Barrel in the White

[jolasa]

Is there a way to have a barrel in the white (no browning or other rust protection) and not rust?

What did the old timers use to prevent rust?

 

[rfdr]

rust is not a bad thing. even if well taken care of, cleaned and oiled always, it will still patina at the very least. again, not a bad thing.

 

[Lonegun1894]

I have one that I am keeping oiled, and it is finally starting to turn gray, and I am hoping it will turn a nice gray patina like some of the ones I have seen. I just use plain old gun oil, or whatever oil I happen to have available.

 

[Loyalist Dave]

You can use olive oil (sweet oil), or you could use sewing machine oil (since Whale Oil is not longer in the United states), or you can use a modern product. BUT..., a water soluble oil like Balistol doesn't work as well.

LD

 

[pargent]

Yes I have 2 and just do as Dave said and have not had any rusting

 

[Many Klatch]

If you oil it after use you never get red rust. In time, a couple of years, the barrel turns a nice "steel gray" color.

Many Klatch

 

[jdkerstetter]

Degrease it and apply a good car wax. It will need to be maintained/refreshed, but it will prevent rust. Enjoy, J.D.

 

[jbwilliams3]

Depending on which old timers we're talking about, rust preventative on the surface of a shiny white wrought iron barrel would be a little less of an issue than with steel. I've never had a wrought iron barrel, but iron tools I have seem to be less susceptible to rust than high carbon steel. Some old rust preventatives that come to mind are sweet oil (olive oil- the real stuff), whale oil, bear oil and other tallows. This book (pp 18-20) contains great period firearm maintenance info, published in 1785. There are some concoctions in there I had never heard of before.

As others have said, when looked after consistently, a shiny barrel with a smooth surface (as opposed to a rough filed finish) is easy to keep shiny and will develop a grey patina. Surface rust is also very easy to clean off of a nicely polished barrel- a rag and a good gun oil. Or, if needs be, an abrasive like Scotch bright pads (or old-style brick dust mixed with oil).

James

 

[satwel]

jbwilliams is right. Wrought iron barrels resist rust much better than today's steels. Old timers used whale oil. Today the best choice is a micro- crystalline wax, such as Renaissance Wax. The collection at the Springfield Armory National Historic Site is protected with micro-crystalline wax. Apply at room temperature, then warm the firearm gently with a hair drier just enough to get the wax to flow into nooks and crannies.

 

[Flint62Smoothie]

I thought 'brick dust' was used to scour the barrel's clean and keep them bright?

 

[Zonie]

It's possible to keep a "in the white" barrel rust free.

The others have mentioned oils and wax and both of these will work, some a little better than others.
Birchwood Casey Barricade or Sheath will goes on as a very thin oil but drys to the touch without loosing its rust protecting abilities. I'm sure there are other gun oils made specifically for rust protection that work fine too.

The roughness of the metal has a direct bearing on its resistance to rust.
Rough sanded surfaces are very poor. Highly polished surfaces are very good.

The rifle shown at the bottom of my posts has both its barrel and its lock "in the white" and this Pedersoli Queen Anne kit I built has a "in the white" highly polished barrel.

Both of these guns show no signs of rust after over 9 years.

The new automobile waxes made for clear coated finishes also work to protect the surfaces of a gun.
I'm not sold on some of the cheaper ones but the ones made by Mothers or by Meguirar's are excellent.

 

[satwel]

Yes, 18th century armies used brick dust to re-establish the armory bright finish of their muskets. But the oxidation resumes the minute you stop polishing. To slow or prevent oxidation, oil or wax is required.

 

[Wes/Tex]

Yes, 18th century armies used brick dust to re-establish the armory bright finish of their muskets.

I recently was doing some research about the Crimean War and found some info about the Russian Army dealing with keeping the outside bright & shiny and never bothering to clean the insides??!! Talk about 'out of sight; out of mind'...when you keep thinning a musket bore from without and within, eventually it's a pipe bomb. :wink:

 

[Billnpatti]

The more polished you barrel is, the longer it will resist rusting. The micro fine scratches left by some abrasives just gives a place for oxidation (rust) to get started, If you carefully polish out all of these micro fine scratches, your barrel will resist rust much longer. All iron or steel will eventually rust if left unattended but if you keep it polished it will last a long time. If you rub a good wax on your barrel and keep it waxed, it will be almost rust free.

 

[MacRob46]

jbwilliams is right. Wrought iron barrels resist rust much better than today's steels. Old timers used whale oil. Today the best choice is a micro- crystalline wax, such as Renaissance Wax. The collection at the Springfield Armory National Historic Site is protected with micro-crystalline wax. Apply at room temperature, then warm the firearm gently with a hair drier just enough to get the wax to flow into nooks and crannies.

I highly recommend Renaissance Wax. I use it on swords and armor. It is easy to apply, dries quickly and buffs up nicely, although a bright, shiny rifle barrel may not be the best thing to have in the woods. It can be hard to find but one source is www.knifeandgun.com. Be prepared though because it is not cheap!

 

[MFordney]

Polishing.

I've seen an original gun over 200 years old with a shiny clean barrel with no rust. It has obviously been well maintained over the years. Keep it polished and lightly oiled and it will never rust. :hatsoff:

 

[jdkerstetter]

I knew an owner or gun that one of his grandfathers submitted to the Ordnance Dept. for consideration for cartridge conversion of the 1861/63 Springfields. Allin beat him out but his decendents still have the gun.

It has been kept waxed and is as bright and shiny as the day it was submitted.

While I am a big proponent of Renaissance Wax for all over gun treatment, I really don't see the need to go to the expense for metal treatment only. The car waxes available are more than adequate for this purpose and Turtle wax is available everywhere.

Enjoy, J.D.

 

[rfdr]

i find it hard to beat a good carnuba car wax like the venerable and seemingly ageless johnson's paste wax for protecting metal. any of this waxing or oiling business is temporary with reasonable use, and lots less temporary and protecting after a hard day afield. it will always boil down to the shooter/owner keeping fastidious cleaning/lubing/protecting protocol care with metals (wood, too).

 

[pargent]

For my 2 guns that are used regular in competitions I only use 3in1 oil or olive oil on the external metal , no rust at all, if I were to slack off a bit they would develop a slight patina , for an in the white barrel for target, hunting and living history work that's all that is needed, for a high end custom or valuable collecter then I would go to the wax .

 

[nkbj]

It's amazing how many years a natural brown takes.