stainless hunting rifles are not always stainless

[AB3006]

That not completely true either, it came with non-stainless sights as well, as per Winchesters own website -

That may actually not be the greatest solution. Combining two metals like that may lead to galvanic corrosion at the interface (the one metal can accelerate rusting in the other). Don't know if it's true in this case, but the combination of carbon and stainless has lead to a lot of problems in industry.

 

[DANS40X]

In layman term's-
400 series stainless steel is magnetic, more chrome than 4000 series chrome moly & is heat treatable.
All stainless firearm parts are manufactured from a derivative of 400 series stainless steel.

300 series stainless steel is non-magnetic, more nickel content & is NOT heat treatable.

Titanium is non magnetic, but shatters when work hardened.

 

[AB3006]

In layman term's-
400 series stainless steel is magnetic, more chrome than 4000 series chrome moly & is heat treatable.
All stainless firearm parts are manufactured from a derivative of 400 series stainless steel.

300 series stainless steel is non-magnetic, more nickel content & is NOT heat treatable.

Titanium is non magnetic, but shatters when work hardened.

That's a very good summary!

As far as Titanium, have there ever been guns made of Ti, or was it some funky alloy of it? Conceivably, you could have an inner bore made out of a steel sleeve and the outer barrel of Ti to save weight, but the differential heat expansion and brittleness would be a b##ch to account for.

 

[mkrnel]

That may actually not be the greatest solution. Combining two metals like that may lead to galvanic corrosion at the interface (the one metal can accelerate rusting in the other). Don't know if it's true in this case, but the combination of carbon and stainless has lead to a lot of problems in industry.

Lots of firearms have stainless and regular steel parts in them and it has not seemed to cause any real issues. I have been using stainless steel bolts on my pickup truck to mount stuff like a brush guard that I put on 4 years ago and recently took off to work on the front end. No corrosion was seen or noted on either the stainless bolts or the steel frame. Same deal with my trailer hitch, I switched to stainless bolts after having a regular steel bolt rust badly and shear off while trying to remove with a breaker bar.

Maybe in constant wet environments it could be an issue but not for guns which are normally kept dry most of the time. That's what I have read in the past is the main reason for this galvanic action anyhow.

Galvanic corrosion is an electrochemical process where two dissimilar metals in electrical contact in the presence of an electrolyte (like water) cause the more reactive metal to corrode preferentially. This happens because the more reactive metal acts as the anode and corrodes, while the less reactive metal acts as the cathode and is protected. The process is driven by the potential difference between the metals, and the rate of corrosion increases with a larger difference in their electrochemical properties. An electrolyte is needed for this action to continue or start.

 

[Meroh]

Are nickel and chrome coating not effective at repelling rust?

At some point you just want a gun that doesn't rust, even if silver looks cool.

If nitride or nickel or whatever is better at repelling rust I'm into it. I understand being unhappy about ceracote.

What is the cva made out of?

What do old bumpers in the scrap yard look like?

 

[Denver Steve]

In layman term's-
400 series stainless steel is magnetic, more chrome than 4000 series chrome moly & is heat treatable.
All stainless firearm parts are manufactured from a derivative of 400 series stainless steel.

300 series stainless steel is non-magnetic, more nickel content & is NOT heat treatable.

Titanium is non magnetic, but shatters when work hardened.

All stainless steel is magnetic. Some is just alot less magnetic. Get a stronger magnet and you will see.

 

[Slimbo]

That not completely true either, it came with non-stainless sights as well, as per Winchesters own website -

Only the 375 H&H came with sights

 

[Jahnj0584]

half of my CVA wolf is magnetic, the other half isnt.

 

[The Kurgan]

I had one stainless rifle (Ruger 10/22) that showed signs of rust out-of-the-box, and became a real pain ! I also had a Tikka T3 blued, that also came with rust out-of-the-box. Cheap is cheap, regardless. I have several blued rifles that get plenty of use and ZERO rust. Stainless helps, especially for you east and left coasters, but I will stay with my quality blued rifles and my custom coated rifles, the later of which require almost zero maintenance.

 

[Duramax6.6]

When steel is polished to a mirror finish its ability to resist oxidation increases. Probably why some vintage blued firearms can show little rusting and it takes only a little oil to keep them shining.

Flitz paste is an excellent substance to remove any surface rust without removing the bluing. Plus it leaves a finish behind that sheds water and resists fingerprints better than just gun oil.

WD-40 is a bad choice to resist corrosion but a great choice for water displacement on electrical contacts.
For the salt-water duck hunters, buy an aerosol can of chain lube and give’r a spray and wipe. It’s designed to be clingy on metals and doesn’t evaporate or wash off easily.
Avoid gear oils! They may contain potent anti-corrosives that can take the blue off a gun. Blue is a form of rust. However if you have any rusty tools of chains etc a soak in a pail of differential (gear) oil like 75w90 and they come out clean, no rust.

 

[AB3006]

Lots of firearms have stainless and regular steel parts in them and it has not seemed to cause any real issues. I have been using stainless steel bolts on my pickup truck to mount stuff like a brush guard that I put on 4 years ago and recently took off to work on the front end. No corrosion was seen or noted on either the stainless bolts or the steel frame. Same deal with my trailer hitch, I switched to stainless bolts after having a regular steel bolt rust badly and shear off while trying to remove with a breaker bar.

Maybe in constant wet environments it could be an issue but not for guns which are normally kept dry most of the time. That's what I have read in the past is the main reason for this galvanic action anyhow.

Yeah, you definitely need an electrolyte for this to happen. Again, if you run 'er hard and put 'er away wet into an enclosed space like a case or cabinet and leave it there until the next time out, the residual water may be a problem but doesn't have to be. Also, if the two parts are braised together (i.e. using a silicon bronze braising rod), then there isn't any actual carbon steel to stainless contact.

 

[mkrnel]

Only the 375 H&H came with sights

So what, the statement I replied to was refuting the assertion that Winchester stainless steel model 70's were all stainless steel construction right down to the screws and springs with no regular steel or alloy parts unlike the Rossi or Ruger rifles I mentioned.

Besides it is still was a factory option and you could request open sights to be fitted from the factory on many of their stainless rifles, here is one in .308 Win I found with a google search with blued open sights as well -








Also their Alaskan SS model came with Blued steel sights in different calibres as well -








Plus Winchester also fitted different blued steel open sights on another of their Model 70's, the Stainless Laminated model which and also had a alloy trigger guard fitted instead of a stainless steel one, just as quoted in Winchesters own advertising.

Winchester Model 70 1-Piece Aluminum Alloy Trigger Guard, S/A Silver Finish (03). This model 70 factory original part was manufactured by Winchester in New Haven, Ct. Don't miss your chance to get one of these hard to find original Winchester factory parts.

 

[Slimbo]

So what is right. 99% of them were all stainless. The Alaskans you mention are newer production with the enclosed trigger (not all stainless)