Help- surface rust issue

[tinman931]

Hello All,
A buddy of mine came it me for help. He has an SP 101 that he had stored in a case for a few months. Somehow, moisture got into the case and now the finish has minor surface rust and some pitting. What is the best method to clean up and restore the finish? The pistol was a gift from his father, so he is a bit frantic.

Thanks in advance for your help.

 

[BigBill]

Blue finish?

Simi chrome polish very lightly.

If it's pitted its time to wash it with rubbing alcohol , then heat the area with a Hair dryer then apply some cold bluing with 0000 steelwool and rub the cold bluing into the area.

 

[pmosley]

Have him try some liquid Fitz. Begin polishing gently with more firm pressure as needed. My neighborhood ACE carries Fitz. If unable to locate Mothers Mag Polish sold at most auto retail stores is highly recommended by many.
Good luck!



Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[fyimo]

I would get some 0000 steel wool and rub it on the revolver to take off the rust and oxidation and then apply cold blue in the areas needed and then wax the revolver with Johnson's floor wax or Renaissance wax. This will seal the finish and prevent rust. Also never store your gun in a case for any length of time because they will absorb moisture and cause problems. The only thing worse is storing one for prolonged periods in a leather holster as the acids in the leather will attack the revolver.

Bye the way rubbing your blued guns down with 0000 steel wool will not hurt the finish and should be down yearly followed by waxing. You will be surprised at how great your guns look after you do this.

 

[Gunhacker]

SP101's are stainless.

If you can post pics that would go along way in getting some specific and useful help to the situation, nothing is more irritating than to see advice being given that's not relevant... cold bluing on stainless steel?

No disrespect intended, as the advice offered is usually a case of just being too eager to help, but the consequences in that is it can easily end up making the situation worse.

It was clearly not known what the exact situation was with the OP's gun, and yet people merrily posted away with advice geared towards a blued gun when anyone who really knows Rugers, would immediately know that it's a stainless gun.

Kudos for wanting to help, but you can't assume anything.

 

[shawn mccarver]

Use of steel wool on a stainless steel surface will cause the need to re-passivate the firearm, a job beyond the scope of the "home repair." The best solution is to return the firearm to Ruger.

 

[tinman931]

Not much of a photographer, but hopefully these help:

 

[tinman931]

Sorry. I can't figure out how to put more than 1 pic in a post.

 

[tinman931]

Pic of the other side

 

[tinman931]

Ejector shroud

 

[tinman931]

A vigorous rubbing with rubbing alcohol seemed to take care of most of the surface rust. Mostly it's the pitting with some rust still in it. Suggestions for the pitting?

Storage lesson learned

 

[gwpercle]

Try Turtle Wax Chrome polish and Rust Remover. Follow the directions on the can and it should clean up just fine. It will clean, polish and remove the rust.
The gun just has a little "character" now, no harm done.
Get another case and spray the insides with silicon or some type light oil so it wont rust again.
Gary

 

[chaparrito]

I learned that lesson with my SW 1911. In the case too long caused some freckles of rust. I used Flitz. I now keep all the pistols in individual silicon treated knit gunsocks.

 

[ironhead7544]

Flitz will remove the rust but not the pits. I would throw that case away. Flitz will also protect the finish. Regular Flitz has a slight abrasive so be careful how hard you polish. They also make a gun wax with no abrasive. I one had a 3rd Model 5 inch 44 Spl HE that was left in a leather holster for many years. The grip frame was perfect but the part inside the holster was relic type rust. Most of the front sight was rusted off. Dont store in a case or holster.

 

[Bruce51]

You may want to consider bead blasting the entire gun.

Is that a bunch of carbon chunks all around the forcing cone?


BLM

 

[dacave58]

A little gun oil and a brass brush will do wonders for any finish. The brass will not scratch or cause rust. Steel wool on stainless can cause rust to form on stainless. Light oil is the key.

 

[g8rb8]

A vigorous rubbing with rubbing alcohol seemed to take care of most of the surface rust. Mostly it's the pitting with some rust still in it. Suggestions for the pitting?

Storage lesson learned

Thank goodness the simple act of cleaning it with rubbing alcohol has greatly improved the surface and I like you logic of first trying something simple and unlikely to cause a worse problem HOWEVER I would be very careful with some of the suggestions given so far. I AM NOT AN EXPERT. There is A LOT of good information on this forum about fixing scratches on a stainless steel revolver finish. How you fix an issue with the finish on a stainless steel revolver depends on the finish of the stainless steel. The issue you have with this particular gun is the type of finish. It looks like this is a "brushed" stainless steel surface. There are basically 3 types of stainless steel surfaces:
1. Brushed - superficial brush or swirl marks are seen in the surface and it has a slightly dull or satin finish. I AM NOT AN EXPERT but problems in this surface looks like it is best dealt with using Scotch Brite pads starting with a more coarse maroon (#7447 320-400 grit) pad, followed by a green (#6448 600 grit) pad, finished up with a light grey (#7448 600-800 grit) pad gently brushing in the direction of the brush marks in the factory finish. There are a number of good posts about this. Do NOT use my brief description as your guide to fixing the problem as most of the people posting about this are advising about getting scratches out of the gun and not rust or pits but I would suspect it would work for rust pits too.
2. Bead Blasted - uniformly dullish look with no swirls - looks almost painted on - the top of the frame or the rib on many brushed stainless steel revolvers is bead blasted and contrasts with the rest of the finish. The best way to fix this is bead blasting by an experienced person but some have posted a way to fix this with striking abrasive material on the gun with a hammer.
3. Polished - bright and shiny and looks almost like nickel. A few responders to your post have recommend using various polishing compounds HOWEVER if you use polishing compounds on a brushed finish gun you will likely end up with areas that look polished. You can fix that by either polishing the entire gun or refer to #1 above.

I think dacave58 makes a good suggestion but I would add to use strokes with the brush along the same direction as the factory brush marks - "A little gun oil and a brass brush will do wonders for any finish. The brass will not scratch or cause rust. Steel wool on stainless can cause rust to form on stainless. Light oil is the key."

John
Scoundrel and Ne'er-Do-Well in Training

 

[Waywatcher]

Here is what I would do (followed by what you should definitely not do):

--Completely disassemble the SP101--I've done this before, it's easy.
--Reinstall the 'naked' trigger guard.
--Mask (with masking tape) all areas except for one--work on one are at a time. Masking the other areas will prevent buffs against the grain. Make sure to mask the front sight.
--Going always with the grain, lightly buff the metal with a scotchbrite pad. Never change direction while on the piece, and resist the urge to go back-and-forth. Take careful note of the grain direction and always follow it. The barrel's grain goes in a different direction the frame, and different flats on the frame go different directions.
--Mask the completed section and unmask a new section, continue.
--when all sections have been restored, give the frame assembly a bath in a suitable oil (I use Ed's Red for this.) Note the use of the word 'bath.' Plenty of oil in a tub. Should cover the frame assembly. Swish the frame around. Tons of tiny green particles from the scotchbrite should be visible now in the bath--leaving the frame.
--Use the same process outlined above on all visible small pieces.
--Dry off excess oil with a rag.
--Reassemble.
--The gun will look and feel better than new.

Now, as promised, what not to do:
Steel wool (deposits new, ferrous, material that can rust.)
Cold bluing (should be obvious on a stainless piece.)
Flitz (or any other polish-this will end up polishing the gun, getting progressively shinier.)

I've done this work before on an SP101. It's not as hard as describing it. Go slow, carefully mask, use a scotchbrite with a gentle touch, and it will look better than new. Good luck!

 

[g8rb8]

Waywatcher,
Thanks for an excellent post. I think your advice and instructions are excellent. Please comment on my post for any errors.

Do you find using just the green Scotch Brite pad, without finishing off with the lower abrasive grey Scotch Brite pad, is sufficient for the brushed stainless steel?

Once again thanks for a great post and I think your advice will serve tinman931 well.

John
Scoundrel and Ne'er-Do-Well in Training

 

[Waywatcher]

Waywatcher,
Thanks for an excellent post. I think your advice and instructions are excellent. Please comment on my post for any errors.

Do you find using just the green Scotch Brite pad, without finishing off with the lower abrasive grey Scotch Brite pad, is sufficient for the brushed stainless steel?

Once again thanks for a great post and I think your advice will serve tinman931 well.

John
Scoundrel and Ne'er-Do-Well in Training

Your post is good. I have used the maroon scotchbrite pads in the past, it doesn't hurt to start with them. I have found that plain green scotchbrite pads, with a gentle touch always with the grain, will actually result in an end finish slightly smoother/softer/finer than factory, so I've never moved onto grey pads.