removing light rust

[old fart]

on my service six i have light specks of rust on the gun, i can't afford a hot blue and i don't do cold blue well and wouldn't want to cold blue as it don't last for me. the blueing is good on the gun, just the specks of rust are on it but they are stuborn. they aren't all over it in patches just tiny pin head size specks on the frame and cylinder here and there. i have fritz metal polish and wonder about it. now i have one more question, if i keep it cleaned and oiled will it get worse? it will be my woods gun so as long as it wouldn't get worse i'm fine with it. but if it would i want to stop it if i can. thanks for any help

[Doyle]

Fine steel wool and a lube (I prefer CLP).

[Blindstitch]

I second Doyle

[AZAK]

it will be my woods gun so as long as it wouldn't get worse i'm fine with it.

I am not sure about the moisture in your "neck of the woods", but if you have moisture and don't want rust you will need to protect the metal. And in the event that it does get wet, then you will need to make sure that it gets good and dry.

There are numerous ways to protect your blued finish. Some folks recommend automobile paste wax (the kind without any abrasives). And then there are products sold for just this reason, Barricade being just one that I have used and found to be generally up to the task.

The after it gets wet, make sure that you get it good and dry. And then re-coat with your choice of lube and protection.

I do love a nice blued finish; however, most of my "woods guns" are stainless (and the word is stain LESS, not stainproof!) They need good cleaning, lubing, and protecting too. The beauty of stainless is that one can always pretty easily get rid of any rust.

And on my blued "woods guns", I clean, lube, and protect and dry when wet... repeat. If they happen to start having a little rust I use oil and Q-tips and/or soft cloth and gently rub away. After all, they are "woods guns" not safe queens.

[natman]

Gentle rubbing with 0000 (four zero) steel wool and lots of light oil will remove the rust.

Keep the gun well oiled thereafter. Breakfree COLLECTOR is an excellent rust preventative.

[PetahW]

.

FWIW, steel wool, even the 0000/fine grade, will leave minute scratches almost invisible to the eye, but will have the effect of muting the finish.

Big 45 Frontier Metal Cleaner ( http://www.frontiermetalcleaner.com/ ) will remove rust w/o effecting the bluing.

Here's a video on it's use: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eaLK3noQx4c


.

[blfuller]

Flitz works really well for removing surface rust and it will polish it as well.

[Mosin-Marauder]

My father taught me how to remove light surface rust the other day. Use a pencil and rub the graphite on the spots with rust. This isn't really effective with large amounts of rust, but on the likes of a pistol, it is.

[old fart]

ok, i have used 0000 wool and rem oil is what i had, with a little flitz too. there still looks like frecks on the gun but when i run my finger over them its smooth. to explain the best i can is, if i took the cylinder or top strap in my hand now and closed my eyes i can't feel the rust or where it is or was, with a light i can see the small frecks there but they are smooth. do i need to do more? also i have been told a pencil eraser will work, will it? have i got it done or do i continue?with it smooth now i really don't know. it wasn't bad to begin with as it was barely felt but i call it freckling. thanks

[blfuller]

If there are still flecks there then the rust has microscopically pitted the steel. You can run a pin across the pit lightly and if it catches the pin then there is most likely a pit. If you have a 10x loupe you can see if it has or not. Not much else can be done without a polish and reblue. You will need to keep it oiled to make sure it doesn't progress.

[Bill DeShivs]

Pencil erasers and Flitz are abrasive. They will damage the bluing.
You have done all you can without doing damage.

[Doyle]

If the gun is a "shooter" and not a "collector", there is one more thing you can try. Get a bottle of Oxpho-Blue (Brownell's sells it). Oxpho-Blue won't do anything to the good blued finish but I'm thinking it will get down in those pits. It might just stop them from growing any deeper.

[old fart]

thanks, its gonna be my woods gun just wanted to stop the rust then keep it oiled good. i can't afford hot blue job, and i'm afraid to try a complete cold blue since the gun is about 85-90% good blueing.

[texagun]

I've had excellent results with Corrosion-X. Spray it on the rusted area and let it set for a few minutes. You will see it bubble up as it reacts with the rust. Then LIGHTLY buff the area with 0000 steel wool......LIGHTLY. It will remove the rust and leave the bluing.

[natman]

FWIW, steel wool, even the 0000/fine grade, will leave minute scratches almost invisible to the eye, but will have the effect of muting the finish.

No, it won't, at least not if you have the slightest inkling of what the phrase "gentle rubbing" means.

At least it hasn't on any of the hundreds of guns I've cleaned this way.

[Bill DeShivs]

Cold blues don't treat or prevent rust.

[old fart]

i have had several messages wanting to see exactly what i mean by freckling, i couldn't get a good enough pic on my own gun but found a pic online that is just about exactly like mine. except for the trigger and hammer, in the pic this gun has a rusty trigger and hammer mine is nice and clean and shiny. but on the cylinder and frame are what mine looks like, just spots here and there, now after cleaning, the spots are smooth and can't be felt. here is the pic, mine has spots like on this cylinder. thanks

[Dusty Rivers]

I would try coating it with WD-40. let it sit for awhile and wipe it down, repeat then wipe with mobile 1 oil. I used this to clean my black powder 45 LC revolvers while I had them. The WD works great on the black powder. it actually dries it out then you just brush off the powder

Some people hate WD-40. I do not. It sure works on rusty tractor stuff.

there is a product called Prolix.

[AZAK]

"Uniform corrosion can be slowed or stopped by using the five
basic facts;
(1) Slow down or stop the movement of electrons
(a) Coat the surface with a non-conducting medium such as paint, lacquer or oil
(b) Reduce the conductivity of the solution in contact with the metal an extreme
case being to keep it dry. Wash away conductive pollutants regularly.
(c) Apply a current to the material (see cathodic protection).
(2) Slow down or stop oxygen from reaching the surface. Difficult to do completely but
coatings can help.
(3) Prevent the metal from giving up electrons by using a more corrosion resistant metal
higher in the electrochemical series. Use a sacrificial coating which gives up its
electrons more easily than the metal being protected. Apply cathodic protection. Use
inhibitors.
(4) Select a metal that forms an oxide that is protective and stops the reaction."

http://www.npl.co.uk/upload/pdf/begi..._corrosion.pdf

Clean, lube, protect... keep dry. Basically under $10 invested in a decent firearms protectant product. For my money Rem oil it is not.

If you have had pitting, that is where the process will begin again, and again, and again... Unless, you keep it constantly covered/protected from O2 and H2O.

Dependent on humidity/H2O levels, regular wipe down of a good protectant will stop the process; at least during your lifetime, eventually it will all go to rust.

[The Shadow]

Here's my attempt to answer the OP's question .... purchase a 2-pack of stainless steel sponges from Brownells, and along with some oil (I like Ballistol) or your favorite CLP, rub the rusted areas lightly until rust is gone. These sponges will not adversely effect or damage the original bluing. Remove any excess oil, and go to the next and most important step, to help prevent future rusting, and purchase a container of Renaissance Wax (Brownells) and apply sparingly with fingers, let dry, and buff with a clean soft micro fiber cloth. Repeat another time or two. I believe if you use Ren Wax on a relatively consistant basis, on all your firearm and knife finishes, it will definitely help prevent any future rusting. It's by far the very best product available on the market today! Hope this helps.

the Shadow

[JohnKSa]

FWIW, steel wool, even the 0000/fine grade, will leave minute scratches almost invisible to the eye, but will have the effect of muting the finish.

0000 steel wool should not harm bluing. In fact, carding with 0000 steel wool is a final step in most bluing processes, even some cold bluing processes which generally provide a less durable finish than traditional bluing.

HOWEVER, rust particles are abrasive and if you rub the removed rust particles around on the bluing they will scratch and abrade the finish and can cause visible damage with enthusiastic rubbing.

For this reason, I generally do rust removal with 0000 steel wool that has been degreased. I degrease the surface to be worked on and I use the steel wool dry, not with oil. That makes it easy to dust away the rust particles as they are removed rather than having them build up in the removal area where they may be rubbed around on the finish during the process.

You want to start very lightly and frequently dust out the steel wool and dust off the surface to keep the removed rust particles from building up. Go slowly and stop when you can't see any more progress being made. There's no point in scrubbing after you've removed all that's going to come off without more aggressive techniques.

Cold blues don't treat or prevent rust.

Most cold blues will make a finish more rust resistant than bare metal and some of them are nearly as effective as traditional bluing in terms of rust resistance. But you are correct--no bluing (cold or otherwise) can fully prevent rust, and none of them will remove rust.

[old fart]

i wanted to thank everyone for their help, i got all the little specks down smooth. i went in my back yard today and fired a few rds of 158 grain sp and 125 grain sp, the 125 were about 1 inch lower at 10 yds. this gun is really something, its a fixed sight but it hits dead on. i put either the 158 or the 125 in less than 2 inches at 10yds off handed using 2 hand grip. the remington 125 soft point are accurate and i'm glad my friend let me get them at a good price. i still prefer the federal 158 soft point tho. thanks again