Getting cosmoline out of a stock

Rapture · Nov 24, 2015

highli99 said:
If your firearm is a shooter just enjoy the cosmoline. Each time you a shoot a little bit will come out and you can wipe it down with CLR. After a while it won't be so bad. Most important to get the bolt and barrel clean IMO.

I agree with this. Just take an old towel and wipe the stock down as you blast away. I don't mind a little Cosmo in the stock.

Machodoc · Nov 24, 2015

babalou · Nov 24, 2015

ooops.

Melnic said:
I copy a variant of that for the barrel and receiver.
I just make sure I can soak half of it and then turn over again. I bought 2 of the big cans of mineral spirits and then run it through a coffee filter in a funnel when putting it back in. All ideas borrowed from others.

BTW mineral spirits and not mineral oil
No one is constipated.
Will maybe not

typo. I did say spirits then oil. Damnit.

Melnic · Nov 24, 2015

babalou said:
typo. I did say spirits then oil. Damnit.

I have plenty of typohs

Blacksmith101 · Nov 24, 2015

Here is a link to the Wood Cleaning Article from the Armorer's Corner section of the CMP web site. They have probably cleaned more cosmoline than anyone:
http://thecmp.org/training-tech/armorers-corner/wood-cleaning-article/

There are also a number of stock finishing threads on the CMP forum which like this forum has a search function. Here is a link to their How To section to get you started:
http://forums.thecmp.org/forumdisplay.php?f=85

Machodoc · Nov 24, 2015

Blacksmith101 said:
Here is a link to the Wood Cleaning Article from the Armorer's Corner section of the CMP web site. They have probably cleaned more cosmoline than anyone:
http://thecmp.org/training-tech/armorers-corner/wood-cleaning-article/

Yep. Excellent stuff! The thing to keep in mind, though, is that this is aimed specifically at stocks for the M1 Garand. Stocks on other types of rifle are likely to be anywhere from a little different, to a great deal different.

Drakos · Nov 25, 2015

Brownell's sell's a product called Whiting Compound which was essentially chalk ground to a powder.

AFTER you have done your bulk degreasing, you mix the whiting compound with alcohol and "paint" it on the stock, . It pulls the grease out of the wood and you brush it away.

It typically takes a half a dozen or more applications to clean it sufficiently.

I cannot comment if this is an approved method for the C&R folks...

Abulg1972 · Nov 25, 2015

I'm not saying that I would do this on something super valuable, but I used mineral spirits and a rag to remove the cosmo on my Chinese Type 56 SKS and my T53. It worked quite well. When I take them to the range on warm days, they still sweat out some cosmo - I keep a rag with me and just wipe it away. Eventually, most of it will sweat out. There's nothing wrong with a little cosmo. I use it as cologne by rubbing my hands on my neck after a range session. I wouldn't put any oil, Danish, Tung, etc. on a milsurp. They don't need it and it will ruin value.

Melnic · Nov 25, 2015

I have a photo of Abulg somewhere applying his Cosmo.

Oh here it is:

Abulg1972 · Nov 25, 2015

Melnic said:
I have a photo of Abulg somewhere applying his Cosmo.

Oh here it is:

Come on - tell me that you don't get a warm feeling inside when you bring your hands up to your face hours after a range session and smell that cosmo.

Melnic · Nov 25, 2015

Abulg1972 said:
Come on - tell me that you don't get a warm feeling inside when you bring your hands up to your face hours after a range session and smell that cosmo.

I smell my nails several times for hours after a range or de-Cosmo session. Does that count.

babalou · Nov 25, 2015

HAHAHAHA

Melnic said:
I have plenty of typohs

that is pretty damn good. Awesome.

babalou · Nov 25, 2015

wha?

Melnic said:
I have a photo of Abulg somewhere applying his Cosmo.

Oh here it is:

And you put the lotion on its skin....

Laddertowr · Nov 25, 2015

I get mine out like I’m baking chicken.... few pieces of cardboard on the oven tray set temp around 200 and bake her for several hrs.. making sure to flip her around or replace the cardboard if / when needed…

I only do this at our other place.. by the time my other half gets up there I have vented the house

Machodoc · Nov 25, 2015

Abulg1972 said:
I wouldn't put any oil, Danish, Tung, etc. on a milsurp. They don't need it and it will ruin value.

It all depends upon the rifle. Stocks of the U.S. Military bolt-action rifles, and then the M1 Garand, were usually hand-rubbed with BLO in the field (if BLO was available). That's why really nice ones tend to have stocks that are darkened, and sometimes have a slight red tint. BLO would oxidize over time.

Some U.S. military stocks were rubbed with Tung oil. I don't think that the military ever used Danish oil.

BTW - the references posted here to my earlier explanation of how to rejuvenate the Sino-Albanian SKS stocks was written specifically for the earliest batches of those rifles that were imported (Summer of 2012, I think). Those earlier rifles appeared to have either been exposed to water, or someone tried to clean them pre-export with a solvent that caused the very little remaining original finish on the stocks to be "milky" or "chalky" looking. The only reason why I advocated using stain on those was to counter-act the chalky appearance while blending the color of those affected areas with the rest of the rifle.

Getting cosmoline out of a stock

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