From monts@sun.com Tue Oct 10 10:12:07 1989
Subject: Re: Long term gun storage (fwd)
To: kirk@enterprise.Corp.sun.com (Kirk DeHaan), ktse@acura (Kevin Tse)
Organization: Sun Microsystems
X-Mailer: Elm [version 2.1 PL1]

Forwarded message:

Article 2631 of rec.guns:
Path: sun!newstop!texsun!convex!uunet!cs.utexas.edu!ico!ism780c!sean
Newsgroups: rec.guns
Subject: Re: Long term gun storage
Keywords: storage
Message-ID: <34934@ism780c.isc.com>
Date: 5 Oct 89 18:54:08 GMT
References: <34039@ism780c.isc.com>
Sender: sean@ism780c.isc.com
Reply-To: earl@trsvax.tandy.com (Earl W. Bollinger)
Organization: Tandy Electronics
Lines: 84
Approved: rec-guns@ism780c.isc.com

In article <34039@ism780c.isc.com> neal@lynx.UUCP (Neal Woodall) writes:
>Does anybody have any good suggestions for long-term storage of a rifle?
>What precautions can be taken to avoid rust and other corrosion? Should
>the gun be throughly greased for storage? If so, what kind of grease should
>be used? Most rifles I have bought have come from the factory with heavy
>grease in the action....I would assume that this is how the gun should be
>prepared for long-term storage. I would also assume that what is good for
>the long-term storage of a rifle would apply to a handgun or shotgun as well.
>I also thought that storage in a sealed container with a packet or two
>of silica gel (for dessicant) might be a good idea.

     I feel that you need to use a good quality grease, and thouroughly
     grese the weapon inside and out. Then carefully wrap the greased
     weapon in waxed or oiled paper, and then store in a oiled or waxed
     paper lined wooden crate or box.

     Plastic sheets or bags have a residual chemical fumes and or solvents
     that can react with the weapon over time, causing damage. Most of the
     petroleum based greases also can react chemically with plastic too.
     Maybe even dissolve the plastic sheets. Plastic does tend to age also.
     Paper seems to be more inert than plastic for long term, many year
     storage purposes. This assumes that your using acid free or very low
     acid paper that has been oiled or waxed.  The grocery store waxed paper
     tends to last forever almost.

     Grease itself is quite good. It doesn't dry or evaporate easily. You
     can still get 'cosmoline' at surplus stores. Most any type of grease
     seems to work OK, from a practical point of view. You can usually
     obtain large containers of bulk grease easy enough.

     If you can afford it, the silicon lubricants in grease form would be
     best. But this stuff gets to be very expensive. This type of grease
     is used to provide improved heat conduction in electronic circuits.
     The clear type of grease is preferred as the white stuff could
     discolor wood, etc. The silicon grease is also not likely to harm
     plastics, whereas the regular petroleum greases could damage or dissolve
     some plastic parts.

     It is important to ensure that all the metal parts are coated thouroughly.
     If air makes contact, it will cause corrosion. The wood stock or parts
     do not seem to be affected by the grease, as the well oiled (linseed type
     oils) stock seems to be fairly impervious to the heavy grease. If the
     weapon is well greased, then moisture and water can't get inside and cause
     rust. This is where rust or pitting under the woodline comes from.

     If your wanting to store a weapon for many years. Grease it up good.
     Carefully wrap in waxed paper. put into a good paper lined wood box or
     crate (you might be able to dispenbse with the wood box in this case).
     The insert into a heavy polyethylene or PVC pipe or tube of the proper
     diameter. Put in your extra parts, ammo, etc. throw in several bags
     of fresh dessicant too. Then seal both ends of the tube properly.

     The carefully dig a hole in your back yard, so that you can place the
     protected weapon(s) under your sewage drain pipe or water pipe. This
     way it's difficult to detect from the pipes in the yard. Place the tube
     about 2 to three feet deeper than the water pipes of course.

     These things make good time capsules. If you put ammo in there too,
     use only the best, highest quality ammo. The cheap stuff chemically
     breaks down faster. The gun powder contains minute amounts of nitric
     acid, which eventually breaks down the powder charge itself. The
     higher quality ammo, has better powder which will have a better shelf
     life. Unbeknownest to most people, smokeless powder ammo does have
     a shelf life (although the good stuff can last 50-60 years).
     Most smokeless powder ammo will probably last about 20 years or so.
     The Cheap stuff like the Norinco stuff, will probably last around
     20 years, if well protected. Old antique black powder ammo would
     probably last forever, if it wasn't for the primers breaking down
     after a while. A police forensics lab once did a murder investigation
     test and found that 56 Spencer Rim fire ammo (this stuff was all
     over 100 years old) had a 80% ignition rate, and was still shootable.
     Yeah, someone murdered someone else using a 56 Spencer carbine of
     civil war vintage. Maybe they'll make it a good murder mystery one
     day.

***********************************************************************

<This information is provided by an individual and is not nor should be
 construed  as  being  provided  by  Radio  Shack or Tandy Corp.  Radio
 Shack/Tandy Corp has no obligation to support the information provided
 in  any way. >

						Earl W. Bollinger
						@ <trsvax!earl>



--
Mike Monts
x61495

