Rust through

[DDMac]

I had a particularly nasty two days clearing brush at the pipeline project going through my property. Got sweat-soaking wet while carrying a 9mm and never even looked at it, since I had it Teflon moly finished. Mistake! It had rust at the Fobus holster contact points on the slide and I feel real guilty for the neglect. The coating was not "Dura-Coat", but supposedly the same thing from another source.
 The gunsmith who did the work said he had used that particular OD finish on duck hunting guns that stay in salt spray without ill effect, but he would redo it and see what happens.
Has anybody had a similar experience with any of the new finishes where it failed to protect the metal? Guess I need to go back to my S&W,Model 60 stainless for those conditions.
Thanks, Mac.

[Ron J]

Sorry to hear that Mack.  My guess is that such “surface” rust can be cleaned up without too much effort or cost.  While a bummer it should be OK. 

I have never stored a gun in any holster for more than the couple hours when I was wearing it so I don’t have any experience with such finish failure. 

Good luck!

[tombogan03884]

I don't know about the finish you used, but it takes longer than a couple days for rust to pit the metal of any fire arm. Note: while stainless steel will slow (NOT STOP !) the formation of such surface rust, when it does form it begins pitting the metal MUCH quicker than with Blued, (Non stainless) steel. Best bet is no matter what finish is on the fire arm if you carry it you should wipe it down with something like Breakfree every now and then, don't soak it but put some on a rag and wipe it on the gun till it looks like it's dry again. KEEP IT OFF PLASTIC GRIP PANELS, it will not soak in and makes them slippery.

[DDMac]

"I don't know about the finish you used, but it takes longer than a couple days for rust to pit the metal of any fire arm. "

Tom, that's exactly what the gunsmith said. I shoot/clean at least once a week, so there was no long delay. I use "Ed's Red" homemade solvent with 1/3 ATF, and the insides were fine. 

Maybe the Devil is on my trail and I'm sweatin' sulfuric acid. I'll get the name of his brand of coating and check back in when it is returned. I relentlessly carry. Wet, dry, no matter, which is why I went for the "extra protection". This is how I learn I guess.
Thanks, Mac.

[m25operator]

I'll have to disagree with some of my compratriots on this subject, significant rust can happen in hours, with the right environment and the right metal to work with. I had a very new SKB auto shotgun that I took dove hunting, September, Texas = hot!!, during the morning hunt it rained hard while we were in the field for about 20 minutes. Put the shotgun in a vinyl case ( mistake )  and We went home, ate lunch, found another place that was supposed to have a lot of birds and went back out at 3pm, took the shotgun out of the case and nearly died, the barrel was completely brown, gobs of rust came off as I wiped it off, hunted that afternoon and went home and used my best rust removal stuff, pits a plenty. Ended up bead blasting it and cold bluing, gave it a nice matte finish. sold it for more than I bought it for, because SKB did not have a matte finish barrel.

I think the holster provided a place for your sweat to collect and stick long enough to do the job. Sweat is nasty stuff, and some of us have a natural acid that will imprint on a gun in hours, luckily my acid does not do that but I know customers, who you better wipe the gun off with a silicone rag pronto. As to the quality of the work done on the refinishing I cannot say, or to the finish put on. applying FP10 or even birchwood casey sheath is a good barrier and has saved my bacon many times. Corrosion X is an excellent rust remover, I use it on my milling machine tables, as it is in the garage with the washing machine, when it's 40 degrees outside and my wife is washing, my milling machine will just drip from the condensation.

[Sponsor]

[tombogan03884]

I'll have to disagree with some of my compratriots on this subject, significant rust can happen in hours, with the right environment and the right metal to work with. I had a very new SKB auto shotgun that I took dove hunting, September, Texas = hot!!, during the morning hunt it rained hard while we were in the field for about 20 minutes. Put the shotgun in a vinyl case ( mistake )  and We went home, ate lunch, found another place that was supposed to have a lot of birds and went back out at 3pm, took the shotgun out of the case and nearly died, the barrel was completely brown, gobs of rust came off as I wiped it off, hunted that afternoon and went home and used my best rust removal stuff, pits a plenty. Ended up bead blasting it and cold bluing, gave it a nice matte finish. sold it for more than I bought it for, because SKB did not have a matte finish barrel.

I think the holster provided a place for your sweat to collect and stick long enough to do the job. Sweat is nasty stuff, and some of us have a natural acid that will imprint on a gun in hours, luckily my acid does not do that but I know customers, who you better wipe the gun off with a silicone rag pronto. As to the quality of the work done on the refinishing I cannot say, or to the finish put on. applying FP10 or even birchwood casey sheath is a good barrier and has saved my bacon many times. Corrosion X is an excellent rust remover, I use it on my milling machine tables, as it is in the garage with the washing machine, when it's 40 degrees outside and my wife is washing, my milling machine will just drip from the condensation.

All I can say is SKB must use crappier steel than T/C. They store their barrel material outside, year round, material for blued barrels has THICK surface rust, minor pitting, Stainlless has thin surface rust, LOTS of pitting. Doesn't matter as they get 1 1/4 inch stock and turn it down. Possibly SKB used extra high carbon content steel.

[m25operator]

Well Tom, I would hesitate to say crappy, and shotgun barrels are pretty thin compared to barrels that shoot bullets, but high carbon content and what type of bluing solution, yes. Bluing is an acid finish, and is not very thick, up north where TC is, is not an environment like we have in the south. My day job is automotive and I've been working on Volvo's for 27 years, They let their cast iron blocks season in the dirt for years, very cold there, and we allow that is why the cylinder blocks are damn near bullet proof. The molecular structure changes.

By the by, My firing pin selector and safety fell out of my very old contender, that my nephews were ( without permission ) shooting, and I basically need everything that go's into the hammer. Any suggestions, TC wants me to send it back to them.

[tombogan03884]

Well Tom, I would hesitate to say crappy, and shotgun barrels are pretty thin compared to barrels that shoot bullets, but high carbon content and what type of bluing solution, yes. Bluing is an acid finish, and is not very thick, up north where TC is, is not an environment like we have in the south. My day job is automotive and I've been working on Volvo's for 27 years, They let their cast iron blocks season in the dirt for years, very cold there, and we allow that is why the cylinder blocks are damn near bullet proof. The molecular structure changes.

By the by, My firing pin selector and safety fell out of my very old contender, that my nephews were ( without permission ) shooting, and I basically need everything that go's into the hammer. Any suggestions, TC wants me to send it back to them.

Go ahead and send it back, a  couple of roll pins fell out from the sound of it. The receivers are assembled mostly with a soft face hammer.  You will probably wind up paying for shipping but there will be no service charge. They REALLY mean it when they say life time Warranty

[SwoopSJ]

Has anybody had a similar experience with any of the new finishes where it failed to protect the metal?

I had a similar experience, not too long ago, with my S&W M&P .45.  It became a pillow gun for 3-4 days earlier in the summer and it developed some rust spots on the slide.  These of course wiped right off with no pitting, but reappeared just a couple of days later.  I had always trusted Rem Oil before, but have since switched to Break Free and have had no rust issues with any of my guns.  I don't know what the exact cause was but I was sort of miffed at the time since I had heard such good things about the melonite coating Smith uses.  If don't know what your choice of oil is, however I would definitely suggest BF.

Swoop

[pioneer]

Use care.  Stainless steel will rust.  I've had it happen to a Walther PPK in a humid environment.