Smoke gun off-season storage...

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Marty1

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I'd like to know how members store their smokeguns for any length of time during the off-season. Do you
treat" the barrel with something in particular to inhibit rust, or do you simply live with the fact that the barrel will begin to rust or corode over time?

I'm experiementing with a new idea to deal with storage issues associated with barrel blackpowder corrosion. So the data I'm looking for is: How long can your smokegun be stored after you've cleaned it before it begins to show signs of rust/corosion??

2 weeks?? 2 months? etc..

I know many of you own a variety of smokeguns. Any info you can give me would be very helpful. :)
 
I have been lubing the barrel with TC 1000 bore butter when put away

I believe in rice also...Put rice in the salt shaker and the rice will absorb the moisture and no clumpy salt.

So why not put a bag of rice in the gun cabinet with small holes in the bag..Or suspend it in some panty hose ..

1 year of nonuse and no rust yet..That is better than my cars
 
swampratt- do you use both, or one or the other?

FG- Hoppes "blackpowder" solvent?
 
no the regular solvent they have. I always cleaned with soapy water and after its dry i run some hoppes down the bore just to make sure it gets any left over plastic fouling.
 
i clean with patches (tshirt) windex and more patches ,,rinse with hot water
more patches ,some on a jag and some on a wore out brush...
When all is clean a few dry patches ,,and then lubed patches with TC 1000

swab with dry patches before shooting.
 
Smokegun storage idea...update...

Marty said:
I'd like to know how members store their smokeguns for any length of time during the off-season. Do you
treat" the barrel with something in particular to inhibit rust, or do you simply live with the fact that the barrel will begin to rust or corode over time?

I'm experiementing with a new idea to deal with storage issues associated with barrel blackpowder corrosion. So the data I'm looking for is: How long can your smokegun be stored after you've cleaned it before it begins to show signs of rust/corosion??

2 weeks?? 2 months? etc..

I know many of you own a variety of smokeguns. Any info you can give me would be very helpful. :)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Well after 8 months here's the new idea.

Every shooter has their own way of storing their smoke gun. I like to store mine with a clean dry barrel. (By the way clean is about as “clean” as you make it). When I’m ready to shoot it, I like to simply take my smoke gun out of the gun cabinet and head to the range. Once at the range I like to load it up with a charge and bullet without having to do anything as far as prepping that first round. I do however need to keep the barrel as DRY as possible during storage. This is not an easy task here in New England with the damp and humid air. The only dry-air months we really get around here are from November to February. This past year was a good test period because we’ve had a lot a rainfall so far in 2009, more so than usual.

Although I try to do a thorough job of cleaning the barrel, it always seems that there’s a small secluded residue of powder somewhere hidden in the barrel that will eventually attract moisture. I’ve been experimenting with a new but simple method of storing my smoke gun for my particular style of shooting (which also fits my sometimes laziness in cleaning). I’ve gone by the premise that since black powder is hygroscopic(water loving), I would place a competing object for moisture in the barrel that is also hygroscopic. Wood is a very hygroscopic material, and the wooden dowels seem to fit the task well.

I have been optimistic with the test results so far... so I though I might share them with you. I used two of my smokeguns, my .45 cal. CVA Hunterbolt and my .45 cal. CVA Kodiak, for the test. Here’s all the material you need to give it a try:

fi2cMDE.jpg


- RAW WOODEN DOWEL. I use raw Port Orford Cedar Wood arrow shafts because that’s what I happen to have on hand. They have been super dried for premium arrow making.
- 220 GRIT SANDPAPER.
- Piece of HEAVY WEIGHT BROWN PAPER GROCERY BAG.
- SARAN WRAP.
- Small RUBBER BAND.


HOW TO:

1.) You need to first cut the arrow shaft to length, and to do this you will need the breech plug in. Drop the wooden rod down the barrel until it bottoms-out, then cut the other end leaving 1/8 inch sticking beyond the barrel.

WP3KI2f.jpg


2.) Remove from barrel and sand the dowel to open up the pores of the wood.
3.) Take a piece of heavy weight brown paper, wrap it around the wooden shaft, and rub it up and down the arrow shaft until it becomes warm from friction.
4.) Now drop the warm dowel down the barrel, place a square of Saran wrap over the end of the barrel, and secure it with a small rubber band.

Knq2uXw.jpg


THAT’S IT…YOU’RE DONE. Each end of the barrel is now sealed from outside moisture. After months and months of storage your barrel should still look like this on the inside as seen from my smoke guns:

Here are two barrel pics from the Hunterbolt

ss6Fbg4.jpg


ss6Fbg4.jpg



The next two are from the Kodiak's barrel

usxZsSO.jpg


4DwDvmW.jpg



I'm hoping the most I need to do is sand the dowel once a year after hunting season to re-open the pores.
 
That was a great post and idea! I've never thought about that before. We dont have a humity issue here but they still can rust without the proper care.

Good Post Marty!
 
I have always cleaned the barrel good and ran a patch with a little bore butter or similar down. Not sure why some say not to use it. Please tell me. I would think it would be better than oil as oil dampens powder and would make it fail and also so darn hard to get all the oil out as it gets into the metal so deep. Any thoughts?
 
I've heard mixed opinions on the use of bore butter. I only knew one hunter that swore by it and he was a round-baller. Not sure how or why he used it though. :|
 
I have always done the same. Clean with soap and water and dry then run a patch with bore butter. Not sure why but some say to never use it. Don't understand the reason. I would think it would be better than oil. Seems oil would be harder to get out of the metal. Any reason behind no bore butter?
 
guzzi, check out FG's December 23rd post under POWERBELT BULLET CHAT. He talks about his experience with using bore butter.
 
Marty, Thanks i see his post and the problem. I did the bore butter lightly to store the gun but always cleaned it with dry patches before i shot a sabot and no problems over the years. If i shoot the powerbelts maybe i should change that habit. Will try the oil thing next time. thanks
 
Moisture is also an issue out here in the Pacific Northwest so when stowing my side-lock T/C New Englander .54 for the long term, I use a boat-load of Bore-Butter on all interior and exterior surfaces. This was my first muzzle loader and unfortunately I really don’t shoot it much anymore since getting real black powder became a hassle and I transitioned into in-lines, which is too bad because it is an accurate and fun rifle. Anyway, I heavily apply the Bore-Butter while the barrel and other components are still very hot from cleaning/drying (with hot soapy water); this melts the butter and gets it into all the nooks and crannies/lands and grooves, nipple raceway, etc. Once the Bore-Butter cools the rifle is literally encrusted, you get an effect similar to a military rifle coated with Cosmoline and no rust. When wanting to prepare to start using the rifle it helps to re-heat either with a hairdryer, setting out in the sun, and so forth, and then cleaning off the butter.

My in-lines I shoot more frequently and treat like modern center-fire rifles, using Break Free CLP on exterior metal surfaces, blue, T/C T-17 cleaning products including “Bore-Seasoning” patches in the bore, and of late I am starting to use these CVA “Barrel Blaster” plug things inserted in the muzzle for extra insurance against rust:
CVAplug.jpg


J.R.

"Put your trust in God, but keep your powder dry"--Oliver Cromwell
member5363.png
 
That was definitely a good post Marty. I just might try that.

When I clean mine I usually run down the barrel with a rust preventative patch which seems to work but like you said at the beginning of season when I go to take it out I will run down the barrel with a dry patch and it looks like I missed some powder from before.
 
You know a whole lot of what we each do really depends on how humid it is where your gun is stored. Different parts of the country and how humid your storage area is has tons to do with rust problems. What you store your gun in also figures in. Each case is really different but we all agree we need to either run some oil patch or bore butter or something to do basic protection and then keep it in a warm dry place.
 
guzzi said:
You know a whole lot of what we each do really depends on how humid it is where your gun is stored. Different parts of the country and how humid your storage area is has tons to do with rust problems. What you store your gun in also figures in. Each case is really different but we all agree we need to either run some oil patch or bore butter or something to do basic protection and then keep it in a warm dry place.
That is a good point you made, it does make a difference.
 
Rick said:
That was definitely a good post Marty. I just might try that.

When I clean mine I usually run down the barrel with a rust preventative patch which seems to work but like you said at the beginning of season when I go to take it out I will run down the barrel with a dry patch and it looks like I missed some powder from before.
Rick,what do you use as the rust preventative patch?
 
Marty, I use Barrel Baster's rust preventative patch.

It leaves a nice even lube that leaves it looking like glass which is one way to make sure it was covered.

AC1689.jpg
 

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