Wierd effect storing my rifle...

[Dr.Rob]

I had my AR in a soft case slide between the rear fender of my jeep and a large coffin cooler I've been restocking with ice every day for a week. Took the rifle out a few days in.. nothing wrong. Today, I drove from 9000 feet elevation to 12000 and back down to 5280 (those aren't typos I live in Colorado)

Got it home, opened the soft case and my rifle was WET. The soft case didn't seem to be holding moisture, we had a good rain last night... but I'm wondering if the temp exteremes and storing it shoved up against the cooler were the problem.. or if some of last night's rain got into the case (I had the hatch open for a while) and maybe everything else had a chance to dry out.

No harm to the rifle it got a good oily rub down but I shudder to think what I might have found with a steel rifle and a few more days.

 

[fireman 9731]

I shipped a brand new rifle from Colorado to Kentucky once. It was in a padded hard case but when it arrived it was covered in rust.... I think the temperature extremes caused condensation somehow... but that Colorado air is pretty dry already. It had me stumped too...

 

[arizona98tj]

My guess is that some of that rain got to it....although hard to think it could get that soaked but yet nothing around it showed signs of water intrusion.

Jeeps and guns always go well together....but you sure got an odd one.

 

[Tirod]

A cold gun will always condense moisture from humid air. In extreme cases, I've seen sealed toolboxes suck in inches of water. Distributor caps on Jeeps are notorious for that, my Cherokee uses a vented one that can't ford deep streams. An F150 had the problem so bad I would have to stop on the way to work in April and spray WD40 in it to keep running.

Cold metal + warm humid air = moisture. It's the #1 combination that causes rust in vehicle storage. It's better to have the gun in an open rack, you actually see it and, at least in LEO/MIL use, maintain it daily, just like the vehicle.

We just think we can get away with it in a family car.

 

[KodiakBeer]

I live in one the wettest places in North America and I've learned a few tricks. There is a white goopy product found in outdoor stores called "Sno Seal" for use on boots. If you remove your rifle from the stock and liberally coat the inside of the stock with this goop it will prevent all moisture from entering. Just put a thick coat in there, then reassemble and wipe off all the goop that ooze out when you lay the barrel and action back in. Leave it in all season.

I do this before each hunting season. The following winter, I'll remove the stock and clean out the Sno Seal which has turns into something like a soft wax. I like my rifles blued with wood stocks and even in extended hunting trips in absolutely soggy conditions I've never found a trace of rust under the wood (which is the likely place for rust to first show up).

For the outside of the metal, as well as the internal action use Eezox. Take a can with you to re-apply to the exterior each evening on a hunting trip to replace the coating wiped off by handling. Eezox can be used in place of gun oil in the bore and anywhere else. It dries and seals the metal, but has extreme lubricating qualities so it's really great stuff. I don't buy gun oil any more.

 

[Cosmoline]

It's the cabin effect I suspect, from the change in humidity and temperature. I've seen blued firearms covered with hundreds of active rust spots even when wrapped in gun socks due to this.

That seal sounds like a good fix. I use gunstock wax in a similar manner. I've seen some cabin rifles coated in black auto sealant!

 

[JohnBT]

"something like a soft wax"

That's because it's mostly beeswax.

You get about a pound of it with every 10 pounds of honey.

 

[KodiakBeer]

Well, whatever they mix it with keeps it in a softer state so that it doesn't affect your barrel bedding or whatever.

 

[Cosmoline]

That's a good idea actually. I use a mix of beeswax and olive oil for all kinds of BP stuff. If you thickened the mix up it would work very well as a sealant for stored firearms, and it's food grade non-toxic.