Degrease with kerosene?!

One things for sure, never clean anything with brake cleaner that you are planning on welding... when it's vaporized it's releases phosgene among other nasty things that can kill you pretty quickly.


Grizzlypeg said:
Who knows how safe those brake part cleaners are. They are fast and convenient, but the smell like dry cleaning fluid to me, and a lot of those compounds have either been shown to be carcinogenic or damaging to the lungs (esp the chlorinated ones).
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smartbomb said:
What about isopropyl alcohol? Anybody use that to degrease?
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ya, i use quite a bit. get it from the vet at 99%. Your better of using varsol in a tupperware container for a factory grease packed one. I use the iso-propyl after the initial de-greasing stage. use lots of compressed air too, get out the burrs and chips.
oh ya, no smoking, flame or sparks! use well ventilated.
 
OK.... so this turned into a bit of sh*ticane...

First, let me thank you all for your kind advice and information.

Secondly, let me state that i am feeling fairly stupid at the moment and i am fairly hesitant to relate this story, but what the hell...

The cleanup of my new rifle went well, it is cleaned, greased and good to go.

HOWEVER... the other rifle, an older one...what a nightmare.

i stripped her down as per the "M-14 complete assembly guide" and bathed all the components in a bath of biodegradable engine degreaser. I basically stood the receiver up in glass container so it was submerged to the point that the fluid just touched the base of the barrel where it protrudes from the receiver.

Well... and here is where i will look stupid... the previous owner had the thing painted/coated in something (the receiver and op-rod) i failed to recognize what would happen (yeah i know). Came back about 3 hours later and the paint had basically bubbled/wrinkled and come off.

So i curse a bit and pulled the parts out of the degreaser, attack the ones that were painted with some shop towels, a brush, and air blaster from my compressor and, thank god, the whole thing came out OK, i think. I spent a good couple of hours cleaning everything. every last bit of the paint/coating the last guy put on it is gone, its clean as a whistle....but the finish looks like sh*t, when i compare it to my new rifle (a 2007 from marstar a few weeks ago) it almost looks like it has no finish.

I will post photos sometime on Sunday when i get a sec, but for now, im really not sure if i totally screwed it up or if i just need to put a good coat of oil on it and it will come back to life?!!! someone with some experience can chime in here with there opinion please?:confused:

i was not a happy camper this afternoon. Oh... and on top of all that i broke the goddamn windage assembly knob. :(
 
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Anyone try diesel fuel?

I've used it for cleaning auto parts, rebuilding calipers, etc. I know it doesn't harm rubber seals and such, but never used diesel fuel to clean firearms myself.
 
muscles1000 said:
OK.... so this turned into a bit of sh*ticane...

First, let me thank you all for your kind advice and information.

Secondly, let me state that i am feeling fairly stupid at the moment and i am fairly hesitant to relate this story, but what the hell...

The cleanup of my new rifle went well, it is cleaned, greased and good to go.

HOWEVER... the other rifle, an older one...what a nightmare.

i stripped her down as per the "M-14 complete assembly guide" and bathed all the components in a bath of biodegradable engine degreaser. I basically stood the receiver up in glass container so it was submerged to the point that the fluid just touched the base of the barrel where it protrudes from the receiver.

Well... and here is where i will look stupid... the previous owner had the thing painted/coated in something (the receiver and op-rod) i failed to recognize what would happen (yeah i know). Came back about 3 hours later and the paint had basically bubbled/wrinkled and come off.

So i curse a bit and pulled the parts out of the degreaser, attack the ones that were painted with some shop towels, a brush, and air blaster from my compressor and, thank god, the whole thing came out OK, i think. I spent a good couple of hours cleaning everything. every last bit of the paint/coating the last guy put on it is gone, its clean as a whistle....but the finish looks like sh*t, when i compare it to my new rifle (a 2007 from marstar a few weeks ago) it almost looks like it has no finish.

I will post photos sometime on Sunday when i get a sec, but for now, im really not sure if i totally screwed it up or if i just need to put a good coat of oil on it and it will come back to life?!!! someone with some experience can chime in here with there opinion please?:confused:

i was not a happy camper this afternoon. Oh... and on top of all that i broke the goddamn windage assembly knob. :(
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Is it bare metal?

I'd just get it sandblasted and reparked if I were you.

BTW, I'm sorry to hear of your misfortune.:(
 
Yea I find Isopropyl kicks ass for removing gunk in the barrel and everywhere else.
I use it in place of your garden variety nitro gun bore cleaners. Works well.
 
I hope everyone using gasoline and other highly flammable products are doing so in their basements near the furnace so that they can enjoy one last spectacular explosion before they pass on to the next life.

WD-40?
 
I clean my stuff with Varsol when the job is "big" (like degreasing a Norc M14). Note that the container only labels Varsol as extremely poisonous.. NOT flammable. Yes, the vapours have a certain volatility, but I've used fume products for years about ten feet away from our natural gas water tank.

Keep in mind, our basement (where the tank is located) is never below 40% relative humidity.
 
I am a big fan of the simple green for cleaning up M14s. I've done two and an sks in the last couple months and other than the smell it works great and doesn't mess up your skin or the laundry tub.
 
Gasoline works the best with the least residue left over but may ignite with the smallest spark so it's not too safe when you're elbow deep in it.

I use diesel fuel on all my equipment from bike chains and engine parts to tar caked wheel wells. Gigiddy Gigiddy!
 
Petrock said:
I am a big fan of the simple green for cleaning up M14s. I've done two and an sks in the last couple months and other than the smell it works great and doesn't mess up your skin or the laundry tub.
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I use the "Mean Green" (Think it's the same stuff only more concentrated) on my dirtbikes. It's really great stuff but you must be careful to completely rinse it all off as the stuff will pit aluminum if left to dry. (Maybe other metals too but the bikes are mostly aluminum so i remember that much)
 
Degreasing wood stocks with 100% ammonia works real well for heavy greased/dirt. 50/50 ammonia and hot water works for light jobs. Then rinse with hot water and let dry for a few days.
 
Just a note that any of these solvents and "biodegradable" cleaners are not good for your skin or the internal organs. Wear your chemical resistant gloves at all times. Solvents in particular are bad because the effect is accumulative. Solvents enter your blood stream through the skin once you've allowed it to soak away the protective skin oils. Something that only takes a few seconds in many cases.

The fumes are no picnic either so I cringe when I hear about some of you using the stuff in the house to any great extent. And just because you can't smell it does not mean they are not there.
 
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