Rust Prevention Tests: Found 2, any others? + Other tips

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wacki

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What's the best in rust prevention? Feel free to make comments/suggestions on any category listed below.

Rust Prevention Products vs. Salt Tests:
  1. This test Shows Eezox (link) as the clear winner with corrosion-x 2nd. Break free is 3rd.http://www.6mmbr.com/corrosiontest.html
  2. Eezox & Break Free win here:http://www.thegunzone.com/rust.html

Any other tests?

Here's an old (2008) but good thread which I've summarized:


DO's
CLP (clean lube Protect)
  • Eezox
  • M-Pro7 (no test data available)
  • Boeshield T-9 (no test data available)
  • Corrosion-X
  • Balistol [PDF]

Home remedy
  • 90wt gear oil
  • lithium grease
  • Wax. Car paste wax, RenWax, Commercial floor wax., Johnson's Paste Wax
  • Silicone Spray
  • Petroleum Jelly

Military
  • cosmoline


Dessicants

Moisture Barriers
  • Bags that prevent moisture (store)
  • Pelican case might work here. It's not foolproof but it's certainly better than nothing

Cloth/Bag
  • Synthetic / Silicon cloth bags like Bore-Stores won't absorb moisture


Refinish

Dont's:

Lay guns on leather, foam, or other moisture absorbing material. Basically your average gun case and carrier is bad.








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Under home remedies you list auto paste wax. Don't use the past wax unless you are positive they don't have the grit in them. Better is the auto liquid waxes like 2000 Washes or Nu-Finish.
 
Just a note on the "soft" stuff like gun cases. The moisture issues only occur when the environment alters the temperature a lot when the air is humid. When that happens you get dew forming in the materials which then acts on the steel surfaces. Those of us living in less humid conditions simply are not going to see rust issues even from storing our guns right in a soft wrap or gun case. Folks near oceans or in well known highly humid areas is another issue.

Add one more oil to the "home remedies". Canola cooking oil. I use it for some cases on my black powder guns FOR SHORT TERM USE ONLY. Testing with it on some bare steel samples showed me that it prevented rusting even better than Breakfree CLP, automotive engine oil, WD40 (threw it in to see if it is as bad as everyone says) and a raw control piece. The Canola actually beat out the rest up to the point it turned into a varnish under the heat and light of the direct sunlight. So it is not a long term solution due to this. But testing with it kept in the dark and in a cool area did not see any noticable gumming up even after two months. So for swabbing down a BP gun for temporary protection for a week or two between shoots it's fine.

On a day of actual shooting I found that the Canola breaks down and frees up BP fouling on my revolvers similarly to how a good CLP oil works on smokeless fouling in modern style guns.

For longer times between shoots I use Ballistol on my BP guns. Which is another oil known to be BP friendly.

I found out recently that Canola oil (it's an oil derived from rape seed) was used on steam engine valving during the last war and perhaps from earlier times as well.
 
Under home remedies you list auto paste wax. Don't use the past wax unless you are positive they don't have the grit in them. Better is the auto liquid waxes like 2000 Washes or Nu-Finish.
Click to expand...

Just a note "Nu-Finish" contains abrasive polish.
 
Kitty litter is NOT silica gel - it is either clay, bentonite or diatomaceous earth

Don't forget to include WD-40 - while a water displacement, this displacement has shown to be a proven rust preventative
 
If you are concerned with storage in a cloth or leather gun case, just leave the end open a bit.Never had a problem assuming I did my pre-storage wipe down.
 
wacki said:
Dont's:

Lay guns on leather, foam, or other moisture absorbing material. Basically your average gun case and carrier is bad.
Click to expand...

I've seen this several times before and I disagree. I have kept firearms in foam lined cases and regular canvas gun cases with fleece lining since the 1960's with zero problems with rust.

The ONLY time I have encountered any rust was when I was young and stupid and didn't wipe my fingerprints off with an oily rag after handling them.

I have guns over fifty years old that look brand new.

I DO live in California (over 50 miles from the sea coast) which is a dry climate and that may be the key. If it is, climate conditions need to be a part of any suggestions for rust prevention (including proximity to a sea coast).

Dan
 
bergmen said:
I've seen this several times before and I disagree. I have kept firearms in foam lined cases and regular canvas gun cases with fleece lining since the 1960's with zero problems with rust.

The ONLY time I have encountered any rust was when I was young and stupid and didn't wipe my fingerprints off with an oily rag after handling them.

I have guns over fifty years old that look brand new.

I DO live in California (over 50 miles from the sea coast) which is a dry climate and that may be the key. If it is, climate conditions need to be a part of any suggestions for rust prevention (including proximity to a sea coast).

Dan
Click to expand...

I'm glad you realize that you are in a dry climate. You could probably do whatever you wanted with your guns and you'd be OK. My friend in Connecticut refuses to touch his guns unless he's wearing nitrile gloves and he's still got rust issues with his Vietnam era rifle. His newer production pistols have held up well though. Everything is stored 1st floor in a gun cases. The slowly rusting rifle is in a foam case and wrapped in canvas.

My evidence is of course anecdotal and if I had the resources (and location) I'd do a series of experiments. As of right now all I know what he's doing isn't working and he's pretty OCD with stuff.
 
oneounceload said:
Kitty litter is NOT silica gel -it is either clay, bentonite....
Click to expand...

Clear Choice Silica Crystals for $2 a pound
http://www.amazon.com/Clear-Choice-Crystals-Pail-12-Pound/dp/B0002ML1OK

That said, bentonite isn't that far behind silica gel as a desiccant. A google search on Amazon reveals the purpose built stuff is about

$10 a pound
http://www.amazon.com/Packs-Loose-Silica-White-Non-Indicating/dp/B001UYNQAG

$14 / pound with the orange/green indicator stuff
http://www.amazon.com/Dry-Packs-Silica-Indicating-Desiccant/dp/B001UYYL82/ref=pd_bxgy_hi_img_b

Gotta wonder how pure the kitty litter is.
 
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If you want to avoid greases and oils you can look into VCI bags.

VCI molecules protect metal surfaces by basically creating a shield preventing any corrosive elements and once the metal is removed from the bag the molecules dissipate and leave no residue behind. The military has been using VCI materials since WWII so it's no new technology but it is extremely effective and efficient.
VCIHIWcopy-1.jpg

Let me know if you want me to post more info on this method.
 
The best item I've read about, and used, is "Renaissance Wax." This wax is used by many of the top museum's for metal preservation, NRA museum uses it, plus many of the top Museums in Europe!
 
ZCORR Jay,

Did you see my links about the Safepack VCI Emitters? They allegedly last for 2 years and the small one can provide rust protection for up to 5 cubic feet. I got one as a freebie awhile back. It is only 2.25" in diameter and 3/4" thick, and has some adhesive backing, so I just stuck it on the inside wall of my safe. It is probably past its 2-year lifetime by now. But for only 8 bucks I am tempted to order a few more. In any case I'd be interested in learning more.
 
I used car wax paste for 40 years until I had one gun I left on a wood floor under a bed got rust on the barrel. I now use a oily spray goo for firearms and locks that I buy at Home Depo.

I get a lot of humidity in summer months - NY.

The rust was removed with 1000 steel wool.....
 
I'm a big fan of Beeman MP5 metalophillic oil. I wipe all of my guns down with a thin layer as the humid months set in (now).
 
I use Weapon Shield for my CLP. I believe it fares well against Breakfree and Eezox, but I can't remember where I saw a semi-official test.

I've read a lot of good about Renaissance wax on the military surplus forums, and I might give that a try.
 
Non-clumping conventional litter

One of the first commercially available cat litters was Kitty Litter, available in 1948 and marketed by Ed Lowe. This was the first large scale use of clay (in the form of Fuller's earth) in litter boxes; previously sand was used. Clay litter is much more absorbent than sand, and its larger grain makes it less likely to be tracked from the litter box. The brand name Kitty Litter has become a genericized trademark,[where?] used by many to denote any type of cat litter. Today, cat litter can be obtained quite economically at a variety of retail stores, including "dollar" retail outlets. Conventional clay litter is indistinguishable from clay-based oil absorbent (used to clean oil spills); as the latter is far less expensive, it is often used as a substitute. Non-clumping cat litter is often made of zeolite, diatomite and sepiolite.

The cat-box that the litter is poured into can give off a dreadful odor. It is recommended that it is kept in an area in the home that is not often used, such as a basement or laundry room. There are special types of litter to cover or lessen the odor. They contain baking soda and/or odorized crystals. If kept in room with an intake vent, an air freshener may be added on the furnace filter to isolate the odor from the rest of the house.
Clumping litter
Close up of cat litter

Litter clumps were first developed in the UK in the 1950s by the Fuller's Earth Union (FEU), later to become a part of Laporte Industries Ltd. The type of clumping litter developed by the FEU was calcium bentonite, a less swelling and less sticky type than American bentonite. Subsequently in America, clumping bentonite was developed in 1984 by biochemist Thomas Nelson. Most are made from granulated bentonite clay which clumps together when wet and forms a solid mass separate from the other litter in the box. This solid clumped material can be scooped out and disposed of without changing the entire contents of the litter box.

Clumping litter usually also contains quartz or diatomaceous earth (sometimes called diatomaceous silica, which causes it to be mistakenly confused with silica gel litter). Because of the clumping effect, the manufacturers usually instruct not to flush clumping litters down the toilet, because it could clog it.[1]

Clumping clay cat litters also contain crystalline silica, or silica dust, which in California is treated as a known carcinogen under Proposition 65.[2] Clay litter is also criticized by the more expensive manufacturers of non-clay litter as being commonly produced in a strip mine in an environmentally degrading process.[3]
Click to expand...

Nevertheless, while a nice absorbent, it is not the best for rust prevention
 
The best dessicant I have found is calcium chloride. You can get it at most auto parts stores. Look for a product called Driveway Heat. Put a can of it in your gun safe and it will absorb water from the air eventually becoming liquified. Throw it out and replace with fresh. I use it for my photographic equiptment which I keep in a cooler. I used it as a drying agent when Itook analytical chemistry.
 
I keep a 1911 hidden under my work bench out in the shop. No matter what I use, it rusts. I started lightly wrapping a dish rag around it sprayed with CLP. No more rust.
 
Interesting perspective on Eezox vs others:

Eezox is a fantastic rust preventer, decent cleaner, and an OK lube. It is a diester based lube that forms a wax like coating after the solvent evaporates. I used to use it some and liked it overall except for the STRONG fumes that come from the solvent. I still use it on some safe queens.

WS is a much better lube and cleaner. The results of informal "tests" on line have shown it to be a good rust fighter as well.
The biggest thing about WS is the ease of cleaning from its use. The more you use it, the easier cleaning becomes. Junk just doesn't stick and guns seem to get less dirty in the first place.
Has a nice cinnamon smell and contains NO solvents. It's about all I use now for my shooters.
Click to expand...

http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=1303333
 
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