Removing cosmoline

[wannabee]

What solvents / techniques can I use to remove cosmoline?

Rubbing alcohol?

Can mineral spirits, simple green, etc harm the bluing?

Thank you!

 

[docnyt]

Hot water and lots of elbow grease.

 

[desidog]

If the gun will fit in an oven, put it on the top rack and a rimmed cookie sheet to catch the cosmo below - low and slow like BBQ.

You'll have to wipe it off frequently as the cosmo leaches out.

Or if you live somewhere still hot and sunny, leave it outside in a black plastic trash bag in direct sunshine. I generally use this technique in July and August.

Or fill up a tub with boiling hot water and drop the gun in; the cosmo will float up, and you'll royally anger anyone who has to clean the tub...that goes for the oven above too. (and if you try a dishwasher, get the lady of the house some flowers, "just in case.")

Then when you think you've got it all, shoot it 'til the barrel gets hot and watch a whole bunch more ooze out...

Whatever you do, you'll need at least one, if not four, rolls of paper towel.

As for the bluing, a lot of those degreasers will mess up stock finish before the metal finish.

 

[rcmodel]

Use a heat gun to melt all of it off you can.

Then mineral spirits and a old paintbrush for final cleanup.

rc

 

[wannabee]

Thank you for the answers.

 

[cuba]

Field strip and boil for approximately 10 min in water treated with purple stuff degreaser or such, remove parts and let rinse, the heated steel should dry by them self, good luck.

shoot safe, shoot straight, and have fun

 

[nastynatesfish]

I took my 98mauser out of the wood and took all the metal to the car wash, hot water spray and had it all done for 1.25

 

[funnelcake]

In my experience, Brake-Kleen easily removes even the crustiest Cosmoline.

Funnel

 

[mtrmn]

I bought some new FAL mags in the cosmo---threw them in a bucket with enough gasoline to cover them and walked away. Came back in an hour, swished them around and blew them out with compressed air. No mo cosmo.

All you safety experts-flame away

 

[lead slinger]

Purple power from auto zone at 100% don't add water

 

[morcey2]

If you use a heat gun on the stock, be very careful so you don't scorch it. I use a blow dryer on the stock in the winter. I throw the stocks in the cab of my truck in the summer.

The easiest way I've found to clean the metal is denatured alcohol or acetone. Just be sure to oil well afterwards. I use whatever motor oil I have on hand most of the time.

 

[OilyPablo]

Orange oil based cleaners do a good job, especially if you manually remove the heavy stuff (heat as necessary). I use a plastic tool/scraper to schlupp off the thick goop and wipe off on to some newspaper, then clean. This works best, IMHO, regardless of which solvent you chose after for final cleaning. If you just hit it with solvent, it ends up using (and wasting) the cleaner, IMHO, and you have that mess to deal with.

 

[powell&hyde]

Like RC said, Mineral spirits and an old paint brush.

 

[hq]

The finnish way: sauna.

Heat the sauna up to 250-270°F, place multiple layers of newspaper under the gun and let it bake. Hot cosmoline flows off the gun very nicely. When it's almost dry, let it cool and clean the remains off with a solvent.