Cleaning light rust from barrel

Arcto

Hello.

I have 3 areas of light rust on the barrel of my shotgun (from previous owner :mad: ).

I was wondering what is the best way to remove it? I was thinking steel wool but am afraid this may remove some of the coating.

Ideas?

Cass

If its only some light rust spots then its completely do-able. Using a very fine grade steel wool will work (something like 00 to 0000 grade) as long as the pressure put on the rubbing is light. plenty of oil is key though. Unfortunately i cannot see you removing the rust spots without at least causing some "fading" of the bluing on the barrel.

Just start off with plenty of oil and rubbing with light pressure. Keep the spot well oiled and turn or change the wool as needed. Do not rub it down till its almost gone. The reaction as the wool wears is to icrease pressure. Don't. When you feel you have done enough "wash" with plently of oil and wipe clean. If necessary leave for a few hours then re-check the spots. If needs be repeat the procedure. If it persists i would recommend a gun smith.

If it works there are home bluing kits available from alot of dealers. Not 100% on the success rate of the different brands.

All the above is best case scenario. There is also the possibilit of it going horribly wrong so maybe consultation with a qualified gunsmith would be in order irrespective of him doing it or DIY.

Tackleberrywho

"if" and I mean "if" you have a steady hand, you can scrape of some of the heavy rust with a scalpel.Literialy trim off the raised rust bit.
However only if it is not a Holland & Holland, and you are confident in your ability.
The type of scalpel bought in an arts and crafts shop.

Then as Ezridax said, a well oiled bit of steel wool, the blueing kits have mixed reviews on success.

Arcto

Hmmm...perhaps ill consult my gunsmith. The potential for going wrong here is a bit high. Id say if i went to him at a quiet time hed probably show me what to do as hes fairly sound.
Thanks gents!

Cass

Good move. :cool:

deeksofdoom

Without a picture its hard to tell what type of rusting your talking about. The coating you are referring to is the bluing. If you use any type of wire wool,scouring pads, sand paper or emery paper your probably going to take the bluing off.

May i suggest a bit of kitchen roll, some WD40 and a bit of perseverance and you should get that rust off.

clivej

deeksofdoom wrote: »

Without a picture its hard to tell what type of rusting your talking about. The coating you are referring to is the bluing. If you use any type of wire wool,scouring pads, sand paper or emery paper your probably going to take the bluing off.

May i suggest a bit of kitchen roll, some WD40 and a bit of perseverance and you should get that rust off.

I found that 3-in-one oil and a green NON SCRATCH pad will get it off without removing the blue'ing. But it will depend on how hard the rust has got into the metal in the first place.

Tackleberrywho

Prevention better than cure. OP,Invest in some Remington Rust preventor. Sam@intershoot.co.uk has it for ~€10. Great stuff for a shotgun. I use on my Shotty and I've had her out in a downpour with not a spec of rust.

milkerman

AFAIK the bluing we see on our guns is a controlled form of rusting carried out with a variety of salts. The problem with removing the red rust is that you will invariably abrade your bluing also.
I have an old rifle which carried some slight rust marks caused by years of handling. I used some 0000 grade wire woll to simply smooth the area to an acceptable standard. Then I degreased the surface thoroughly, this is not an easy task as our favourite gun oils are engineered to adhere to steel like shyte to a blanket! Cellulose thinners worked well but dry cleaning fluid was best, carbon tetrachloride is the main ingredient I think. Then I used an artists rigging brush and Birchwood Casey liquid bluing to treat the little pits repeatedly, this works best if the metal is warm. Then used distilled water to stop the bluing process between applications..... after all that work it still didnt look great so I used the wax stick from the Colour magic range of car polish and it filled the pits! Buffed it up with a soft cloth and it looked great! So then I applied the car wax to the exterior of the gun and buffed till it glittered. I use it on all my guns now and water just bubbles and rolls off. I have to use the wax stick every so often but it's a small price to pay for a really clean looking rifle.