Might have posted this in the wrong forum, but my first S&W wheel gun is a 1956 K22. What I was wondering, since I am new to this is, what is the best method to store this firearm?I do not have the original box, so all the help I can get to keep this thing looking pristine is much needed. I will probably not shoot it much and will be storing it in a safe. Thanks in advance!

Inside the safe a nice thick pistol rug has always worked well for me.

along with a nice coating of oil.

I store in a gun rug with a good coat of Rem Oil. Having been through a House fire, every gun stored this way had zero effect. Guns in Boxes or in Racks with out a rug had some effect from the fire, luckily there were very few not in Gun rugs. This applied to long guns also.

my .02 worth

You left out the part that you live in the desert in Utah, where the realtive humidity is 5-8% year round. Whoops. Or did you say you live on the beach in Florida, where the humidity level is in the 90s all the time, and the salt spray off the ocean forms a crust on your front door? Oh, I forgot, is the safe in the unheated garage, and you live in MN where the temp varies 50 degrees each day? The correct answer isn't going to be the same.

Basically, guns are pretty rugged. But you need to protect them against moisture and air that either contains moisture, or will allow condensation to form on them. There are proven methods that protect guns against any kind of corrosion. The problem being its a pain to clean them prior to use.

The guy living in the desert might get by with WD40 and the gun rug. In more extreme climate conditions, extra help might be called for. CLP is a military specification (its marketed as a brand, but its no really because its the military spec.) It comes in different flavors and smells, but if you want a pretty good starting point for a gun rarely fired, try Collectors CLP.
Its a waxy thicker liquid, and you'd probably want to at least wipe it down prior to taking it shooting. Regular CLP works great for the US Military, and most shooters in moderate climates.

I address the moisture issue differently. I bag my cleaned and oiled guns in Ziplock brand baggies. No, its not a paid announcement, but I'd take any pay they want to dish out... I guess there are other equal thickness locking freezer bags. I'd suggest you seek a good sealing kind with a thickness that prevents the front sight from poking a hole. Then I just exhaust all the air I can as I zip it shut. The result is oiled gun, in a bag that prevents any air from reaching it. Mine go into a gun box. You can use a gun rug just as easily. While the cloth material they're made from can hold moisture, the ziplock will protect against that.

I generally don't like gun rugs for storage for a number of reasons. They take up a lot of space. They can hold the above mentioned moisture against a gun. Worse, you can't tell by looking what gun is in the rug. You've got to unzip each one to see. One of my friends in the business actually puts a tag on each gun and on its gun rug. Talk about a mess when you've got several hundred guns on a table and the same number of gun rugs! Matching only takes a few hours for 3 or 4 people... But it does solve the ID problem.

Safes in an area where the temps can go up and down, like a garage, basement, or home with setback thermostats can also present a problem. I'm still not convinced the Golden Rod will keep it warm enough to prevent all condensation. They're advertised to do that. I've tried it all, and without a real problem because of my bagging system. You can also try a dessicant, but they tend to need cooking every so often. Its a good indicator of the moisture problem in your home. If they change color after only a few weeks, you've got to add in more protection. I use my Goldenrod on the front porch, under my outdoor cat's bed. When it gets cold, he won't move off the thing!

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Dick Burg

For seldom shot guns, I like Renaissance Wax.

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Misty

Mine get a light wipe down with gun oil and a Boyt rug with one those key ID tags on the ring,identifying it..Fine for storage or ready for the range bag.

For long term storage, the gov't used cosmoline. There are modern equilivents that are easier to remove. LPS3 and LPS Hardcoat are a couple examples.

For ready storage, CorrosionX only needs refreshing every 2 years.

Living in the hot and humid south east US most of my life, RIG has worked for me. My 1 pound can is almost empty after 25 years, I hope they start making it again soon.

R'burg gives a lot of good info. I have mine in a walk in vault, built when I built new home. 4'X7' with 9' ceiling. I like the guns out with air circulating around. Since this was a separate all concrete room against the foundation, it does get some humidity. I did think ahead, and had provision for electric in it. I tried the biggest Golden Rod, advertised to handle up to 300 CU Ft. Since mine equaled about 252 CU ft, I thought it should handle it. No Way. I keep a temp/humidity gauge in the room, and humidity went up to near 80%. I installed a humidifier, and I can maintain the temp at 70 and humidity at 50%. Do have to add a little aux. heat in winter.

Always a wiped on coating of oil (usually Break Free CLP) on using guns, and I use Renaissance wax on the ones I don't (or seldom) shoot.

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H Richard
SWCA1967 SWHF244

For long term storage I wipe on a thin layer of military grease and then vacuum seal in plastic bags, finally they go into a gun rug so nothing pinches the plastic and breaks the seal. For the first couple of years I would check up on some of them but now I am confident that this system works well; even if the safe were underwater for a week or two.

I use Break Free "Collectors" on my Diamondbacks. Made for the military to last five years rust free and it sure does just that.

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Dick

Leave the stocks on, or remove and store seperately?

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Sure you did

For long term storage, remove stocks, Place them in sealed plastic bag and keep away from oil.

Rig, and according to my gun dealer it is being made again by another company.

I seem to recall reading somewhere that Birchwood Casey had purchased the rights to make and sell the Rig grease. Does anyone know if this is true and is the new version available and equal in quality?

The ABSOLUTE BEST way to store your firearms is at my house. PM me for my address. Glad to be of help.

I store mine or racks in "fireproof" (?) safes. The collectible guns are wiped with Corrosion X as soon as I've cleaned them up, which happens on arrival and before integration into the herd.

As Dick Burg knows, I do live on a beach in Florida so salt spray is an issue. Guns coated with Corrosion X don't photograph too well, as many can see smears in my pics in my album, but it does prevent rust.

After handling guns, if not wearing Corrosion X impregnated gloves, I generally wipe them over with a Rig Rag.

To the gentleman who mentioned not being able to get Rig - I picked up 2 or 3 rags and a tin of the "goo" recently. I think it was from Brownells.

Regards.

Dave

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Dave Ballantyne

Sounds like a good option GARMASTERS, but I believe I'll pass on this one today! LOL!

One of the best products that I have found to control humidity is called DampRid. It consists of a bag with a hanger for placing over a closet rod. The bag has two compartments; the upper containing the desiccant; the lower compartment fills up with the collected water from the air as the dessicant works. The product is advertised as lasting up to 90 days but in my environment it doesnt last that long so I replace them more often. (Actually, my wife replaces them because she uses them in all of the closets and in off season clothes storage bags...if shes happy with it, Im happy with it!). You will be surprised at just how much water will collect in the bag!

They can be found at the Container Store or most large home supply or hardware stores.

I use Corrosion-X and store the guns openly on racks in my safe or in their boxes.

Its worked for many years in my environment.

Bob

Smith & Wesson sells a nice heavy duty reproduction cardboard box with metal end clips for $14.95 plus shipping,oil the gun, wrap it in S&W VCI paper (also thru customer service) and store it in this nice new sturdy box,check their web site.

Neal

My rifles, shotguns and handguns are kept in a walk in vault with my handguns layed down flat on shelves with thick green felt folded double under them all. They all have a coat or two of minwax to protect them and the bores a thin wipe of oil followed by a dry patch. I live about 500 to 600 yards from the Pacific Ocean and this method has served me well.

Rod

mike i have removed the stocks on several of my seldom shooters and applied renaissance wx...then put the stocks back on...on guns i have waxed i use the breakfree collectors in the bore and chambers

I'm with gunlovingirl.

I'm surrounded by water.
I wax them, put them in a good pistol rug, then I put the rug in the safe. The box gets wrapped, then tucked away up high somewhere.

So far so good.

I'm surprised so many people are storing their guns in gun rugs. I used to do that, but not anymore. If you have moist air in the rug when you zip it up, it is trapped in there and your gun will rust if it's not heavily coated with oil or grease. I wipe them down with Breakfree CLP or Eezox and wrap them in VCI (Volitile Corrosion Inhibitor) paper and put them in a lightweight cardboard box. It's the same stuff the military and most gun manufacturers use. S&W ships their guns in a similar protective paper. It has chemicals impregnated in the paper that resists corrosion or rust. Lately I've been using Bore Stores for some guns. It is a heavy material that is impregnated with anti-corrosive chemicals and the material it is made out of breathes so moisture can't be trapped inside. I also use Golden Rods and dessicant packs in my gun safe. I once kept a shotgun in my trunk in a gun rug. I took it out one day for cleaning and it was COVERED with light rust. I won't use gun rugs for gun storage anymore. Those that use them for storage without any problems are very lucky.

I found out about the SWCA thru corresponding with David Damkaer who was probably one of the founding members or, at the very least, an early one. He wrote many wonderfully informative articles during the first few years of the Journal's existence including some in-depth reviews of K frame and I frame stocks. He also wrote one in the Winter of '86 about how he preserved his guns, including how he cleaned them, oiled and then double bagged them. Very informative and recommended to all. You can get back issues of the Journal if you join.
Ed

Your question is akin to asking what kind of motor oil everyone prefers. You will get as many different replies as there are people to answer the question. That said, I may as well add my .02. I have a golden rod in my safe, and I use either Howard's Feed N Wax or Johnson's paste wax. The Howard's has citrus oil, bee's wax, and carnauba wax in it, and works wonders on wood stocks, especially if they are in need of a little extra moisture. The wax in it works just as well on metal I find. Of course the bore and internals are cleaned and lightly oiled. I also like to use silicone impregnated gun socks on at least half of my guns, if only to keep them from safe dings. My safe is way over capacity I'm afraid, so that's become a necessity.
My safe is in my office, which is 1/2 below grade in the lower level of the raised ranch we live in. In addition, I live in southern Maine, with very changeable weather, and high humidity at times in the summer. So far, I have had no issues at all with rust on any gun. Some I have owned for about 40 years, so something I'm doing works for me.
As I said, you will get a different answer from everyone who replies. Hopefully you can gather enough advice from all these replies to suit your needs, and protect those all important firearms.
Take care, and let us know what you decide.

WOW, so many different options. I appreciate everyone's response and realize there's no one right answer. Thanks to all those that have shared and will continue to share their responses. Being new to the hobby, I'm very appreciative for this forum. There are so many things to read about and it's great to learn from all the different responses to the posts.

+1 on the Si impregnated gun socks -- worth it just to minimize the chance of safe dings -- they're also fairly cheap if you get them in bulk.

Anyone ever tried Foodsavers for long-term storage?

Bore-Stores.
Just clean the gun normally and put it in. I've used them for years and never had a problem of any kind.