Removing cosmoline

[Professor-Red]

I recently acquired a 1955 Chinese Mosin model 53, and was searching the web for the best way to get all the cosmoline off. After reading about boiling it in water, soaking it in diesel fuel or kerosene, and sticking it in the oven, I decided, why not WD40? And it worked like a bleeding charm. No fumes or volatile chemicals, no racing against the evaporation, no cooking my gun at 250° for two hours. Just figured I'd share that here, since I searched thr and found no reference to it. G'day.

 

[Redstate]

Good to know... I used mineral spirits and was afraid I'd affixiate myself

 

[rcmodel]

Yes, WD-40 is one of the cheapest and least harmful spray solvents you can buy for $1.98 a can on sale.

Cosomolene can be mostly melted off with a heat gun or hair dryer, dipped off in a garbage bag.

Then final clean-up with WD-40.

Only reason I mention that is it will take a lot less WD-40 if you melt all you can off first with a heat gun.

rc

 

[GBExpat]

... Cosomolene can be mostly melted off with a heat gun or hair dryer, dipped off in a garbage bag...

The only flavor of cosmo on which this pre-cleaning approach did not work for me was the Albanian Sticky-Snot cosmolene, apt terminology (IMO) coined by someone on another website about 10 years ago.

Man, that Albanian SKS was a bear to get clean. I wish that I had thought of trying WD-40, instead of just the mineral spirits, on that nasty, persistent stuff.

 

[herrwalther]

Find a bottle of Mineral Spirits by Klean Strip. They make an "odorless" green version. It isn't really odorless but you won't pass out if you use it inside. A gallon of that, a bucket, a brush, and Netflix. Got a Mosin completely cosmo free in 3 hours.

 

[easy]

Nice. My T53 was filled with axle grease, not cosmo. Sucked.

 

[carbine85]

I've rinsed down several with boiling water and finished with WD40. Works great and not a lot of work like a lot people make it out to be.

 

[MilsurpShooter]

Find a bottle of Mineral Spirits by Klean Strip. They make an "odorless" green version. It isn't really odorless but you won't pass out if you use it inside. A gallon of that, a bucket, a brush, and Netflix. Got a Mosin completely cosmo free in 3 hours.

+1 on that. Odorless Mineral Spirits, some Naptha for the tougher parts and attention to detail and some elbow grease

 

[desidog]

Its August... get some black trash bags, put the gun in, and leave it in the sun. Prop it up so that it drains out while hot and viscous.

 

[wally]

After actually using the boiling water method, I'll never use anything else.

I just put the gun in a trough made from old card board boxes and lined with paper towels and the cosmo mess was left behind when the water evaporated.

 

[LeonCarr]

You live in Florida.

It is August.

Hang that sucker vertically in your 140-150 degree attic or on a picnic table in the backyard with a stack of newspaper underneath and the remaining cosmoline that the WD-40 did not get will just melt right off.

Just my .02,
LeonCarr

 

[entropy]

I recently acquired a 1955 Chinese Mosin model 53, and was searching the web for the best way to get all the cosmoline off. After reading about boiling it in water, soaking it in diesel fuel or kerosene, and sticking it in the oven, I decided, why not WD40? And it worked like a bleeding charm. No fumes or volatile chemicals, no racing against the evaporation, no cooking my gun at 250° for two hours. Just figured I'd share that here, since I searched thr and found no reference to it. G'day.

And indeed this is the only good use for WD-40 on firearms. I used the same method on my T53.