unchanged in any way after 20 years.
 
I would think that storing your guns this way (fully immersed) would be a difficult proposition at best.

You'd have to drill a "fill hole" in the top of your gun safe; filling it with oil at $10 per quart (for a true POA/POE synthetic) would get kind of expensive (couple hundred bucks each time) and it would flood the room every time you open your gunsafe. :D
 
Go for it, won't hurt the blueing at all. Years from now when you're ready to recover the guns slosh them around in kerosene and start shooting. They'll be like new.
 
Jeezopete...some of you over-think things. :p

I just wanted to know if immersion in synthetic motor oil will harm blue finish.

It's just something I have been curious about for a while. ;)
 
If you wanted to soak the gun grips you could. IF you take them off and dip them in wax putting a thick coat on them. Then it would be ok to keep them submerged in the oil.
 
"...immersion in synthetic motor oil will harm blue finish..." No reason for any concern. Why you would want to store 'em in oil is another thing. Use grease for long term storage.
 
Why you would want to store 'em in oil is another thing.
Click to expand...

Years from now when you're ready to recover the guns slosh them around in kerosene and start shooting.
Click to expand...

I want liquid and continuous 100% surface coating (including inside lockwork), protection from condensation/humidity, minimized presence of air (oxygen), and not difficult or time consuming to remove. Kind of like keeping big pickles submerged in a jar...

I'm already quite familiar with grease, cosmoline, protectants, gun oils, CLP, vapor barrier bags, silicon impregnated bore stores, volatile corrosion inhibitor chips, etc.

Thanks to everyone for the comments so far.

481: I sort of like your idea, but I already keep my safe filled with 3 million marbles. :)
 
I want liquid and continuous 100% surface coating (including inside lockwork), protection from condensation/humidity, minimized presence of air (oxygen), and not difficult or time consuming to remove. Kind of like keeping big pickles submerged in a jar...
Click to expand...

Motor oil is a lubricant not a rust inhibitor.

It takes special additives to block oxygen migration.

Maybe it will work, maybe it won’t.

Kind of like keeping big pickles submerged in a jar...
Click to expand...

Food does not rust. Spoilage is caused by microorganisms.

Stole this from Wikipedia.

Pickling, also known as brining or corning, is the process of preserving food by anaerobic fermentation in brine (a solution of salt in water) to produce lactic acid, or marinating and storing it in an acid solution, usually vinegar (acetic acid). The resulting food is called a pickle. This procedure gives the food a salty or sour taste. In South Asia edible oils are used as the pickling medium instead of vinegar.
Another distinguishing characteristic is a pH less than 4.6,[1] which is sufficient to kill most bacteria. Pickling can preserve perishable foods for months. Antimicrobial herbs and spices, such as mustard seed, garlic, cinnamon or cloves, are often added.[2]
 
I saw a crate of Colt 1903 magazines with substantial surface rust that had been soaked in some sort of motor oil for a few months - after being dried off, they looked nearly new. Bluing was intact.

So I'd assume it's safe for storage of metals. Wood/plastic/other stuff, no.
 
"Jeezopete...some of you over-think things.

I just wanted to know if immersion in synthetic motor oil will harm blue finish.

It's just something I have been curious about for a while."



I just figured it was a divorce thing.;) There were firearms stored at my place for friends because they didn't want the soon to be ex to grab them out of spite. And I've also seen some divorces go on for years (thus the long term storage). :eek:
 
It would not hurt them at all. Even the cheapest motor oil would be fine.

The possibility exists that I will go out of the country for a year plus to work and I have thought about wrapping my handguns individually in a shop towel and placing them in a plastic storage tub and submersing them with diesel.
1. To hide them and 2. to protect them.

Afterwards, Just blow them off with an air hose and I would be good to go.
 
Thanks for asking this question. I've wondered the same myself but I wasn't thinking along such expensive lines. I wondered about mineral oil or spirits. The main goal seems to be to keep any moisture or oxygen off the guns. Good to hear so many seem to think no harm no foul.
 
Chindo18Z: said:
481: I sort of like your idea, but I already keep my safe filled with 3 million marbles. :)
Click to expand...

HOARDER! HOARDER! HOARDER! Now I know why the price of marbles has gone way up. It's all your fault!



All levity aside, I would suspect that most any synthetic motor oil would do well in the role you propose since they posess good corrosion inhibiton additive packages anyway. Establishing a physical barrier against O2 via complete immersion will likely guarantee a "perfect" barrier.

Since disposable polyethylene (usually LDPE, sometimes HDPE) resealable containers are cheap and can be found in a variety of sizes that can hold a handgun they might offer you the best option in terms of oil resistance (good) and size efficiency (minimizing the amount of oil needed for complete coverage) for the money.

Just a thought.
 
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