Cleaning up an old shotgun

[tenyart]

Hey all, looking for some advice. I have my grandfathers first gun, an old Springfield J. Stevens Arms single shot 20 gauge. My grandfather was born in 1923, and he received this on his 13th birthday. I think this gun was mfgd around 1933. Anyway, it's in ok shape, but has a little bit of rust and overall just really needs cleaned up. Also I think it needs a new spring in the forend to keep it tight to the barrel. I want to fix it up myself if I can and give back to my Dad this year for his 60th birthday. I'm not against taking it to a pro, but just wanted to do as much as I can myself. Any recommendations on what to use to clean it up real nice? I appreciate your time and advice.


Thanks

 

[hrearden]

Got pics, bud? That would shed some light on the condition. Can you take some pics of the spots you speak of and possibly the whole thing?

 

[BogWalker]

Gun oil and steel wool is good for light rust. If it's real heavy you could strip the whole thing down and reblue, but this would probably cost more than the firearm is worth if you send it to a gunsmith to do.

 

[kalboy]

I've had good results removing rust from blued guns with steel wool and motor oil. First spray the metal with a solvent like Liquid Wrench and let soak for several hours at least. Then wipe clean and apply motor oil to surface liberally and rub gently w/ steel wool.
And btw.... Welcome to INGO!

 

[roadrunner681]

oil and OO steel wool works for light rust, if theirs a bunch of junk built up on the steel you can substitute oil for hoppes no9 i take the stocks off and clean them with lacquer thinner and you can use acetone to remove soaked in oil from the stock ether way let them dry a few days then use linseed oil on the stock the acetone or the lacquer thinner will remove the old oil coat from the stock so it will need resealed.

 

[remauto1187]

soak all the metal parts down with WD40. WD40 lifts rust. Repat, repeat, repeat. Wipe down with cloth after each soak. Once the main part of the rust is lifted you will then need to deal with pitting and freckling.

 

[BogWalker]

I wonder if PB blaster would harm blueing? I've used it to remove rust from a barrel, but I've never used it on any blued areas.

 

[tenyart]

Thanks for the input. It had duct tape around it keeping the forend and barrel together, I removed it and used some goo gone to get the residue left from the tape. I'm trying to add some pics, but having a difficult time. I'll keep trying. The rust is really light, not a lot at all. Will the steel wool and oil polish up the receiver area?

 

[Hookeye]

FWIW I kinda like the browning/patina old guns get.

On really old stuff I just clean them up to a certain point (safe and functional) don't try to remove all that age and maybe a bit of neglect has done to them.

They are a storybook, a rough binding and maybe yellow or dogeared "pages" are kinda cool


What really sucks when doing a restoration (on anything).............is that first mark you put on it. They don't stay "like new" for long.
Less stress when it's got a few marks still visible and no great sin if you add a tiny one to the collection later.

But if somebody wants to have a go at making it like new, go for it.

 

[tenyart]

Here's a few pics, that I finally figured out how to upload.

 

[hrearden]

It looks damn nice for an old single shot. The patina is perfect and the wood looks nice. The most I would do is use some furniture polish on the wood to brighten it up a hair and take off any surface rust. Maybe a little touch up with cold blue? Definitely replace the spring to tighten up the forend.

 

[hrearden]

If you wanted it to look like new, you would have to have the receiver re case hardened (I believe it started that way) and have the barrel polished and hot blued. Then, you would have to sand and re oil the stock.

 

[red_zr24x4]

Go here for info on it- Savage Shooters
And go here for any parts you need- Firearm Parts & Accessories | Military Surplus | Numrich Gun Parts

 

[Hookeye]

I wouldn't even mess with cold blue, just steel wool/oil to get the worst rust off, clean the wood and let it show its age gracefully

 

[roadrunner681]

I wouldn't even mess with cold blue, just steel wool/oil to get the worst rust off, clean the wood and let it show its age gracefully

+1 cold blue looks good at first but a few years later and it looks pretty ruff.

 

[RDunagan]

Butches Bore Shine brings the bore back as good as it can be.

 

[tenyart]

Thanks all for the advice. Yeah...the more I've thought about it, and looked at it...I plan to just clean it up real good and showcase its age. and Red_zr, thanks for the links. I found the spring I need and will order it from there. Thanks again everyone.