[JerryHN]

Hello,

Ive stored a brand new winchester 70 (unfired) in a dry foam case for about 4 days. I had cleaned the gun before putting it in the case: wiped it with rem-oil. Today when I brought it out and wiped it down, I notice brown stains that came off the metal blued parts of the gun.

Do you think this is rust or is it just cosmoline? How can you tell the difference?

Thanks in advance

 

[Big Z]

Wipe it down to find out what's underneath. I wouldn't expect a new modern rifle to have cosmoline seeping out of it...

 

[crazydave]

RUST. Wipe the outside of the bbl with your DRY hand. Slippery-blackish = cosmoline. Brown = the "R-word."

Smell your hand. Smell like rust or oil? Now clean the weapon well and don't put it confined in a foam case for extended periods again! The factory box will work for storage (if you still have it). I like Rem Oil with the new VCI/VPI stuff in it. Good luck!

 

[JerryHN]

Thanks guys, the rifle is cleaned and now in the gun safe. I never thought rust could develop so quickly without the gun ever being exposed to water or rain.

 

[JerryHN]

Ok this is strange. so I wiped the gun down again with RemOil and more brown came off the bluing. I notice that everytime I would wipe the gun with RemOil, dry the oil with a silicone cloth, then wipe again with the RemOil, more brown would come off onto the RemOil sheets.

I checked the metal and it looks perfectly shiny (no rust at all). Where could this "brown" be coming from?

 

[OneShotKill]

My Dad and I bought new Model 70's this year, and we found the same thing. Dad got to clean his before I had a chance and warned me about what you've said. Both our are in perfect condition after a thorough clean, but it took some cleaning. There are still no signs of rust on either rifle. Don't worry about it! Just store them well and keep them clean and you'll be fine I'm sure. We treat our rifles with G96 after use, and find that is great stuff to use. Wish I owned the factory that makes it!!!!!

 

[Rubberduck]

Could the brown be coming from the silicone cloth?

 

[Harry Snippe]

Brown on a new rifle ?
Yup !! Saw it on my new Savage .Think it might have something to do with blueing . Darn sure looked like a coating of rust on the rag.Just wipe it a few times until the rag is clean , then install a coating of Auto Wax .
Solved my issue .

 

[kdub]

Harry is correct. It's called "rust" bluing at the factory using the hot salts bluing process. The metal gets dunked in water soluble oil after bluing, dried and then wiped down and oiled again before shipping, but that doesn't guarantee you will not get that dreaded brown stain when wiping the firearm down yourself. If you ever have a gunsmith do custom or rebuilding work, it is more noticeable than that from the factory.

Don't panic - this is perfectly normal. Just keep wiping and lightly oiling on occasion and eventually the brown will disappear.

 

[JerryHN]

Thanks for all the info guys. This gives me a lot of peace of mind.

 

[JerryHN]

And Kdub, sorry about the double post.

 

[OneShotKill]

Spoke to my Dad about your post Jerry. He said it took a bit of work to remove the same thing on his Model 70, and it did on mine too. Gave it a rub down with G96 this morning, and no sign of it. Don't panic mate! Just keep working away at it and all will be fine. Not a hint of any rust on either Dad or my Model 70. We take care of our rifles just like the other guys on this topic.

 

[Country]

Wiping a gun with a cloth is not that efficient . You can not get an even film of oil on the gun and you can not get into all the nooks and crannies.
Oil drys out and wipes off . Use wheel bearing grease . Get an old shaving brush and trim it down with scissors so it is about an inch , inch and a half long in the bristles. Then use that to apply a thin even coat of grease after you clean it . Stay away from the scopes lenses and moving parts.

 

[Harry Snippe]

Wheel brearing grease ??? That might serve if you wanted to pack it away .
It is also hard to get off and gathers dirt like ---- to a blanket .
Better off once you have it clean give it a coat of Auto Wax and be done with it !!!

A good gun oil does leech into the nooks.And the excess wipes off

 

[Gil Martin]

It depends what you prefer

Too much oil can damage a stock so I use a light film of gun grease on a cloth to wipe down all metal and the bore. It is hardly noticeable and really protects against rust. All the best...
Gil

 

[crazydave]

Wheel brearing grease ??? That might serve if you wanted to pack it away .
It is also hard to get off and gathers dirt like ---- to a blanket .
Better off once you have it clean give it a coat of Auto Wax and be done with it !!!

A good gun oil does leech into the nooks.And the excess wipes off

I second the vote for Auto Wax....

Also blueing by definition is "controlled rusting" to build up an oxidized layer more impervious to the elements than bare metal. FWIW....

 

[Harry Snippe]

I started using wax years ago from a friend who shot PPC . He was going through a lot of ammo and seemed to be always cleaning his revolvers .
He suddenly started using once a year car Wax . Not only to the outside but showed me that after cleaning the bore with solvent and dry patch's thinking it was clean - a rag coated in Car wax , showed there was still fowling in the bore .
I could not keep my guns clean at cowboy shoots and followed suit .
Now during the hunting season trying to keep your guns clean and too from rust - just coat the whole gun bore wood and all with a good CAR WAX. Works perfect !!!!!