Cylinder burn on stainless and blued revolvers

[Mitch95]

Model 19-3, Pre-Model 27 and 686-3 all have some burn marks on the stainless and some form burn mark or diminishing to the bluing on the cylinder.

What does everyone use to remove the burn marks on the stainless cylinders?

Is there a way to fix the wear on the cylinder? Pictures can be provided but it looks as though some of the blueing in the fluted parts of the cylinder have been removed by leading. Not sure if its permanent or an effect on top of the bluing.

Thanks-

 

[murphydog]

For the stainless gun, a Lead Away cloth works the best and will not affect the metal or finish. I add some Break Free and it makes the job easier.

The blued guns probably just have lead and powder residue on them but using the lead removal cloth also removes the bluing, so solvent and a nylon toothbrush are about as aggressive as you want to be. Some suggest using a regular pink pencil eraser on this but I have not tried it.

 

[stansdds]

Leading and residue will not remove bluing, but they will coat the surface of the steel and give it a dull, gray-ish appearance. I think murphydog has given some excellent advise for removal of the lead and residue.


One thing that I would add is that once your revolvers are clean, apply a coat of wax instead of oil. Wax can form a barrier that is better at minimizing corrosion and can make fouling easier to clean. You can use pure carnuba automotive wax, Johnson's floor paste wax, or Renaissance Wax. Just make sure it is pure wax, a lot of automotive waxes also have mild polishing abrasives added to improve the shine of paint/clear coat.

 

[chief38]

The pencil eraser works great however I would not do that too many times! An eraser (as soft as it seems) IS abrasive and will eventually cause bluing loss.

I posted this on a very similar thread last week or so......

Get a Range Rag! A 100% cotton flannel rag about 12" x 16" and saturate it with your favorite CLP. I use G96 but Breakfree CLP is great as well. When done shooting at the range, immediately wipe the gun down with the range rag. It will take almost everything off in 30 seconds, even most of the carbon and lead dust on the cylinder. Best to do this when the gun is still warm! When you get home your cleaning task will be that much easier. So simple, so easy, so efficient.

I'd suggest not trying to get every last burn mark off of the cylinder face because the first cylinder full you fire at your next range session will put them right back on. It's just part of owning a wheel gun and the method of using the range rag will keep it "clean enough". The range rag will take everything off the flutes and sides if done when the gun is still warm.

NOTE: Please be conscious of the direction while wiping the gun down at the range - always to keep it pointed down range! I have seen quite a few who forget that golden rule when wiping down or packing up their guns.

 

[scruffy]

Some Hoppe's #9 and nylon brush take care of the burn marks on my stainless cylinders. I have one blued 19-4 that I use the Hoppe's and rub lightly with a cleaning patch or piece of t-shirt.

 

[cmj8591]

M-Pro7 gun cleaner and a brush. You can use a brass brush if you have a lot of build up just don't get carried away on the blue gun. On the stainless, use the brass brush and scrub away. Or you could just leave it there like I seem to be doing more and more these days.

 

[ZGrand]

On blued guns, I use a toothbrush and whatever cleaner I happen to pick up first (Hoppe's Elite or Ballistol usually). It may not get all the burn marks off, but enough to not look too noticable on the blued surface. On stainless guns, I cut a piece of Birchwood Casey Lead Remover from the full sized cloth and rub on the rings. If stubborn, I put a small amount of Purple brand metal polish on the piece of cloth and rub. The Purple polish has very little abrasives in it. Even still, I try not to rub too hard.

 

[Dave Baird]

I've used a brass toothbrush on both with some #9. I don't push hard. But I don't shoot that often. For someone shooting a revolver a lot and cleaning it many times, I'd just use a nylon and brush the heck out of it. But that's me. I like a clean gun.

 

[Rich Richardson]

I use Nevrdull cotton wadding on my stainless guns.

 

[jsbethel]

Blitz cloth works wonders.

 

[jem102]

The best lead remover I have found is Gunzilla. It really removes lead well with a little saturation and work with cotton cloths and Q-Tips. However, be sure to follow up with your normal cleaning solutions as being plant based it tends to become "tacky" if not flushed from the surfaces.

 

[Oldsalt66]

I use Tipton Metal Magic Gun Cloths to remove stainless cylinder burn marks and they remove every single bit of it to the point that the cylinder looks like the revolver was never fired.

I'm fastidious about it too.

I dont know if they're still sold, but years back Midway had them on clearance and I bought several dozen.

This 625-8 had plenty of rounds through it as evidenced by the burn marks on the top strap near the forcing cone, but the cylinder displays no burn marks at all.

I've now got 1780 rounds through this revolver and the cylinder is still absolutely free of burn marks.

I wouldn't use these cloths on blued revolvers.