over summer storage

[spikes]

I store my pistol here in FL for the summer. Unfortunately severe rusting occured over the summer & ruined it. As a new gun owner, it just made me sick to have my ignorance cause damage to the gun. I wrapped it in a plastic bag with some silica jell, then placed in a locked drawer. It is no longer a pretty gun! What should I have done? Thanks to all that will help me.

[Mrgunsngear]

What make/model is it?

[jackpine]

most of the time the firearm can be refinished. I know FL humidity can be hell on guns. Next time use grease and a water tight container maybe an ammo can and some fresh desicant.

[drail]

Keep it oiled. Not dripping, but oiled. Inspect it once a week. If you must store it long term you must monitor the humidity level where it is stored and keep it under 40 to 50% either by air conditioning or by using a dehumidifer. If you open a bag or a safe just one time on a day when the humidity is above that level and then close the bag or the safe you are trapping moisture in with the gun. Storing a gun in the original box or a rug or any type of case can also lead to rust. Store it on a shelf or a peg. But most of all keep it oiled. Eezox or Breakfree Collector work extremely well for long term storage and will not evaporate away or turn to gunk. Don't rely on WD 40 or 3 in one oil or motor oil. Use a product designed for long term protection. It may cost more but as you now know it's worth the price. Storing in a plastic bag with dessicant in the bag has worked well for me but the dessicant needs to be replaced or recharged in an oven a couple times a year. Once dessicant has absorbed all of the moisture it can take it does no good. I have purchased large dessicant packs from the survivalist/prepper websites and they have been working very well for over ten years now. They can be recharged in a 280 degree oven. Try to squeeze all of the air you can out of the bag before sealing. I have a "collector" friend who stores all of his "safe queens" in vacuum pack bags with a small dessicant pack and he has never had any rust on his guns.

[JimDandy]

Hehehe, I just had a vision of the looks I would get for Seal-A-Meal'ing my pistol.

[Brian48]

I had to face this issue of long term storage twice. Once when I lived in NC and had to deploy for 9 months and once when I resided here in MA, but had to live temporarily in CT for nearly two years due to the job.

In both instances, I removed the wood grips from my blued guns and essentially soaked them in CLP/Breakfree. I then sealed them up in a plastic bag and boxed them up. They held up fine. Someone told me as long as I can keep the oil from drying out, the guns should be fine. A better solution is gun grease, that stuff is a bear to clean off.

[mete]

Use the right gun grease !!! Us RIG [Rust Inhibiting Grease ] .It's been around for many years and I've used it for about 40 years. A thick coating isn't needed and even then it's very easy to wipe off..
I carerfully clean the gun , apply a thin coat of RIG. wrap in rust inhibiting paper [ VPI ], seal in a plastic bag. I never had a problem. The gun then is ready to fire no cleaning necessary .What little grease there is acts as a good lube.

[spikes]

A big thank you for your help. Learning something new every day.

[pilpens]

Make sure to wipe off sweat from any metal area. Sweat will cause rust if left on the metal surface.
I use Rig and plastic bag when storing for a long period of time and check condition every 1-2 months.
Guns I use every week just gets a wipe down with oily rag after shooting + the cleaning that is mainly based on round count.

[Coach Z]

If you've ever bought a high end pair of scissors or even some steel tools they'll come wrapped in this brown sort of waxy paper, that is vci paper. You can also get it in the form of plastic bags, midway and brownells are a normal gun source for them. I actually get my storage stuff from uline.com, it's a shipping and warehousing supply place that has awesome prices.