It is brown in color and usually engulfs those beautiful surplus rifles at the local gun show. I've used WD40 to clean guns (not to lube them) and fired thousands of rounds without any dead primers. Subscribe to Pew Pew Tactical's sales and deals email. used kompact kamp mini mate for sale. Will not soften, dull, or discolor finishes. We hate SPAM and promise to keep your email address safe. To clean your gun, you can apply heat. Cosmoline can create a dangerous situation with your firearm. Rem oil would fit the bill although it . Wrap in paper towels and aluminum foil. These guns were usually just dipped in a big vat of Cosmoline and then put into storage. the metal is hot enough from the water that when removed, it's warm enough to evaporate all moisture from itself. Here's how I did it. 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. A lot less toxic than brake cleaner, naphtha, and acetone. Protect tools, dies, and other parts during shipping and storage with these durable, removable coatings. 2. WOOD: Heat guns are like very hot hair dryers. In fact, this exact scenario is what probably led you to this article. Mauser Rifles 1933 to 1945 - The Nazi Period. No finish injured, wood stocks like-new (it cooks Cosmoline out of the wood grain), and IT'S CHEAP! It is frequently used in indoor and outdoor applications and does a great job for long-term storage. It may not display this or other websites correctly. Good or bad idea? 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. If you do it right, however, removing cosmoline preservatives can be easier than expected. You can also use another heat source to melt the cosmoline to its liquid condition, such as a heat gun or an oven. This particular C96 seems have been dunked in the stuff, so I decided to try boiling it in water to melt the cosmoline rather than clean it all with rags and Q-tips. We'll send you the latest guides and training tips geared It dissolves dried grease and will work its way into openings as small as one-millionth of an inch. 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. For the stocks, I generally do the dish washer routine (of course, I wait for my wife to be gone for the day first!lol). I had to pull it out of the plastic to verify numbers. Theres no study that cosmoline has a bad effect on rubber. 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. Cosmoline removal . 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. Originally, it was sold as a home disinfectant and veterinary anti-swelling treatment in the late 1800s. What is Cosmoline? It's original purpose was as a water dispersant for machining - since the 60s, machine shops have gone to water-based machining lubrication/coolants and when you're done machining a part, you want to get the water-based lube/coolant off the part quickly. Cosmoline Removal. Address: www.originalcosmoline.com Create an account to follow your favorite communities and start taking part in conversations. You can also use a heat gun or an older oven to help melt the Cosmoline. By rejecting non-essential cookies, Reddit may still use certain cookies to ensure the proper functionality of our platform. It melts at 113-125 so hot soapy water or steam cleaning works. But on the wood I wipe the excess then use a hair dryer and wipe as it sweats. Ok, what method is easier. They are the go-to gun shop for collectors and shooters alike. Very fast and efficient. If youve lucked out and scored a surplus rifle with some relatively light cosmo packing, you can probably jump ahead to cleaning the individual components, but for us, step 1 was wiping away what external grease was easily accessible with some basic shop rags. Gently remove parts and wipe off Cosmoline or move parts back and forth in bath and Cosmoline will start coming off. Cosmo just rolls off. Thats two decades of expertly upholding the Texan gun culture. Youll have to put them all together inside a box or small storage, together with the thing you want to cosmo be removed and leave under the sunlight for a few days. These two things will help eliminate the last residues out of your gun. I used simple green on some that weren't as bad before. just cosmoline removed easy. Reddit and its partners use cookies and similar technologies to provide you with a better experience. 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. 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. Now I know why I don't buy mil surplus stuff. WD-40 does a good job cleaning up wood stocks without removing the underlying finish. Dissembling can make the process somewhat easier but it isnt absolutely necessary. 3. Here are the stuff you'll need: Mineral spirits or acetone and kerosene Water and soap Shop rags A toothbrush or a smaller paintbrush. Again, if youve ever dealt with military surplus guns before, you might have some experience with the somewhat laborious process of removing the infamous goop from them. Q-Tips and cotton swabs also work. Sorry for the "ums." and "ahh." guys. 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). You are using an out of date browser. WD40 pwnz cosmoline. A dry film of it on the mags isn't going to hurt anything. The U.S. military soon discovered its advantages when applied to military equipment. And stay in touch with newsletters of our best articles on techniques, guns, & gear. 3 100w light bulbs mounted in light boxes inside -- bakes the stuff out wonderfully. It took me a good 3 hours to get everything clean but the action is nice and smooth(ish). Using your nylon brush scrub off any grease or cosmoline that is on the part. This product hasn't received any reviews yet. You worry too much. Depending on the gun youre working on, this may or may not be a concern. Ok, what method is easier. A heatgun or trashbag works well enough to get the cosmoline out of the stock. The catchall phrase Stoddard Solvent is no longer adequate to tell the proper story. The process is very dirty. It doesnt take a lot to complete this process. For a complete listing of cities,click here. It practically dissolves any Cosmoline product in seconds with very little effort. Gently remove parts and wipe off Cosmoline or move parts back and forth in bath and Cosmoline will start coming off. I bought a bunch of those Yugo SKS rifles when cases of them started showing up at the gun shows. It may take a few dips or baths to get the majority of Cosmoline off. Cosmoline hardens over time when exposed to oxygen and not sealed properly, so some might be very gooy while others are hardened balls of crud. As a general rule, cosmoline can be removed with heat, kroil, WD-40, or Kerosene. Cosmoline does an excellent job of preventing corrosion and preserving metal parts. Seems to take off anything, including paint spatters without harming the finish at all. Reference a disassembly manual and take every piece and part out of it. Use an air gun to blow the cleaning fluid off after you finish, then apply lube as needed. Something to pay final attention to when doing the last pass on all of your small internal parts is the firing pin channel. Before I do anything I'll regret, can anyone give me a definitive ruling on the best way to clean cosmoline off metal/wood? We'll only use the information provided according to our privacy policy. Cosmoline is used to protect the gun against rusting; however, many military surplus rifles were previously submerged in the greasy substance, making its eventual removal seemingly problematic. 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. We wound up using about ~3 cans of cleaner total per rifle, using a general spray vigorously and begin wiping down method. It's much cheaper than WD40 or other chemicals and works great. All ultrasonic cleaners are made in the same factory in the PRC. Eliminates Manual Cleaning with Solvents Green aqueous chemistry eliminates manual cleaning using flammable solvents, acetone and WD-40. Just crank up your water heater to 180 and the cosmoline melts right off. I used WD40 to cut the cosmoline on some Yugo Mags. The spray and handy tube make it easy to get into grooves and slots, as well as bolt holes. /* I used the boiling water method for my cousin's 91/30. We already have an account registered for email address Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. If you are like me, you were hooked the first time you picked up a cosmoline-covered surplus rifle or handgun. But its a background process that you can mostly leave alone outside of hitting the timer again once its finished a round of cleaning. A little spark/open flame & gas vapors can be a recipe for personal disaster, even outside. Gently rub area to maximize contact between cleaner and surface. The gooy, gross, petroleum preservative that is seemingly locked within every porous surface and crevice possible. 2023, Schafco Packaging Company. Afterward, you can dry out your gun and finish it with lube. Wipe off the WD40. 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, . Weve got a dedicated section for the AR-15 here. Soak a cloth in the degreaser and rub it onto the firearm until the cosmoline is dissolved. cosmoline removal wd40excuses to get out of annual training. Try to disassemble your rifle first, then clean its parts by section. Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts. Which is just fine if your gonna leave her as it with the finish. Boil and reoil the smaller metal parts. All of the above is primarily educated guessing for Eastern Bloc procedures, aka a WAG American practice for removing actual Cosmoline (not the ersatz Cosmoline that communist countries used) was the chlorinated solvent approach (disposal in pits, not rivers), based on first hand accounts. For future cosmo removal, try mineral spirits. That means it will come off with kerosene or mineral spirit, and could even just wipe away with rubbing alcohol. 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. I have used slow heat and mineral spirits with a brush on several stocks with good results. Collectors of C&R (Curio & Relic) firearms often find old firearms that were built around WWI or WWII and then put in storage. We believe our Cosmoline Remover is the most effective solution offered anywhere. Cosmoline Removal: Step-by-Step. In general, their toxicity to humans is minimal, although there are exceptions. This can be done with a simple rag and some elbow grease. Create an account to follow your favorite communities and start taking part in conversations. Use coupon code KTG10 to get 10% off your order of $150 or more at Brownells. Nearly as ubiquitous as duct tape, WD-40 claims to protect against rust and corrosion. Will brake cleaner remove cosmoline? After eight days, only the very top was showing . We use mineral spirits in the shop to remove cosmoline. Never miss a post! Jump to Latest Follow 1 - 15 of 15 Posts . At this point you can check up on your sonic cleaner parts and see how theyre doing. Cosmoline is a pain to remove though I found a heat lamp to work well to remove most of it without much effort. Cosmoline can be dipped or brushed onto the firearm at temperatures between 140 and 160 degrees F. While it can be dipped into hotter melts it's not necessary and is done, generally, to allow more firearms to be dipped without cooling the liquid. I bake all the stocks in a long homemade oven I made. 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. This method works well on metal parts, but extreme care must be taken as Kerosene is very flammable. Note: Most of the links in this article earn me a small commission at no cost to you. Yes, cosmoline is toxic because it is a petroleum-based grease. There is no need the wood is already sealed, just wipe it down with penetrating oil (PB blaster wd40) and the cosmoline will wipe right off. Because it was so darn cold (sub-zero temperatures) they decided to speed the process with heat. As for wood, I've had limited success with WD-40. Stock in bag on hot summer day worked well enough for me, but left blemishes on the shellac where it bubbled up. Its the mess, gross and slimy petroleum that appears to be wrapped in every surface of firearms. Like this kind of content? Goo Gone is a cirtus gel product that is marketed for the removal of adhesive residue on consumer projects. Ive tried various methods in the past, none of which seemed to work particularly well. Despite being virtually entirely made up of hydrocarbons, the composition varies depending on the crude oil source. The car was washed and dried, then taken back to the detail shop where the paint was buffed out, and a protective coating placed on all of the brightwork. Jump to Latest Follow 1 - 15 of 15 Posts. These crates were packed full of rifles and 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. You must log in or register to reply here. Heat and humidity make a heat gun or hair dryer a good option here. I got a pvc pipe filled it with mineral spirts and soaked the metal. Cosmoline - in my experience - is stronger, but the cost per can . When I began removing the cosmoline from my new Precision Matthews PM-1440GT lathe, it was a little daunting. you a link to reset your password. The stock was so dry it could easily be sanded and refinished. 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. He grew up in Elk County, Pennsylvania, where he became obsessed with the world of firearms. The consistency of cosmoline varies widely but is mostly found as grease or wax. Free-floating firing pins, like the one found in AR-15s and the SKS, need to freely float. This P17 was packed in cosmoline, wrapped in paper, and shipped to its destination like millions of other rifles. It practically dissolves any Cosmoline product in seconds with very little effort. I just finished cleaning up a Yugoslavian SKS that was thoroughly coated with cosmoline.I used some shop towels and WD-40. Works great. jumpscare links to send to friends; elliptical orbit simulator; babolat ambassador program. Cosmoline can cause the pin to get stuck in the forward position and lead to slam fires and a runaway rifle. 2 When all the parts have been cleaned they must be treated with oil to prevent corrosion. Depending on the container or the size of the firearm, soaking guns in mineral spirits can be done in a huge container. The protective layer was thick, tough and not easy to remove. Corrosion-Resistant ReusablePeel-Away Coatings for Metal. Today, the mineral spirits found in products like ours are more refined and processed (see hydrogenation, hydrotreating and distillation techniques) providing mixtures with varying boiling points, cleaning ability, and chemical composition. Just avoid gasoline as your cleaning solvent as its not advisable to use. 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. Wipe it off with a combination of shop rags for the surface grease, as well as goof-off to grab any of the sticky residues that are going to be left behind. OMS, odorless mineral spirits for me, too. They have an impressive inventory of nearly 1,500 historical firearms and an outstanding selection of uniforms, bayonets, and odd ammunition. Even if your item only has a light coating of older Cosmoline, you might have questions as to how best to remove old coatings. Press J to jump to the feed. All content Copyright 1998-2018 Rifleshooter.com, FTC disclosure: some links on this site are monetized, Sig Sauer MCX Virtus PCP Air Rifle Review- Initial Impressions, Project Guns- Gunsmithing articles and posts, Ruger Precision Rifle Suppressed Load Development: Hornady 147 ELD-Match and H4350 with THUNDER CHICKEN, Wilson Combats Tactical Rail Interface, Modular (T.R.I.M.) Simple Green works great on metal parts, particularly in the ultrasonic cleaner. Let me show you how I safely remove cosmoline. 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). You can now use, and regularly clean. WD-40 or any other petroleum based based solvents will cut it pretty good. Kroil is known as The Oil That Creeps and has made quite a name for itself in the firearms industry. Afterward, disassemble the rifle down the the point where you can remove all the moisture and clean a few nooks and crannys and properly lube. Now how come some drug dealer/crook can buy one of this things and whamo bamo it works right out of the box?? In between cleanings use mineral spirits to wipe the surface. It will melt off the Cosmoline then wipe and oil everything down. We personally found Q-tips to be useful if a bit tedious. At this point, disassembling the gun or sections of it, such as bolt assembly, and being soaked in mineral spirits may be more beneficial. Bolt components I usually boil, just to make sure I get all of it out. Ehhhh, was my first try with Cosmo. The decision to either remove or not remove cosmoline from the rifle is based on each individual situation. Needed tools: Cosmoline soaked weapon; rags or paper towels; screw driver and tools for disassembly of firearm; bore brush; chamber brush; bore pull-through or cleaning rod; a good non-polar solvent (mineral spirits being one of the most preferred . AK-47 Tips/Tricks, Links, Content and Buyer Guides. Stock in a trash bag on a hot day Or mineral spirits scrub down? This can cause hang fires or, worse yet, negligent discharges. I generally disassemble the gun into it's primary components first. Only used it to finish wiping off the light residue. Attempting to remove the rust-preventive after allowing the cosmoline to warm up can result in an oilier finish. It was great stuff. Heat gun saved a lot of solvent. Simple Green has never worked that well for me. For metal, Boil water and combine with CONCENTRATED Simple Green in a disposable pan and wash all the metal. Cosmoline continues to be made today and is still a great option for long-term rust prevention. Take a microfiber towel and a small bucket of diesel fuel and begin taking off the cosmoline. Initially delving into the world of guns in his teens through a passion for history, John has been hobby and desert shooting with friends for years. I read a funny (?) Place parts covered in Cosmoline into the bath. METHOD #1: Wipe with Cloth, Rag or Paper Towel, METHOD #2: Soak Parts in Cosmoline Remover. Set the temp to 130 degrees, bake for a while. It's also called "dry chemical". 12,772. Removing all of the Cosmoline will take significant work regardless, so it comes down to a matter of preference. Cosmoline removal questions. I've restored a couple cosmoline soaked rifles using different techniques. WD 40 and mineral naptha (ligher fluid) are the cosmoline cutters of choice to the home shop machinist. It should be treated as a bore obstruction and removed prior to firing. Wipe off the sections or metal parts of the gun that you disassembled using shop rags. 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. Halogen lamps do the trick or me. There are lots of options and choices you can make, but what we used were: Specifically, weve got 3 surplus Type 56 carbines that we picked up from Palmetto State Armory which are essentially Chinese domestic clones of the Soviet SKS with a few minor tweaks here and there. This has worked well for me and has turned out to be the least labor intensive of the methods I have tried for cleaning off cosmoline.