old time barrel corrosion

[lizardtrack]

I've looked at a lot of original bores most were worn etc. but they didn't seem to be pitted as much as I thought they would. any thoughts? different iron content, different lube,maybe everyone was religeous in cleaning years ago? I have to keep after mine regularly wether I shoot or not. can't imagine 100 years from now. What was their dark secret? It just came to me; global warming and humidity, yes!

 

[SCATTERSHOT]

The caps were pretty corrosive back in the day, so you see a little pitting around the snail or drum, but I think the reason most bores look good today is that the guns that are still around had good care. Some are pretty bad, but as you have noted, I would expect more of them to be pitted beyond repair.

 

[RickD]

Interesting question..I`ve seen a few older rifles with very good bores and always wondered how they kept them like that..Like you I have to keep on top of mine..

 

[Blizzard of '93]

Well, it doesn't take long to heat water and flush the barrel with it, repeat and scrub with tow or patch then dry and lube. From what I've read they were 'religious' about cleaning their rifles, many of them, their life depended on it.

 

[PreglerD]

I own an original cal .50 smoothbore long rifle from 1820. The barrel had only little rust. Only around the nipple area was a bit more. I clean the barrel first with hot water and solvent. After that I make the warm barrel dry and oil it with warm oil. the structure of the forged iron needs thisbecause the cristal net is a bit bigger than in modern steels.

 

From all of the historical reading I have done I have come to believe that a good bore in an origional is more due to the slathering of lube than any religious cleaning rituals. Even today, it does not matter how clean you get one if you do not properly lube the gun it will rust.

I have seen very few references to cleaning other than in military sources.

I see many civilian references to wiping the bores, greasing the locks and espically the use of fine bear oil for these duties. Additionally, many of the old arms are found still wearing the "worm" on the ramrod, as if it had stayed there perminantly, and many origional ramrods are tipped and threaded for the worm.

A large number are found with good bores and an equally large number are found still loaded!

In hostile territory my gun will always be loaded. When I hunt I reload as soon as I fire.

Kasper Mansker was known to have fired 14 consecutive shots as he hunted a 400 yard pathway on one occasion. I can not fire 14 shots from any rifle I own without wiping the bore after two of three shots.

Was wiping the bore between shots and liberal application of grease considered "clean enough"?

Or did so few of the guns that were actually used survive that the relics we have do not actually represent anything that was used in the field back then?

 

[Mad Monk]

Lizardtrack,

Two things in this subject.

19th century powder makers usually purified their own saltpeter. Some would brag that there was no detectable level of chlorides in their saltpeter.
It has only been the last 5 years where we are looking at black powders with no level of chlorides or only in minute trace amounts.
It is the chlorides that pit a bore rather than simply promote a thin film of surface rust.

Wrought iron is fairly corrosion resistant. In the chemical plant I once worked in certain pieces of resin production machinery had to be made from good wrought iron. It would outlast even the best of stainless steels in certain applications where chlorides or organic acid fumes came in contact with the metal.

 

[lizardtrack]

I have'nt bought B. powder in in 20 years, ( cheap stuff )is it possible that powder is more corrosive than new manufacture? is it possibly reacting to petrolium based lubes which I don't think was common 200 years ago. Has anyone bought BP recently and noticed any difference or is it still causing mischief quickly? Is there a difference between say swiss and elephant butts or whatever it was? I'm beginning to look at my 870 a little differently now.

 

[Mad Monk]

Elephant is no longer in business.

The Swiss use saltpeter out of Israel as does WANO. Chlorides measured as only a few parts per million.

From 1972 until 2000 GOEX used saltpeter manufactured by the now defunct Vicksburg Chemical Company. Vicksburg sold what was really a fertilizer grade, calling it a technical grade. Some potassium chloride that had gotten through the conversion process.
In 2000 GOEX was forced to find a new supplier, manufactured in Chile. This source is nearly chloride free. Maybe a few parts per million.

 

[lizardtrack]

Well I'm just about out of the old stuff, time to try some new made powder & see if there's a difference. haven't cleaned the 870 in years, kinda like that.lol