Hurricane Helene flooded rifles rust removal

[CaptJack1]

I live right on the Gulf of Mexico, unfortunately hurricane Helene put about 3 feet of salt water in my garage and of course the Safe is not waterproof. All the rifles were affected some more than others all appear to be recoverable as I immediately washed them all down with freshwater and sprayed Ballistol all over them. There have been much higher priority issues to deal with but now those are behind me and I want to attend properly to all my babies.

I am very familiar with all the usual small rust issues on blued guns. Unfortunately, I have a rather large inventory guns to deal with And with more damage than normal.

Looking for something to soak the more damaged pieces in before I start the process of cleaning …..looking for opinion on the following

CRC Evapo-Rust, Heavy-Duty Rust Remover, Reusable, Acid-Free, Non-Corrosive, Water-based, 32 oz, Removes Rust to Bare Metal
https://a.co/d/2cDfZ16

I don’t find anything on it on firearms, but it appears to have all the correct properties.

 

[Shotguncoach]

I'm happy to hear that you and your family made it through ok...that's more important than any "stuff".

Can you post some pictures of what your dealing with? If it is surface rust, you may want to go with the boiling/carding method first instead of jumping straight to evapo-rust. The evapo-rust will also remove all of the bluing and leave you with bare metal.

Mark Novak has some great videos on the tube about how to deal with surface rust by boiling and carding.

How badly did the wood get soaked? That will be an entirely different issue....

 

[s&wchad]

...
CRC Evapo-Rust, Heavy-Duty Rust Remover, Reusable, Acid-Free, Non-Corrosive, Water-based, 32 oz, Removes Rust to Bare Metal
https://a.co/d/2cDfZ16

I don’t find anything on it on firearms, but it appears to have all the correct properties.

I'd be afraid that it would remove bluing. I think you'd be safer to remove the stocks and soak the metal in Ed's Red. You can find recipes online.

 

[CaptJack1]

o.k….you answered the main concern If it removes the bluing, I’m not going to use it.
I have heard of Ed’s Red I will check that out.
Actually, the stocks on all the rifles are in really good shape. Don’t think I have to do any restoration there. The saltwater was probably in the safe less than an hour.
I really appreciate all the comments.

 

[Greyman50]

Might want to try some Kroil too. Soak cotton rag in Kroil, wrap it tightly around metal and leave it for a few days. Might add more Kroil to rag every day.

 

[CaptJack1]

Kroil, good suggestion….
thanks

 

[stansdds]

I would think that salt water on the stocks may have left some salt within the wood.

 

[scooter123]

Note, some shotgun barrels from the late 1800's to the 1950's may have been assembled with a soft solder that can be melted by boiling, so any shogun with rust needs to be evaluated by a real professional before doing any Rust Bluing. Modern shoguns typically have barrels that are assembled using Silver Solder or Lead based solder that melts at much higher temperatures than boiling water.

Boil all the steel parts in fresh water. How long depends on the extent of the rust but a starting point is 45 minutes and the end point may be three or four 45 minute boils. I will also note that doing this will produce an improved finish on an antique firearm with a lot of "patina" because that "patina" is a combination of Rust and Oil and boiling this finish will restore the original blued finish if it hasn't been "worn off" with a wire brush or scotchbrite. Take Note, using a wire brush on a bench grinder WILL Destroy the finish on the firearm and once it's destroyed you will never get it back. BTW this works because boiling steel in water converts Red Rust into Black Oxide and for many years Rust Bluing was the primary method for "bluing" a firearm.

See the following video, it's a very good video that explains the Rust Bluing process and chemicals that can speed up the rusting stage in a repeatable and helpful manner. It also shows the part number and source for a Carding brush that can be used to clean a rust blued finish without removing any of that finish.

[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_nWVI_3Lo0Q[/ame]

 

[Narragansett]

Might want to try some Kroil too. Soak cotton rag in Kroil, wrap it tightly around metal and leave it for a few days. Might add more Kroil to rag every day.

I do this when I get the urge to restore an old 22. Old T shirt works best. Wrap tightly, and wet thoroughly. After a couple days do it again. Wipe metal down with kroil dipped medium bronze wool

 

[BE Mike]

Sorry to hear of all your troubles. Fortunately, it sounds like you avoided physical injury. I've had good luck with CorrsionX and Eezox. Rust removers that you cite will destroy the bluing.

 

[kraynky]

Don't forget to remove the butt plates and treat the screws in the wood stocks while you're at it.

Just the thought of having 3' of any kind of water in my safes makes me cringe. Even more so knowing it was salt water!

God Bless, glad you and your family are alright, which is way more important that "stuff" that got damaged.

 

[toad67]

I would think that salt water on the stocks may have left some salt within the wood.

Agree, look up Browning salt wood problems.

 

[stansdds]

Agree, look up Browning salt wood problems.

Bingo! I vaguely remembered that many years ago a manufacturer had issues with wood stocks and salt. It was Browning.
Link to an article in the NRA Rifleman:
Rifleman Q&A: Browning “Salt Wood” Stocks | An Official Journal Of The NRA