Wipe off the sections or metal parts of the gun that you disassembled using shop rags. A couple of hours in the hot seat predictably allowed a ton of cosmoline that had been locked inside of the wood fibers the opportunity to seep out to the surface. 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. Once cosmoline has been exposed to air for a few years, it will solidify and become a wax consistency. Cosmo just rolls off. After eight days, only the very top was showing . The metal gets put through hot boing water and simple green. You are using an out of date browser. Sealing them in a greasy tomb of cosmo guards against the corrosive nature of maritime environments. Using your nylon brush scrub off any grease or cosmoline that is on the part. Originally developed in the late 1800s and marketed as a home disinfectant and veterinary anti-swelling agent, presumably by the same turn of the century physicians inclined to prescribe you cocaine for a staph infection or whatever. Dont forget to subscribe to the Pew Pew Tactical YouTube Channel! Simple, cheap, efficient, but time consuming to remove all the cosmoline before shooting. As for wood, I've had limited success with WD-40. It doesnt take a lot to complete this process. . Wd40 on the metal parts that you can't soak. Now how come some drug dealer/crook can buy one of this things and whamo bamo it works right out of the box?? It should be treated as a bore obstruction and removed prior to firing. cosmoline removal wd40; cosmoline removal wd40. No finish injured, wood stocks like-new (it cooks Cosmoline out of the wood grain), and IT'S CHEAP! PRODUCT DESCRIPTION: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. When I began removing the cosmoline from my new Precision Matthews PM-1440GT lathe, it was a little daunting. Want the best cosmoline removal methods for cleaning up your milsurp gun? There are a few methods you can use in order to clean Cosmoline off in this state: WD-40 If you spray WD-40 over the metal and any wooden parts, . The surfaces will almost dry up instantly With the hot metal you end up with after removing from the boiling water. This worked good for me since I did it in the winter. By rejecting non-essential cookies, Reddit may still use certain cookies to ensure the proper functionality of our platform. Following graduation, he accepted a job at C. Sharps Arms in Montana, where he still works full time as a stockmaker and gunsmith. If you mean the stock, wrap it in a black plastic garbage bag, put it on the dash of a car in the sun for several hours. When the grease came to the surface or began to run off, I hit the parts with Brake Kleen then put them back out in the sun again. I've used this method on all four of my rifles and it worked very well. We'll only use the information provided according to our privacy policy. you a link to reset your password. He is a firm believer in the freedom of exercising constitutional rights, and that includes the right of every law-abiding citizen to own and carry a gun. There are other considerations that you think about if tackling this task. You have the option to disassemble your firearm before beginning this process or keeping it intact throughout the cleaning process. You will need to use fresh diesel as it gets to thick and sticky with all the cosmoline. Kroil is known as The Oil That Creeps and has made quite a name for itself in the firearms industry. Let it sit for a couple of minutes, then run a few dry patches through. IMMEDIATELY hit it with penetrating oil (NOT WD-40but a real petroleum-based penetrating oil), and wipe down with a soft cloth. If you need suggestions, try one of our favorite YouTube channels. While really bad cosmoline build-up might require a few steps further than a field stripping for whatever rifle youre working on. Repeating that for a couple of days, gave me a pretty nice, undamaged rifle! It is brown in color and usually engulfs those beautiful surplus rifles at the local gun show. Stock in a trash bag on a hot day Or mineral spirits scrub down? Change the paper towel and put back at a slightly higher temp every cycle. Despite being virtually entirely made up of hydrocarbons, the composition varies depending on the crude oil source. **This product is not offered in aerosol can containers. Cosmoline RP-342 "Heavy" Rust Preventative Spray (Military-Grade) 1-Can https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MRRYF6N/?tag=wranglerorg-20 The wood I used Citristrip, it worked really well. two weeks ago I used wd-40 to clean off cosmoline off a SAR-80 parts kit, I used it on the plastic stock and metal it worked real well and does not harm the bluing or crackle paint on the receiver stubs. Cosmoline is great stuff for protecting guns from rusting in storage, but it can be a rear bear to remove. Today, you can find literally hundreds of recipes, formulas, tips, trick and strategies online for removing our favorite rust preventative coatingbe careful though, some of these "solutions" are more credible than others. Grease will burn when exposed to temperatures, but it will not catch fire. Thanks Lightly go over the parts with the heat gun. Type your new password and hit button below to confirm it. Here are the stuff youll need: Avoid using gasoline and harsh chemical solvents as your cleaner because that can strip paint and other coatings from the guns surface. By accepting all cookies, you agree to our use of cookies to deliver and maintain our services and site, improve the quality of Reddit, personalize Reddit content and advertising, and measure the effectiveness of advertising. Please avoid producing WW1-era invisible poisons in your shed. Hand-Picked Daily GUN DEALS, and Exclusive Coupons Codes >>>. Before I go full bore on this, has anyone used this? Immediately spray everything down with WD-40 to displace any remaining water. You would tie an old shoelace to a receiver, a gear, a bolt assembly, whateverdrop it in a pre-prepared tank of boiling water, watch the clock, and remove. It's much cheaper than WD40 or other chemicals and works great. These crates were packed full of rifles and cosmoline. Militaries worldwide immediately embraced cosmoline as a means of chemically embalming small weapons, armored vehicles, and other items for long-term depot or transatlantic transport. They dunked in the guns in a 55-gallon drum of gasoline. WD40 is a good cleaner for surfaces that you have good access to wipe down, but when it comes to cleaning small parts such as springs, sears, hammers, and other hard to reach places, I find that mineral spirits does a better job. Avoid that by making sure its very clean! AtLunde Studio, our primary goal is to provide a dedicated resource for all gun enthusiasts from all walks of life. However, it might not be necessary if you have no intentions of shooting it. Hosting, Website & SEO services provided by EZMarketing. Cosmoline melts at temperatures ranging from 115 to 125 degrees Fahrenheit. I never knew of these methods when I got my mosin, so I spent a week in my basement with some solvent and a few rolls of paper towels. Be the first to review this product! A dry film of it on the mags isn't going to hurt anything. Here are the best content compiled and compiled by the mobitool.net team, along with other related topics such as:: will acetone remove cosmoline, cosmoline removal hot water, cosmoline removal wd40, cosmoline in barrel, cosmoline gun grease, sks cosmoline removal, will ballistol remove cosmoline, removing cosmoline with heat gun. Almost boiling water works pretty well to clean cosmoline off of metal. Use soap and water to remove cosmoline: 1. Back in the day, ethyl or "high test" gasoline was good stuff. When cosmoline is exposed to heat and pressure like this, it will essentially bake on the metal surface. You can also use a heat gun or an older oven to help melt the Cosmoline. Primarily when found in the bore and fire control area. Halogen lamps do the trick or me. Press J to jump to the feed. The cosmoline literally runs off with the water. It will melt off the Cosmoline then wipe and oil everything down. WD40 works well enough and wont hurt a thing. A sealed PVC tube or large container are both good for soaking guns in mineral spirits, depending on the size of the firearm and container. Note: Most of the links in this article earn me a small commission at no cost to you. This method works well on metal parts, but extreme care must be taken as Kerosene is very flammable. Cosmoline is a pain to remove though I found a heat lamp to work well to remove most of it without much effort. It worked great. I found some PD680 from a chemical company, but it must be neutured or something because it doesn't smell the same and doesn't work anywhere near what the older stuff did back in the '90's. Heat gun is a total saver. after that just give it a good cleaning with some hoppes 9 or whatever and you are good to go. This post is brought to you in collaboration with Old Steel Historical Firearms, located in Littleton, Colorado. Like this kind of content? Ok, what method is easier. Because it was so darn cold (sub-zero temperatures) they decided to speed the process with heat. 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. Heat and humidity make a heat gun or hair dryer a good option here. Ehhhh, was my first try with Cosmo. The password should contain at least 8 characters with at least one number or special character. (Demonstration video coming soon). These were pretty bad. Never miss a post! I tried Hoppes #9 (gun cleaner) on a small section and was surprised at how easy it took it off. There are other ways to achieve this same effect, however. WD40 is an expensive version of mineral spirits. Cosmoline is our stuff, product of a first world economy, the commies used grease, cheap grease, much easier to remove. A kitty litter can also remove cosmo in your guns. Place parts covered in Cosmoline into the bath. In general, their toxicity to humans is minimal, although there are exceptions. METHOD #2: Soak Parts in Cosmoline Remover. Wipe stock every 15 minutes until rags are clean enough for you (also make sure to suspend stock on the other end every once in a while so the heat can reach that end as well). The gooy, gross, petroleum preservative that is seemingly locked within every porous surface and crevice possible. They are the go-to gun shop for collectors and shooters alike. Gather The Things You'll Need The first step you need to do is to gather the things you'll need for this cosmoline removal. towards your level. 4. There is no way I would boil a stock! story somewhere on the interwebs (possible urban legend) about some guys during the Battle of the Bulge in WWII who were assigned to strip cosmoline off M2 .50 cal. Should be good to go after that. We hate SPAM and promise to keep your email address safe. Depending on the container or the size of the firearm, soaking guns in mineral spirits can be done in a huge container. Those of you with any amount of experience dealing with milsurp guns have probably also encountered the enigma of cosmoline. WD40 worked well, but was basically a waste when the spirits did the same thing. CitriStrip on the wood parts. I've restored a couple cosmoline soaked rifles using different techniques. The honest-to-goodness proper way to remove Cosmoline from anything, really, is through working at it. You can also use another heat source to melt the cosmoline to its liquid condition, such as a heat gun or an oven. I used the boiling water method for my cousin's 91/30. For the trigger group, I soaked it in some Hoppe's #9 for a few hours and it seemed to have gotten most of the cosmoline out of it. [1]. We personally found Q-tips to be useful if a bit tedious. I soaked them in mineral spirits then rinsed with hot water and dried them. Which makes it susceptible to environments that also kill small children and pets when they get locked inside minivans which well simulate by stuffing it in that trash bag and letting the angry heat orb outside do its thing. 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. At this stage, you may benefit more from dissembling the entire gun or parts of it, like the bolt assembly of a rifle, and letting it soak in mineral spirits. A couple of hours later, I then wiped off most of the rest of the cosmoline, and then did a little scrubbing, spraying, wiping repeat until 99% of it was gone. There are a few methods you can use in order to clean Cosmoline off in this state: WD-40 If you spray WD-40 . I remember when a "Yugo" was a piece of crap car. When applied to a surface, the compound solidifies as it . 2. I just go to the car wash and hit it with the degreaser setting then rinse setting. These two things together will help dislodge and remove the remaining traces of Cosmoline, along with a fair amount of elbow grease. I disassembled the rifle and scraped/wiped off as much goo as I could. You probably took it home and couldnt focus on anything until you tore it apart and cleaned that goo off to see what was underneath it. 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. Now what's the best way to clean the residual WD40 off so I won't have primers getting compromised? 16 Jun June 16, 2022. cosmoline removal wd40. Brownells sells Rust Veto, a cosmoline equivalent optimized for long-term firearm storage. cosmoline removal wd40excuses to get out of annual training. Once disassembled, I use a few methods to remove cosmoline. If you go to fast or too aggressive you can strip out the moisture and mess up the stock. I have seen both commercial and military rifles that sat in closets unprotected for many decades that didn't have any wood issues, some rust speckling on metal, but good wood. I only use this method on metal parts and will do this prior to using the Kroil method below to remove the last bits and pieces. Mix denatured alcohol and boiled linseed oil 50/50 and scrub a stock with it using 0000 steel wool. However, it gives you the opportunity to get to know the inner workings of your firearm on another level. And as if that were not enough it came from a heaver smokers home seemingly as everything, cosmoline, dirt, and grime were shellacked with thick coating of nicotine. Stock in bag on hot summer day worked well enough for me, but left blemishes on the shellac where it bubbled up. And stay in touch with newsletters of our best articles on techniques, guns, & gear. You can empty your disgusting cosmoline soup as you go along or just leave it, cosmo floats in water so you might need to skim that off at least before taking the parts out. Before you start the process of removing the cosmoline, you need to disassemble the firearm fully. Reassemble the gun, perform a functions test to make sure that everything feels right and is operating correctly, and youre basically done! Here is my latest brainstorm for cleaning up a Yugo M59/66. It is frequently used in indoor and outdoor applications and does a great job for long-term storage. Ive just tossed all metal parts in the oven at around 150F for about 5-10 mins. #1 Engine Bay Cleaning/Cosmoline Removal 03-02-2012, 08:52 AM Hey guys, I want to get my engine bay as clean as possible without shaving or paint work before the new engine goes in. Stripping the finish is a big no-no for some. You n00b! Follow them on Instagram: @oldsteelguns. gear. Repeating this multiple times will remove the cosmoline. Because of the general porous nature of wood, chances are pretty decent that a good amount of grease has managed to penetrate the wood fiber itself, even if it retained its original finish. The Best Accessories for Your Gunsmithing Bench for Under $11. Thank you for the support! Sealing them in a greasy tomb of cosmo guards against the corrosive nature of maritime environments. 2023, Schafco Packaging Company. Just wipe it down with a soft cloth to remove things, maybe a gentle toothbrush for the hard to get stuff. In general, their toxicity to humans is minimal, although there are exceptions. Kurt is a Gunsmith, Reloader, Hunter, and Outdoorsman. WD-40 is a mediocre lubricant and an OK rust preventative. 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. You can proceed to the real cleaning whenever youre satisfied. Cosmoline found in the chamber area can cause failures to extract. I cleaned a heavily soiled 37 bSw last week, I use Krud Kutter. They cost around $20 if you want something cheap. Air dry with compressor or hang dry then oil all parts. Let soak for at least 30 seconds. Nylon brush. Well its winter here in Ohio, so when I was in the garage I held my M38 mosin stock in front of my Reddy Heater. To help you get rid of this slimy substance, our team spent 48 hours researching the easiest steps in removing cosmoline from your firearms. Saturate a clean cloth with Cosmoline Remover. hey thanks for this information. 1 Place a part in a solvent-compatible container and spray down with brake cleaner. We wound up using about ~3 cans of cleaner total per rifle, using a general spray vigorously and begin wiping down method. Very fast and efficient. Youll want to move, rotate, and flex parts to exercise hidden bits of Cosmoline. After that, dry thoroughly, degrease, then apply oil and a film of liquid silicone. Of course, after the wash and rinse process of cleaning, the firearm needs to be dry. Retired technical instructor and master technician. 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). Now I am off to buy a steam cleaner. The main difference between Rust Veto and cosmoline is that Rust Veto has a slightly higher melting point of 140-170 degrees Fahrenheit. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding. So if you need to store your firearms long-term and protect them from moisture and corrosion, multiple options are available. There are other considerations that you think about if tackling this task. Simple Green has never worked that well for me. Spray oil like PB blaster and a pile of rags will do it, swab out the chamber and bore same as you would during routine cleaning after shooting. 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. Its the mess, gross and slimy petroleum that appears to be wrapped in every surface of firearms. Really, you'd have to soak ammo in WD40 to have a chance of it seeping in and killing the primer. I've tried various methods in the past, none of which seemed to work particularly well. **This product is not offered in aerosol can containers. Also, this is perfect to use in the bore and chamber area as it will not attack metal. Address: www.originalcosmoline.com JavaScript is disabled. 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.