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leaving a dirty barrel causing rust?

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Mr Hawken

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After a day of shooting how long have most people left there guns dirty?I usually clean when i get home from the range but have left them for up to a week depending on time and work.I read on another forum that this causes rust.Now i know bp is corrosive but i didnt think that short of time would hurt it or cause rust.
 
First, BP is not as corrosive as pyrodex. I have experience in that department, sadly. These were on cleaned barrels, left for storage without proper checking...

I've left a "dirty" barrel (using BP) for a day or two, just to check. Run some solvent patches, then oiled patches, clear as a bell. Left a charge in the barrel after a shot or two, with only an oiled patch run down to patched ball. Never a problem.

Best scenario, like you, clean ASAP. Oil well and no problems.
 
It's too easy to forget about and you here it all the time where someone forgets to clean and months later that have a big problem. I am very prone to forget so usually same day and I don't put my gun away until it's clean if I leave it for the next day. That's why I leave it out, as a reminder. TC used to claim on their wonder lube bore butter that if you used that it would prevent corrosion or at least slow it down. I tried it and checked the rifle every day for a week and no sign of corrosion. I was just checking, I don't plan to make a habit of it.
I have seen signs of slight corrosion after just 24hrs though. Maybe it isn't much but if you have a little time after time, what damage will that do?
 
ive never had rust from real BP, even after leaving for a day or two. having said that i still usually clean them after each trip to the range just to be safe.

pyrodex is another story, i usually have to clean and clean again to prevent pyrodex from causing rust. my Lyman plains pistol has suffered from chronic rust ever since i used pyrodex in it and didnt clean thorough enough.

-matt
 
If you can not get to a real cleaning right away I would run at least a few damp patches down the barrel , dry and oil. The problem is when the rust starts it's very hard to get it stopped. I do not go shooting with my MLR's if time is limited as I do not want to ruin a barrel. I never have and I don't see any reason to start now! Geo. T.
 
Black powder can be loaded for years in a gun without causing rust if the load is properly sealed. Elmer Kieth made this point years ago with his continually loaded black powder guns. It is the fouling that is hygroscopic and causes the rust.
Water is the best solvent for BP fouling because it dissolves,dilutes and flushes the salts formed in combustion from the barrel steel. Water how ever must be removed as well before any oil is used or it will rust right under the coating of oil.
This is one of the reasons I have adopted the use of water displacing solvents and bore protectors after water cleaning and dry patching. For years I use hot water and dish soap to clean my muzzle loaders then flushed with clear hot water and wipe dry with clean patches and then oil and always got flash rust under the gun oil. I found hot water was the culprit because it was oxidizing the metal as it evaporated the water and the oil was dissolving the flash rust left behind.My patches would always show red stain on them the next day after the hot water,dry patching and gun oiling. Finally I started to use cold water, dry patching and Hoppe's 9 in place of gun oil and the flash rusting instantly stopped. The Hoppe's was removing any water left behind and the cold water was not oxidizing the metal from the heat like the hot water was. The Hoppe's was doing the work of the heat in water removal with out the oxidation. If I was going to store them for a long time I would RIG grease the clean bore before storing them. MD
 
Alot of it depends on ambient moisture.
It can be as little as over night in high humidity or with proper temps to create condensation,
Or as long as a few weeks in arrid conditions.

Best advice has already been offered, if you can't do a full cleaning, do at least a field expediant cleaning too knock down the big chunks. A couple of spit patches are better than nothing.
 
I run a couple of wet patches down the bore in the field when I'm done shooting. When I deer hunt, I don't clean my rifle until the deer is cleaned and bagged in the freezer. That means it's about 6 or so hours before I give my rifle a final cleaning. I don't have a rust problem from what I call pre-cleaning. Of course, I use Ballistol!

Mr Hawken said:
After a day of shooting how long have most people left there guns dirty?I usually clean when i get home from the range but have left them for up to a week depending on time and work.I read on another forum that this causes rust.Now i know bp is corrosive but i didnt think that short of time would hurt it or cause rust.
 
I shoot genuine black powder exclusively. Never had a problem with rust. As an experiment, I've left my Remmington New Army .44 uncleaned for several weeks. When I did clean it, it came out as smooth and shiney as it was before I fired it. However it was kept in my air-conditioned home. I will say that I wouldn't try this by leaving it in a humid environment.

I have no personal experience with Pyrodex, but a fellow cowboy shooter used it in his brand new '92 lever action. He cleaned it after use and set the rifle away. Checked it a couple days later to find a rusty bore. I hope I never have to resort to using the stuff. Too many horror stories.
 
Admittedly I shoot Pyrodex and I have seen light rust "day after" a shoot.. My process now is to swab 2 or 3 patches with liberal alcohol before I leave the range, then soap & water - alcohol - oil as soon as I unload back at home. This gives me ZERO issues.
 
Dunno if its right or wrong but, if i've not got the time to do a proper clean right away, i plug the nip. w/ a toothpick and fill the bbl w/water and prop it upright. Never left one longer than overnite tho.
 
This is a useless argument because the guys that don't like Pyrodex will lamb blast it at every opportunity. The guys that like it have no issues with it. Like me for instance.
I don't let my guns rust, period.
I have also come to the conclusion that a little cleaning is worse than no cleaning. On the odd time I was unable to do a thorough job, I do nothing.
I don't know whether Bore Butter helps or not but it certainly keeps the fouling soft for a long time. One thing for sure it is not a rust inhibitor and does nothing to stop rusting. If you were a Pyrodex shooter and used Bore Butter and saw rust, the Bore Butter could have been the problem not the Pyrodex.
 
My motto is "Never let the sun go down on a dirty muzzleloader". Not saying you can't, but in my humble opinion, not prudent to do so. Like others have said, if I can't find time to clean up, I will forego shooting that day. Just my two cents.

Jeff
 
Black powder or Pyrodex or 777 usually won't cause a rust problem until they are ignited.

Once any of them burns they produce fouling consisting of various rather aggressive salts.

By themselves, the salts will just sit there but when they get damp they will readily attack steel.
These salts are very good at absorbing any humidity that may be in the air so if it is at all humid around the gun they will rapidly become damp and the corrosion/rusting will begin.

If immediate cleaning isn't possible, coating the fouling completely with oil or grease will reduce the fouling salts ability to absorb moisture out of the air so it will give fair protection from rust for a day or two.

The bottom line is everyone who shoots a black powder gun of any kind should do their best to clean the gun as soon and as thoroughly as possible.
 
I'm not saying you shouldn't clean, but doesn't Dutch say that a well seasoned barrel resists rusting. What happens is the molecules of lube work their way into the microscopic areas between the barrel's steel molecules, forming an impregnable barrier that doesn't allow rust molecules to get started. Or something like that. Any truth to this?
 
If you live in dry climate, you will have a bit longer to get away with leaving your barrel dirty because the products of combustion are hygroscopic and when they become hydrated, they form corrosive material. If you live in a humid area such as the Gulf Coast, I would not wait for more than a day to get it cleaned. Your rifle will let you know when you have left it too long. All the rust and later the pitting will let you know just how long is too long. Personally, I never let mine sit for more than a day without a thorough cleaning. Of course, I do a range cleaning before leaving the range. My rifles just cost too much for me to neglect them. Besides, I take pride in keeping them looking as nearly like they did when they came out of the box as possible.
 
I should have added that here in East Texas on the edge of a very large lake you will have rust in the barrel in two days. Three and you will be asking how to polish out pits! I do not risk it! Geo. T.
 
Number19 said:
I'm not saying you shouldn't clean, but doesn't Dutch say that a well seasoned barrel resists rusting.
No.

What happens is the molecules of lube work their way into the microscopic areas between the barrel's steel molecules, forming an impregnable barrier that doesn't allow rust molecules to get started. Or something like that. Any truth to this?
No.
 
Just out of curiosity, American Powder advertises their powder to be non-corrosive. I know it doesn't foul near as bad as Blalck but does anyone have any experience with whether it really is non-corrosice?
 
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