What would be the best way to remove some surface freckling of rust on a Winchester Model 12 shotgun?? Flitz, Kroil, #0000 steel wool and oil?? Thanks for any info. on this!

Those old 12's are rust blued, so don't use chemicals on it! the steel wool and oil is what I always did, but do as little as possible!

My Brazilian contract 1917 looked like it was loose shipped to the US in a create with all the nails sticking in. In 1980 or so it has about 40 nasty scratches clear down to the white. Very fine burnishing with gun oil and 0000 steel wool and love for 35 years, not one of the scratches shows today.

Just barely get rid of the rust, and keep it from getting worse. Then let time heal the wound.

Ivan

If it is just a little rust you might try using a copper penny (pre 1982) and a little bit of Kroil. Let the Kroil sit for an hour or so and then use the penny to scrape off the rust.

I use a big 45 pad and oil to remove rust. The pad won't scratch the bluing. The pads are available from Midway USA.

That Big 45 pad is a must have.
I use mine with Eezox.

__________________
-jwk-
US Army '72-'95

Soak it in WD 40. It will loosen the rust.

Never, ever use steel wool, Flitz, or other abrasives on a blued finish. Ever.

Crush a rifle shell case into a scraper, use it to knock the rust off, then clp on a rag.

Remember the rust itself is an abrasive, you want to do the scraping dry, so the rust dust falls away. Then make sure no rust is in the rag when you rub it down.

Sometimes you get lucky, what looks like a big rust spot is from a very small pin hole, and the rust is laying on top of the blue. The scraper will knock it off with no damage. Good luck.

Turtle Wax Chrome Polish and Rust Remover worked extremely well on the Model 58 in my avatar. The 58 had been carried for years by a LEO on duty and looked hopeless but the Turtle wax Chrome polish and Rust Remover cleaned all the surface rust and freckles off . It removes freckles and surface rust but not the blue. A coat of Carnauba paste wax and it looked good. Not brand new but good enough for a 1969 made gun .
Be careful with steel wool , it will remove the bluing if rubbed too hard. Copper wool , sold by Brownell's , is safer.
Gary

COPPER kitchen cleaning pad. (Chore Boy is one brand)
You want PURE copper. Some brands are copper plated over steel.

Brownell sells BRONZE wool.

I use Chore Boy with common motor oil - what ever weight I find first.

Steel wool can SCRATCH through the remaining blue ...

Bekeart

I hadn't heard about Turtle Wax Chrome Polish and Rust Remover. The standard recommendation is to get a copper scouring pad. Supermarkets, Wal-Mart, etc, often carry them with the brand name "Chore Boy." Use one along with light oil (like 3-in-1, etc.), bore cleaner, kerosene, penetrating oil, mineral spirits or whatever similar materials you have around the house. I usually use bore cleaner. That will usually do about as good a job of surface rust removal as can be done. Don't get too enthusiastic with the Chore Boy. Wipe your gun off off with solvent and keep your guns waxed. Johnson's Paste Wax is excellent for that purpose.

This goes to show what happens when you ask a simple question on the internet! You have several conflicting solutions, and I believe a few will permanently damage the bluing on you Model 12 barrel! Please do some better research before going any further!

Ivan