WD-40 or any other petroleum based based solvents will cut it pretty good. Once youve uh unslimed your wood, return to your sonic cleaner components and use brake cleaner as needed to grab any chunks that might be left with your Q-tips. From there, we like to take all of the small components and run them through a nice sonic cleaner bath to free up some of the hardened gunk thats worked its way into small spaces. Make sure to get into all the internals. 5 Steps in Removing Cosmoline 1. I do this on bare stocks after stripping them. Create an account to follow your favorite communities and start taking part in conversations. I also use murphy's oil soap to help remove the oily Cosmoline from the wood. You can use the oven and even the heat from the sun to melt the cosmos. WD-40 and a rag take it off easily enough. Like CitriStrip because you won't lose any proof marks in the wood. Stripping the finish is a big no-no for some. Your email address will not be published. Not only does WD-40 dissolve the Cosmoline, it does it better and faster than acetone. ?>. Cosmoline removal . Collectors of C&R (Curio & Relic) firearms often find old firearms that were built around WWI or WWII and then put in storage. Go check them out at Oldsteelguns.com! Once youve accomplished this, you can move on to the next step. A lot of people swear by mineral spirits as a primary solvent to remove Cosmoline, and you can either apply it with a rag or submerge/dip your gun into it. Eliminates Manual Cleaning with Solvents Green aqueous chemistry eliminates manual cleaning using flammable solvents, acetone and WD-40. Social media guy and gucci gear nerd extraordinaire, he enjoys tracking the equipment trends of various SOF forces worldwide and collecting a wholly unnecessary amount of Multicam Black kit. While really bad cosmoline build-up might require a few steps further than a field stripping for whatever rifle youre working on. I've used WD40 to clean guns (not to lube them) and fired thousands of rounds without any dead primers. Pressure steam and air dry large parts and wipe down with good oil 3 in 1 is good run hoppes#9 thru the bore after steaming and compressed air drying. . Depending on how much hardened build-up youve got, itll probably take you a few cans of brake cleaner to get everything loosened up. Use an air gun to blow the cleaning fluid off after you finish, then apply lube as needed. Attempting to remove the rust-preventive after allowing the cosmoline to warm up can result in an oilier finish. This involves two steps: You can do this by wrapping your firearm in towels and placing it in a black trash bag and leaving it sit out in the sun, or using another heat sourcesuch as a heat gun or older ovento return the Cosmoline to its liquid state. The greasy substance is used to prevent their military surplus rifles from rusting. Good or bad idea? For the unfamiliar, cosmoline is sort of the genericized term for a family of petroleum-based greases with remarkably high viscosity with inherent rust and corrosion protective properties, a signature waxy brown visage, and unmistakable industrial smell. The protective layer was thick, tough and not easy to remove. There's two main types of cosmoline: RP- 342 and RP- 344 I belive. Title: Original Cosmoline We'll send you the latest guides and training tips geared We promise to never spam you, and just use your email address to identify you as a valid customer. Very fast and efficient. Let me show you how I safely remove cosmoline. We finally discovered the quickest way to remove the cosmoline was to fill up a teapot with water, bring to boil, then slowly pour the boiling water onto the SKS. Once removed, coatings can be melted again for repeat use. Not so sure about current unleaded bio-fuel with all the additives. Soak a cloth in the degreaser and rub it onto the firearm until the cosmoline is dissolved. Today, the mineral spirits found in products like ours are more refined and . Cosmoline doesn't penetrate the wood like most stock finishes unless its areas where its flaking. Be that as it may, your general overall approach to de-gunking your gun is going to be pretty similar no matter how much shit is built up within it. Cosmoline removal questions. WD40 is an expensive version of mineral spirits. Was thinking of boiling in dish detergent water. If you have chunks of cosmo, remove them out first.. carefully remove the "deep" stuff. Brake cleaner and acetone will dissolve nearly anything but often they evaporate before you can get the gunk off and you are back where you started. Hang the parts from metal coat hangers and lay out a piece of plastic to protect the floor. Suspend stock in pipe using a wire coat hanger, rest blow dryer on either the top or cut a hole in the bottom then set to low heat high fan setting (Don't let the heat in the pipe get over ~165 Fahrenheit due to shellac having a low melting point). It worked so well that I took pictures and video of the last small cosmoline section of metal I had to clean. Re: Cosmoline removal Ford & Pontiac used alot of Cosmoline back in the 80`s & 90`s to protect the car from transit contaminants. Now what's the best way to clean the residual WD40 off so I won't have primers getting compromised? Mind you ,I keep a close watch on this. Ok, what method is easier. With that out of the way, spray a shitton of brake cleaner into the barrel and gas ports as well, then use a bore cleaning brush to ram all of that nasty ass gunk out. I bake all the stocks in a long homemade oven I made. Collector, reloader, amateur gunsmith and CHL holder. We used our same bore brush to ram out the gas tube as well and while its not as critical to get this part as sparkling clean as the barrel, you obviously dont want any obstructions in the cavity that your piston sits within. Acetone, mineral spirits, or kerosene (but avoid the latter when possible, or when your firearm has been painted or blued). Ive always had the best luck with mineral spirits. There are other considerations that you think about if tackling this task. Before I go full bore on this, has anyone used this? I've used mineral spirits, gasoline, heat, soapy water, etc. The heat will bleed the cosmo out. You can proceed to the real cleaning whenever youre satisfied. A heat gun on the low setting or a hairdryer both work great for this task. However, it might not be necessary if you have no intentions of shooting it. It may not display this or other websites correctly. It wouldn't damage the metal bluing either. Cosmoline is a general term for a group of petroleum-based greases with high viscosity, intrinsic rust and corrosion protection, a waxy brown appearance, and a distinct industrial odor. Cosmoline Removal I'm sure this has been discussed off an on before.but lets start a definitive thread with some tips and tricks! As the cold war came and went, many of these countries started to liquidate their warehouses, selling these surplus arms to importers and exporters in the United States. 1 Jeep, 1 crate, and a barrel of cosmo! The stock was so dry it could easily be sanded and refinished. Cosmoline was quickly adopted by militaries the world over as a way to chemically embalm small arms, artillery pieces, armored vehicles, and so on for either long term storage or trips across the Atlantic. Login with username, password and session length. A little spark/open flame & gas vapors can be a recipe for personal disaster, even outside. Kroil can be found here at Brownells.com. It melts at 113-125 so hot soapy water or steam cleaning works. I used the boiling water method for my cousin's 91/30. They cost around $20 if you want something cheap. This post is brought to you in collaboration with Old Steel Historical Firearms, located in Littleton, Colorado. In the Marine Corps, more than once did we have to 'un-Cosmoline' weapons, gear or other 'NOS stuff'and without fail, the answer was always the same: 'Disassemble the device (if required) to field strip position, place the Cosmolined-item into the BOILING WATER TANK, and allow to soak for 4-5 minutes, as needed'. It worked great. Next, you need to clean your gun. I soaked them in mineral spirits then rinsed with hot water and dried them. If you go to fast or too aggressive you can strip out the moisture and mess up the stock. These guns were usually just dipped in a big vat of Cosmoline and then put into storage. It will melt off the Cosmoline then wipe and oil everything down. What is Cosmoline? 1 Place a part in a solvent compatible container and spray down with brake cleaner. Make sure you get all of the Cosmolene off of the gun! Whatever their history was with the PLA prior to being locked in the goo grave for an indeterminate amount of time, they certainly werent babied. When applied to a surface, the compound solidifies as it . Your email address will not be published. jumpscare links to send to friends; elliptical orbit simulator; babolat ambassador program. Before using the Kroil, take an old rag and lightly wipe off any heavy concentrations of cosmoline. All petroleum-based products are chemical mixtures that are highly complex. Click the button below to add the Cosmoline Remover to your wish list. AK-47 Tips/Tricks, Links, Content and Buyer Guides. If you have a firearm that has been stored in Cosmoline, the first step is to remove as much of the Cosmoline as possible. There is something hugely satisfying about bringing one of these old things back to life. Nylon brush. Simple Green works great on metal parts, particularly in the ultrasonic cleaner. Once you have removed as much of the Cosmoline as you can, it's time to move on to the next step. Switch to Standard View Competitive pistol and high power rifle shooter (200-600 yards). It will dry everything out so you can't use it on rubber, plastics or wood and don't get it on your skin either. Shopping Cart Software by BigCommerce. Fact: Over the past few decades, the name Stoddard Solvent was synonymous with all mineral spirits. Sign up for our newsletter and stay up to date, Blowback Operated Guns: Way More Than You Need To Know, CZ-457 Accuracy: The Most Affordable Way to Accurize Your CZ, How to Clean and Lube an Over/Under Shotgun, The Complete History of the Lyman Alaskan Scope, Gun Bluing Basics: All of the Methods Gunsmiths Use. towards your level. JavaScript is disabled. This give us a headstart on polishing those bad boys up or if left long enough, cleans them totally with almost no extra work on your end. If you have some cosmoline removal in your future, you may want to pick up a bottle of this stuff. In our case, you might need to run the gadget a few times to really penetrate the crud. Dissembling can make the process somewhat easier but it isnt absolutely necessary. However, it gives you the opportunity to get to know the inner workings of your firearm on another level. But there is a kind of cosmoline that is used for vehicles. Cosmoline can create a dangerous situation with your firearm. We personally found Q-tips to be useful if a bit tedious. Then I laid the parts out in the blazing Texas sun. Nearly as ubiquitous as duct tape, WD-40 claims to protect against rust and corrosion. When I began removing the cosmoline from my new Precision Matthews PM-1440GT lathe, it was a little daunting. Lightly go over the parts with the heat gun. I've discovered recently that WD40 works good. Let it sit for a couple of minutes, then run a few dry patches through. Cosmoline Remover is a solvent-based industrial cleaner specifically formulated to quickly & effectively remove all types of Cosmoline and other petroleum-based transportation and storage coatings. Halogen lamps do the trick or me. Afterward, you can dry out your gun and finish it with lube. This is how to remove cosmoline in the most effective and efficient manner from your newly-acquired Moist Nugget or other military surplus firearm. Type your new password and hit button below to confirm it. Heat gun saved a lot of solvent. Over time, Cosmoline may have seeped into nooks, crevices, and gaps in the metal but it is actually fairly simple to remove. Cosmoline is helpful because it offers long-term rust prevention, but if youre a Curios & Relics (C&R) Firearms collector or have ever purchased a gun, you may have what looks to be a mess on your hands. Stock in bag on hot summer day worked well enough for me, but left blemishes on the shellac where it bubbled up. They have an impressive inventory of nearly 1,500 historical firearms and an outstanding selection of uniforms, bayonets, and odd ammunition. Used Citristrip on my T53 stock, along with CLP to get the cosmoline out of the metal parts. used kompact kamp mini mate for sale. Review, Shortening a shotgun stock and fitting a recoil pad, Rogers Single Point M4 Rifle Harness Review, Howa 1500 v Winchester 70 action comparsion, Muzzle Brake Installation on a Precision Rifle: Timing and Installing an OPS R3E2C, 223 Remington/5.56mm NATO Barrel length versus Velocity- Short Barrels- 6 to 14 inches, Building a custom 7mm Rem Mag Hunting Rifle-PART 1, Customizing the 1911: machining a golf ball pattern slide, Installing a muzzle brake between centers, 1911 Rear Sight Installation (Novak style cut).