How to get rust off blueing?

[l98ster]

hi everyone,

I just took my O/U shotgun out of its case for the first time in about a year. To my surprise, there is a good amount of surface rust on the blueing!! I usually take very good care of my guns before I put them away, so this is the first time I am dealing with this type of situation.

So, what is the best way to remove the surface rust on this blueing.

Thanks!!!
-George

[Uncle Buck]

What I use is very very very fine steel wool. I oil it up and just gently move it in a circular motion.

My guns are for hunting, not show, so I do not take particular care of the finish. But I also do not try to neglect them. Some of them have a great finish, others... Not so much.

[Capt Charlie]

If the rust hasn't pitted the metal itself, I've had very good luck with PB Blaster (a true penetrating oil) and Chore Boy, which is a copper scouring pad available in most large grocery stores.

Soak the affected areas in PB Blaster for a day, and then go over it lightly with Chore Boy. You may have to do this several times. Then clean with alcohol and lightly spray with a light oil like Rem-Oil.

Hope this helps .

(Edit: This is probably more appropriate for The Smithy. Moving there now.)

[mete]

Find another way of storing the gun other than it's case . Very likely that you got some condensation [a major problem with rusting] .

[oneounceload]

0000 steel wool and something like WD-40 or other oil will do fine if it isn't too deep

NEVER leave a gun in a case

[kilimanjaro]

Paid out $120 to have two cased rifles reblued due to light rust from condensation, now everything is in a safe or cabinet.

[l98ster]

Hi everyone,

Thanks for all the good replies. I have noticed that this is the only gun I have left in the case and is the only one I have had a rust problem with. I guess I won't make that mistake anymore!!!

I used some penetrating oil and a scour pad and it seemed to do the job. I noticed that if you push to hard with the wcour pad it puts sratches in the blueing. Good thing my test area was underneath the foregrip!!

-George

[James K]

For light speckles, I agree with Capt Charlie, as to using copper or brass wool and oil rather than steel wool. Fine steel wool will scratch bluing; anyone who doubts it can find the scratches under a good magnifying glass or a low power microscope. A scourig pad is probably about the worst choice; it will remove bluing and leave horrible scoring as well.

If the rust is very deep, it has eaten into the steel, and nothing will remove it except polishing the whole surface down and rebluing.

Jim

[dahermit]

There is no such thing as, "surface rust" (the rust in the bottom of the pit also). Also, all rust pits the steel albeit, light rust only makes very small pits. The chemical symbol for the Iron in the steel is Fe. Fe2O3 is the chemical symbol for rust. Once the Fe combines with oxygen in the air and forms Fe2O3 (rust, actually Iron Oxide), there is a pit, even if you can only see it with a jewelers loupe.
Iron Oxide being softer than steel, can be removed with 0000 steel wool and oil as posted above.

[l98ster]

Just out of curiosity, how is steel wool OK to use but a scour pad (the kind you find on the back of a kitchen sponge) not?? I would think steel would be a lot more abrasive than the "plastic" material a scour pad is made of???

-George

[PawPaw]

I've used pencil erasers to remove small spots of rust, then oil and protect afterwards.

[natman]

Just out of curiosity, how is steel wool OK to use but a scour pad (the kind you find on the back of a kitchen sponge) not?? I would think steel would be a lot more abrasive than the "plastic" material a scour pad is made of???

The nice thing about steel wool is that it comes in standardized degrees of coarseness. 0000 steel wool is pretty much the same everywhere so you can recommend it without worry to anyone. Scour pads come in varying degrees of coarseness too and some of them are very abrasive, plastic or not.

Use 0000 (4 zero) steel wool and a light oil with gentle rubbing and you won't go wrong.

[Bill DeShivs]

l98ster-
Use your pot scrubber on a piece of scrap metal and you will see!
I believe the plastic has silicon carbide abrasive embedded in it.

[maxman894]

Hoppes lubricant and a cloth. If that doesnt work, then very very very fine steel wool works.

[brickeyee]

Oxide being softer than steel, can be removed with 0000 steel wool and oil as posted above.

Except that rust ground to a powder is jeweler's rouge, and can polish the bluing off the steel.

Use a lot of lubricant and wipe with a clean paper towel frequently.

[oneounceload]

Except that rust ground to a powder is jeweler's rouge, and can polish the bluing off the steel.

And bluing is just another form of rust as well........

[1911rocks]

I espouse to a different philosophy. I go with Kroil Penetrant and the gray ultra-fine ScotchBrite. I support the same school of thought found in polishing Stainless Steel with 0000 Steel Wool. It leaves fragments of steel embedded in the surface being polished and a new source of oxidation. Hence, the ScotchBrite. The Kroil is an excellent penetrant with a not too unpleasant odor. I do recommend nitrile gloves because Kroil's odor is stubborn.

[Bill DeShivs]

Scotchbrite is fine on stainless, but it will remove bluing and plating immediately.
Steel wool does not embed in stainless, you just have to flush it off well.
Steel or bronze wool is best for removing rust from blued guns. I use it with WD 40.

[brickeyee]

"Scotchbrite" is available in a number of grits and materials.

Some have silicon carbide abrasive, others do not.

Just about any grade will remove bluing if you rub enough.

[jaguarxk120]

Scotchbrit in grades - gray, dark red, green, and black have abrasive in them, it's just the grit size in the material. Of the other grades I do not know whats in them.

[TXGunNut]

Start with Break-Free or WD-40 and a nylon brush. Scrub it good and let it set overnight. Scrub it again then look it over with a good light and maybe some magnification. Extent of the rust will be much clearer then, proceed as gently as possible if desired.

[adrians]

for rust a tad deeper than the "dusty surface finger rub off stuff" use an old copper penny ,,,not a new one they ain't mostly copper anymore .
the older pennies will remove the rust but leave the existing blue in tact ,..
just my 2c worth.
go easy as always.

[oneoldsap]

An old trick my dear departed uncle taught me , once you get the rust removed take a black Crayola crayon and rub it vigorisly into the pits and wipe with a cloth cupping the barrel , then wax the whole gun . The wax keeps both air and water off the steel , ergo , no rust ! Can't have oxidation without oxygen ! Plus there is no odor , which we all know is not our friend in the woods !

[oneoldsap]

Wax is also good on table saws and other metal surfaces you'd rather not have rust on !

[publius]

Kroil and 0000 steel wool.