I know with corrosive ammo it is crucial to clean the bore well after every range trip. My question is how quickly do you need to clean. Typically I shoot my corrosive rifle last to ensure it doesn’t sit too long on my way home from the range. However on my next trip I plan on taking my Mosin and my SKS. Is it okay to shoot both for a while and then clean say 6 hours later at home or will rust start to form in this short amount of time?
Corrosive Ammo: time to rust?
- Thread starter MattE93
- Start date
- Location
- Nova Scotia
6 hours, even if it does. Would only be surface rust and easily removed when you clean.
I shoot 5 rounds of non-corrosive ammo after a day at the range. Never had an issue, hours or even Sunday morning. At the very least maybe run some boiling water down that night and a couple of dry patches making sure all the water has evaporated.
Just after shooting corrosive in my SKSs and Mosins I spray liberally inside out with Ballistol. Then I can do a thorough cleaning even a week after and never noticed any rust. The SKS barrel is chromed (for those 1951-58) so the likelihood of corrosion is minimal, anyway. The Mosins are a bit more problematic. Their barrels (rifling) are more prone to catching surface corrosion during longer storage even after a very thorough cleaning. Every month or so I clean the barrel rifling in my Mosins with Ballistol.
- Location
- Blaster land, Okanagan BC
^^^This, I’ve seen rust form in my sks after 3-4 hours of getting home. Was at the range for a few hours and had to be at my mother in-laws for dinner right after I got home, I cleaned up after I got home from diner. There was some surface rust in the barrel and gas tube, it wiped off while cleaning with Balistol and you’d never know it even happened if you looked at it hard.
BattleRife
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- of No Fixed Address
Yes. In fact, humidity is far more important a variable than time. Hatcher did testing on this, and if I remember correctly there is a threshold humidity below which corrosion will not begin in any reasonable time. Rifles could sit around uncleaned for days or weeks with no ill effects, but let the humidity get over a certain value and corrosion appears within hours, if not minutes.
If you shoot your SKS in Alberta just before Christmas, try to get it cleaned by Valentine's Day. If you shoot it around Halifax at 4:00pm on the Saturday after Labour Day, you best get it taken care of before dinner.
I've forgotten to clean an SKS for a month once. I didn't see any rust or salts anywhere. I've left it for a day and have seen orange fuzz in the gas tube and bore which came off easy and didn't leave a mark. I try to clean them as soon as I'm back to the house, there should be no need to agonize about a few hours.
Thanks everyone for putting my mind at ease. I asked because I haven’t been able to get to the range all summer. In August I plan to go and bring my .22, Mosin and SKS so I can blast tons of ammo cheaply but was worried about shooting the Mosin and then putting it away for a few hours while o shoot the sks and .22
I have fired my share of ugly corrosive ammo over the last 40 years. Many years ago, I started using FLUID FILM. A good juicy swab when I get home and never have rust. You can buy at most CT stores, farm supply stores, auto supply stores. You don't have to order it from Timbuktu. I get mine right next door to my shop at the Co-op, when it goes on sale. I have enough now for the next 40 years.
