gun storage- in their cases OK? - The Firearms Forum

9 fingers · 07-19-2009, 10:24 AM

hi, I started another thread about long term gun storage and one of the answers led to this thread. I store all my guns in their soft cases and then in my safes. I have mostly Gunmate, Allen, Kolpin nylon padded cases and a few vinyl and one old leather Boyt and one of the new Bob Allen cases with Protektor Copper something or other to inhibit rust. Is it OK to store them this way? I do it so they never bump into each other or get scratched. I read something about air circulation and that I do not have. The guns are oiled or siliconed or both before I put them away. Need some pros advise on this. Thanks, 9 fingers

TranterUK · 07-19-2009, 11:09 AM

I never stored guns in cases, I stand or lay them inside a safe. Oil them, silicone them but keep it so air can circulate. I always thought a close case can trap moisture from the air against the steel and hold it there. I also keep some desiccant (silica gel) packs in the safe.

tailgunner · 07-19-2009, 12:32 PM

I use BoreStores, they're soft and padded enough to keep the guns from getting nicked yet breathable to prevent trapping moisture. I wipe down all my guns with EEZOX and store them in BoreStores in my safe with two GoldenRods. This combination has, and continues to, work like a charm - no issues to report.

armedandsafe · 07-20-2009, 12:09 PM

I always spray the foam liners of my hard cases with either silicone lubricant or a light gun oil. This prevents them from absorbing moisture and helps a lot. The gun itself will still have condensation on it if the air is humid and you have temperature fluctuactions. (When the air cools, the moisture condenses out.)

I don't like to store guns in leather. The leather has a tendency to strip the surface oild away and leave the gun unprotected. Plus, many leathers are acid tanned and can cause metal damage.

Pops

Teejay9 · 07-20-2009, 03:26 PM

I learned the hard way how NOT to store a gun. When I was just a kid, my great grandfather left me a beautiful 12 ga. shotgun. It was all engraved with a carved horn trigger guard. Everything on it was cross-hatched, a work of art, let alone an excellent shotgun. It was marked "C. Gruendig, Dresden 1913" in gold along the sight ramp. Long story short. When we moved to Hawaii, my mother wrapped it in a plastic sheet and put it in a closet (I obviously didn't know what she had done). When I returned from overseas, I asked for it and to my horror this beautiful gun was now a rust covered, pitted throw away. Of all things, the worst you could do in a humid climate like Hawaii was to put it in PLASTIC!! From then on, no matter what the piece was, I made darn sure it was always bathed in a light coat of oil. Some say don't store it in a holster, which can also cause harm, but I have never had a problem with that. Just DO NOT store it in plastic. TJ

johnlives4christ · 07-20-2009, 06:43 PM

personally i wouldnt store a firearm in a case for basically the reason tranter gives. the case can trap moisture in. the case may then soak up the oil or rub it off and leave the metal at the mercy of moisture. i would either oil them good and put them up, or perhaps use a gunsock that had been impregnated with silicone or oil, but i dont have any experiance with these.

i have a friend that is an old timer, and he keeps his longguns all in some sort of case. most all of them are rusted. most of the cases are the old cheap kind you fold the end over and tie closed, some leather ones though too.

~john

9 fingers · 07-21-2009, 09:52 PM

OK, you scared me into action as i thought I was doing a good thing oiling the guns and putting them in nice clean cases and then in my cabinet. After some research it looks like EEZOX and Breakfree COLLECTOR treatments are probably the best. There are some excellent corrosion tests I found on the web that had photos of rust after salt spray tests and also high humidity and temp tests. Alot of products we all use failed miserably. I am also going to buy 5 or 6 BORESTORES as this seems the best way to pad the guns but still allow them to breath. Think I will put the less important ones in the socks that sell for $5 or so at Walmart. Thanks for setting me straight!
9 fingers
PS - if anyone is interested in those tests I did a search on "long term gun storage" and it was one of the 1st pages that popped up. If anyone is really interested and can't find it I can try to put up a link tomorrow. But if you are using standard products like Rem Oil (actually one of the better ones tested) you won't be happy with what you see.

gdmoody · 07-22-2009, 12:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Teejay9

I learned the hard way how NOT to store a gun. Just DO NOT store it in plastic. TJ

Let me tell you my horror story of gun storage. I had a beautiful blued Colt Series 70 1911 that I bought in the early eighties. I got orders to be transferred to Rhode Island in 1988. I did not know what kind of gun laws they had so I left most of my guns with my father in Florida. He has a false wall in one of his closets so that is where I put my guns.

I sprayed some oil on the pistols and wrapped them in cotton towels and put them in the closet. Five years later I was transferred here to Georgia so I went to pick up my guns. When I picked up one of the towels, it was soaking wet, when I unwrapped it, most of the bluing and part of the steel peeled off with the towel.

Sometime in 1989 there was a hurricane and part of my father's roof was blown away. He had some of my nephew's friends climb up on the roof and fix it. They left a hole in the roof and every time it rained (for four years), water was dripping straight down onto that one particular towel that was holding the 1911. It made me sick and made me cry and I gave the pistol away because I could not stand to look at it.

I can tell you that I now know never to wrap a towel around anything. I know it was just bad luck because that was the only gun was was hurt.

Teejay9 · 07-22-2009, 01:10 PM

There's nothing worse than ruining a gun through bad storage

!! I feel your pain GD, but at least you could replace the 1911, not that it's all that cheap. My shotgun was one-of-a-kind, and I think I would have choked my mother if I hadn't been brought up right

TJ

user · 07-24-2009, 07:27 AM

Plastic cases and the foam liners basically evaporate over time, especially the foam. The chemical gasses will affect the finish of the gun, particularly on wood & plastic parts. Those will meet the legal requirements of transportation across state lines when the guns are unloaded and the cases locked, but they're not designed for long term storage.

Rocket J Squirl · 07-24-2009, 03:32 PM

It a rack, upright with air flow.

Only two things destroy firearms

Rust and politicians

fyimo · 07-27-2009, 07:12 AM

The worst gun storage technique is to store them in a leather holster like my grandfather did with his pistol and he had a leather gun case for his shotgun. When he died they were both rusted and pitted very badly and my uncle had to have them both restored by a gunsmith. The leather is bad in two ways because it retains moisture and it has chemicals in it from the tanning process. I inherited these guns from my Uncle and they are nicely restored but their value is greatly reduced.

I have my long guns standing up right in the safe and the pistols either hanging on hooks on the inside of the door or laying flat in the safe. S&W presentation boxes are not good for long them storage either because the foam liner absorbs moisture and will damage the finish.

07-19-2009, 10:24 AM	#1
9 fingers V.I.P. Member Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Northwest NJ Posts: 134	gun storage- in their cases OK? hi, I started another thread about long term gun storage and one of the answers led to this thread. I store all my guns in their soft cases and then in my safes. I have mostly Gunmate, Allen, Kolpin nylon padded cases and a few vinyl and one old leather Boyt and one of the new Bob Allen cases with Protektor Copper something or other to inhibit rust. Is it OK to store them this way? I do it so they never bump into each other or get scratched. I read something about air circulation and that I do not have. The guns are oiled or siliconed or both before I put them away. Need some pros advise on this. Thanks, 9 fingers -->

07-19-2009, 11:09 AM	#2
TranterUK Advanced Senior Member Join Date: May 2008 Location: Cambridge UK Posts: 5,103	Re: gun storage- in their cases OK? I never stored guns in cases, I stand or lay them inside a safe. Oil them, silicone them but keep it so air can circulate. I always thought a close case can trap moisture from the air against the steel and hold it there. I also keep some desiccant (silica gel) packs in the safe. __________________ DVC - Diligentia, Vis, Celeritas - Accuracy, Power, Speed. The light at the end of the recession tunnel IS a train coming the other way!

07-19-2009, 12:32 PM	#3
tailgunner Member Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: GA Posts: 10	Re: gun storage- in their cases OK? I use BoreStores, they're soft and padded enough to keep the guns from getting nicked yet breathable to prevent trapping moisture. I wipe down all my guns with EEZOX and store them in BoreStores in my safe with two GoldenRods. This combination has, and continues to, work like a charm - no issues to report. __________________ King of (safe) Queens!

07-20-2009, 12:09 PM	#4
armedandsafe Former Guest Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Moses Lake, WA Posts: 10,344	Re: gun storage- in their cases OK? I always spray the foam liners of my hard cases with either silicone lubricant or a light gun oil. This prevents them from absorbing moisture and helps a lot. The gun itself will still have condensation on it if the air is humid and you have temperature fluctuactions. (When the air cools, the moisture condenses out.) I don't like to store guns in leather. The leather has a tendency to strip the surface oild away and leave the gun unprotected. Plus, many leathers are acid tanned and can cause metal damage. Pops

07-20-2009, 03:26 PM	#5
Teejay9 Advanced Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Southwest Corner of the US, "Where no stinking fence will stop us!!" Posts: 1,257	Re: gun storage- in their cases OK? I learned the hard way how NOT to store a gun. When I was just a kid, my great grandfather left me a beautiful 12 ga. shotgun. It was all engraved with a carved horn trigger guard. Everything on it was cross-hatched, a work of art, let alone an excellent shotgun. It was marked "C. Gruendig, Dresden 1913" in gold along the sight ramp. Long story short. When we moved to Hawaii, my mother wrapped it in a plastic sheet and put it in a closet (I obviously didn't know what she had done). When I returned from overseas, I asked for it and to my horror this beautiful gun was now a rust covered, pitted throw away. Of all things, the worst you could do in a humid climate like Hawaii was to put it in PLASTIC!! From then on, no matter what the piece was, I made darn sure it was always bathed in a light coat of oil. Some say don't store it in a holster, which can also cause harm, but I have never had a problem with that. Just DO NOT store it in plastic. TJ __________________ A government big enough to give you everything you want, is strong enough to take everything you have". Thomas Jefferson

07-20-2009, 06:43 PM	#6
johnlives4christ Former Guest Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Kentucky Posts: 3,828	Re: gun storage- in their cases OK? personally i wouldnt store a firearm in a case for basically the reason tranter gives. the case can trap moisture in. the case may then soak up the oil or rub it off and leave the metal at the mercy of moisture. i would either oil them good and put them up, or perhaps use a gunsock that had been impregnated with silicone or oil, but i dont have any experiance with these. i have a friend that is an old timer, and he keeps his longguns all in some sort of case. most all of them are rusted. most of the cases are the old cheap kind you fold the end over and tie closed, some leather ones though too. ~john

07-21-2009, 09:52 PM	#7
9 fingers V.I.P. Member Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Northwest NJ Posts: 134	Re: gun storage- in their cases OK? OK, you scared me into action as i thought I was doing a good thing oiling the guns and putting them in nice clean cases and then in my cabinet. After some research it looks like EEZOX and Breakfree COLLECTOR treatments are probably the best. There are some excellent corrosion tests I found on the web that had photos of rust after salt spray tests and also high humidity and temp tests. Alot of products we all use failed miserably. I am also going to buy 5 or 6 BORESTORES as this seems the best way to pad the guns but still allow them to breath. Think I will put the less important ones in the socks that sell for $5 or so at Walmart. Thanks for setting me straight! 9 fingers PS - if anyone is interested in those tests I did a search on "long term gun storage" and it was one of the 1st pages that popped up. If anyone is really interested and can't find it I can try to put up a link tomorrow. But if you are using standard products like Rem Oil (actually one of the better ones tested) you won't be happy with what you see. Last edited by 9 fingers; 07-21-2009 at 09:55 PM..

07-22-2009, 01:10 PM	#9
Teejay9 Advanced Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Southwest Corner of the US, "Where no stinking fence will stop us!!" Posts: 1,257	Re: gun storage- in their cases OK? There's nothing worse than ruining a gun through bad storage!! I feel your pain GD, but at least you could replace the 1911, not that it's all that cheap. My shotgun was one-of-a-kind, and I think I would have choked my mother if I hadn't been brought up right TJ __________________ A government big enough to give you everything you want, is strong enough to take everything you have". Thomas Jefferson

07-24-2009, 07:27 AM	#10
user Advanced Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Northern piedmont of Va. and Middle of Nowhere, West Virginia Posts: 1,013	Re: gun storage- in their cases OK? Plastic cases and the foam liners basically evaporate over time, especially the foam. The chemical gasses will affect the finish of the gun, particularly on wood & plastic parts. Those will meet the legal requirements of transportation across state lines when the guns are unloaded and the cases locked, but they're not designed for long term storage. __________________ ===== Daniel L. Hawes - 540 347 2430 - HTTP://www.VirginiaLegalDefense.com By the way, nothing I say on this website as "user" should be taken as either advertising for attorney services or legal advice. Everyone having a question regarding the application of law to the facts of their situation should seek the advice of an attorney competent in the subject matter of the issues presented and licensed to practice in the relevant state.

07-24-2009, 03:32 PM	#11
Rocket J Squirl Registered User Join Date: Jul 2009 Posts: 418	Re: gun storage- in their cases OK? It a rack, upright with air flow. Only two things destroy firearms Rust and politicians

07-27-2009, 07:12 AM	#12
fyimo V.I.P. Member Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Arkansas Posts: 187	Re: gun storage- in their cases OK? The worst gun storage technique is to store them in a leather holster like my grandfather did with his pistol and he had a leather gun case for his shotgun. When he died they were both rusted and pitted very badly and my uncle had to have them both restored by a gunsmith. The leather is bad in two ways because it retains moisture and it has chemicals in it from the tanning process. I inherited these guns from my Uncle and they are nicely restored but their value is greatly reduced. I have my long guns standing up right in the safe and the pistols either hanging on hooks on the inside of the door or laying flat in the safe. S&W presentation boxes are not good for long them storage either because the foam liner absorbs moisture and will damage the finish.