Best way to safely remove rust

[Dwight Rutherford]

Thank you from another forum member (me, who is faced with a similar task). I have zero experience and or knowledge of the EvapoRust product. I have heard the name, but that's a flat IT. Do you by chance have any pointers before I dive into the attempt at rebluing? Thank you in advance...

Just follow the instructions on the EvapoRust container, it is very easy to use and gives excellent results.

 

[Ajgall]

By the user name , her.

You are absolutely correct my apologies

 

[Brokennock]

Molasses. Lots of antique car restoration guys swear my it. A couple grocery store jars of Molasses mixed with a 5 gallon bucket of water will work wonders on that rust. For the barrel I'd hang it in a capped off section of PVC pipe filled with the same magic solution. Leave it for a week and pull it out and see what you,ve got. It won't hurt the metal.

It has been theorized that molasses is a primary ingredient in Evaporust. I'm wondering which is cheaper, a jug of nontoxic, possibly molasses based, and reusable Evaporust, or a few jars of molasses.

 

[TNBandit]

Now that’s a new one. What’s in molasses that would react with iron oxide.

Not related to the thread but on the idea of using food stuffs to remove tarnish. In my Navy days I did a stint mess cooking, KP to Army guys. The big dish washing machines had brass spray fixtures and at the end of the day we would remove them coat with ketchup and then rinse. Nice and shiny for the CPOs satisfaction.

Phosphoric acid. The same stuff that's in Coca Cola. In fact I would have to guess one of the "secret ingredients" in Coke is Molasses. It wouldn't surprise me one bit to discover Ketchup has Phosphoric acid in it too.

 

[TNBandit]

For the non-believers... These antique railroad lanterns all had a light coating of surface rust on them when I bought them. This is after 2 days in a 5 gallon bucket of Molasses & water mix and a very light scrub with extra fine steel wool. Try that with electrolosis. If you left these in for even slightly too long they would become pitted and the Tin plating would have been removed. That's not an issue with Molasses. It dosn't attack the metal.

 

[gustrolland]

They don’t make TC New Englanders any more, and they never made that many left handed ones. If the stock isn’t broken or cracked, you could possibly make this a functioning gun again.

First off, make sure there is not a charge in the bore. Then gently separate the metal from wood.

As others have suggested, then time for a general cleaning. I like EvapoRust for cleaning up the rusted steel. For the stock, I would use something like KrudKutter. It will remove all the nasty stuff and most if not all of any of the original finish.

Next, I would let it dry for a couple of days, then reassemble everything, using new screws if necessary, then step back and see what I had. Any major components missing or damaged? Does the lock work (EvapoRust will remove the surface rust and finish, but lock disassembly and TLC maintenance will be required)?

Now it will be decision time. Can the barrel be saved with a rebore to a larger caliber or a relining to keep the current caliber? A $150 to $200+ investment. If the lock doesn’t have any life left in it, a replacement will likely be about $150. Still have to clean up exterior metal surfaces for finishing, maybe rust bluing if you plan on shooting the gun, possibly cold blue if a wall hanger. Then there is the stock to contend with…..

It’s up to you if it’s worth the time, money and effort. In memory of your dad, possibly. To fix up to sell, @bubba.50 has a good idea. Or if you have a garden, tomato stakes are handy to have around.

Good luck.

Most all of the replies have good advice. But you may have to have the barrel recut. I have had to redo a fair amount of old guns the were said to be beyond repair. Just a matter of what you are willing to accept. Good luck.

 

[CumberlandRiver]

I had a muzzleloader I bought for parts at a flea market. Out of curiosity I soaked it in Evaporust. It turned out to be a shooter. Evaporust breaks down the rust but will not damage the metal. I have left barrels in it for months. Do a little research on it. I use a length of PVC pipe just big enough to hold the barrel.

 

[CumberlandRiver]

Fresh Evapo-rust will have a brrel clean in less than 24 hours.

 

[toadboy65]

Please find someone prepared to use electrolysis, or do it yourself. It is not an overly complicated process, and requires mostly washing soda and a power source like a battery charger.
Done properly, it will completely remove the rust, and not harm the steel even a little.

Here is a basic tutorial-https://www.robotroom.com/Rust-Removal-2.html

I use graphite anodes, as they produce less muck than steel ones, but electrolysis is really far superior than any other method of rust removal, especially if you want to preserve fine details like hallmarks.

 

[CumberlandRiver]

I use to use electrolysis but believe it or not have found Evapo-rust to be superior. Evapo-rust is not corrosive.

 

[DuncNZ]

Museums use electrolysis on the most rusted rare iron or steel items , they often x ray them first , It can even bring up hallmarks as Toadboy65 says , and also manufacturing marks , serial numbers et , this is because it is sensitive enough to clean out the minute depression left by stamping or engraving.
PS any crusty rust left will attract moisture and eventually nothing but rust will be left .

 

[josie wales]

That will buff out. Just kidding of course but if you go to You Tube there are many videos of restoration of guns. Such as:

 

[Wildrangeringreen]

As far as exterior rust is concerned, you can just sand the rust smooth, degrease it, and dump boiling water over it until it turns black (rust blueing). Let the newly blued barrel soak in a lighter oil for a day or two, then wipe it down and apply you normal oil.

As far as rust in the bore, it depends on the severity and location. A light film of rust will generally shoot out, light pitting can be smoothed out (steel wool on a cleaning jag) and still give you reasonable accuracy (generally). Heavy pitting.... well you'll have to get it bored out and either make it a bigger rifled bore (.55-.58 are a good options, plenty of meat on a 1" barrel for most applications) or get it sleeved in the original .54.

If all you're doing is displaying it, you can just re-blue the outside, smooth out the rust on the inside a bit, and oil/wax the heck out of it.

Believe it or not, I've seen worse on both muzzleloading guns and modern ones lol, most of which can be made functional again (or at the least, presentable) with a little work

 

[Scota@4570]

One of my job tasks was re activation of crime scene guns that were dumped outdoors. Many were as bad as the OP example. I have tried many-many strategies.

The best answer is EVAPORUST.

If he soaks it in Evaporust rust the result will be stunning. Nothing else is even close.

Use PVC pipe with an endcap for the barrel. Be patient.

 

[Mattmatt617]

Demeaning quote was quoted here and has been deleted - Angie

This guy just tanked a knife thread and now here he goes again…. Please find SOMETHING to do better with your time

 

[tenngun]

Wow,
Lots of chemicals,
Lots of throw it away
I would remove the barrel and sand paper it. Start with 220 then 300. Then navel jelly at end. ( a chemical) then do a cold brown.
Sand the stock and do a over the counter plain stain followed by an oil finish.
You may re bore but I would just clean it with steel wool, then oil. It may not ever shoot again but it would look good and be a proud piece to keep as tribute to dad.

 

[Urban Coyote]

The photos remind me of the only, last, time I ever loaned a muzzleloader to anyone. About a week after the borrower, I actually lent two guns at the time, returned from the hunt I happened to stop by his place and asked about the guns as an afterthought to my visit. We walked out to his vehicle whereupon he opened the trunk of his car and pulled out two soaking wet gun cases containing the guns which had been fired to empty the charges but had not been cleaned. I was livid, especially since the person who borrowed them didn't offer much in the way of an excuse or apology.

Of course the guns didn't look as bad as these photos but it wasn't good. I wonder how much longer the gus would have stayed wet in the trunk of that car had I not happened to stop in.

 

[Scota@4570]

Deleted nasty post was quoted here.

Comment not needed now that quote is deleted.

Gang bangers dump guns after committing a homicide. Say in the bushes. The crime scene had fired cartridge cases and a couple of bullets in the dead guy. A year later one of the gang bangers associates gets arrested and wants to cut a deal with the DA. He tells investigators where they dumped the gun. The retrieve the gun and bring it to me. They want it test fired and compared the bullets and fired cases. An id was only made a few times but it was asked for many times.

 

[FPDoc]

"Wet-soaked, dried out wood? I haven't a clue, wish I did."

Search for "resin restoration of wood" online. Usually includes vacuum chamber (PVC probably would work for a rifle stock) to remove moisture and air from the wood then a resin is introduced and fills all the empty spaces. Used to stabilize old historic items. Seems like a system could be cobbled up by a crafty inhabitant of this forum. I haven't tried it but think it's at least another thing to look at

From "instructables "dot" com/Resin-Stabilizing-Wood/:
"This brings us to the process of (acrylic) resin stabilization. The process entails a drying process to get rid of all the moisture in the wood, putting the now bone-dry wood into a vacuum chamber to remove all the air, then introducing an acrylic resin into the wood, to occupy all the little nooks and crannys that water can absorb into in the cells of the wood. The end result is a piece of wood that no longer moves with changes in humidity, i.e the dimensions are stable (hence the name!).
Stabilization brings a host of other benefits too. In addition to the aforementioned movement issues, stabilization is also used on punky, spalted or soft woods to strengthen them; the acrylic resin adds a lot of strength to the wood itself."

 

[necchi]

,,They retrieve the gun and bring it to me. They want it test fired and compared the bullets and fired cases. An id was only made a few times but it was asked for many times.

My pointed response was that in the field of forensic investigation with all available technology concerning homicide investigations,, (as you have pointed), your best component for resolve of said homicide(s) is/was an over the counter chelating agent?
I'm astounded, that someone in that professional field would respond as such.
You should have logged in here years ago friend and picked up a few tip's, maybe some of those "asked for" would have lead to better conclusion.