Stainless....Not So Carefree

[Duce]

Just got thru putting a stainless Ruger Mini 30 back together. Seems that the former owner felt stainless was low maintanance, not cleaning after firing some generic Russian ammo. The new owner took it to the range to put a few down range and had several FTFs. I entered the picture to straighten things out. I field stripped it and found the piston froze in the op rod and pulled from the gasblock. The tube that runs between barrel and piston was loose in the stock. It took chucking the piston in a 3 jaw chuck and applying oil an torque to get it loose.

Always treat surplus ammo as mild corrosive.

Stainless firearms still have carbon steel parts that need cleaning.

Keep'em Down Range..............<>< Duce

 

[Clay]

cheap grades of stainless, ie 400 series typically, is NOT stain free it will most certainly corrode.

 

[Indy_Guy_77]

Yep. Stains LESS....than non-stainless. Not that it won't stain...but that it'll stain less.

Always wondered why our kitchen sinks were always stained.

go figure.

 

[Crimson]

Correct. Stainless can stain. LOL. I learned the hard way on this also. Just not with a gun. I always clean my gun after shooting and always assume that it is corrosive if it is surplus.

 

[ATF Consumer]

Is there some type of coating to use to keep it from corrosion?

My wife bought an expensive dish strainer/dryer that is only a few weeks old and is showing signs of rust.

A clear coat of enamel possibly?

 

[jimbo-indy]

The stainless steel most commonly used in guns and domestic housewares is in the 400 series, usually type 430. Basicly this is chromium and steel with bits of other elements added for various properties. The stainless commonly used in commercial food service and lab equipment is 300 series, typically type 302, 304 and 316. The 300 series have significant amounts of nickle in addition to chromium. More corrosion resistant and more expensive. One quick wway to tell the difference is with a magnet. A magnet will cling to 400 series and will not cling to 300 series. Gun manufacturere use 400 series because it has other physical properties that are desirable in guns and 300 series would not be as well suited. The alloy was chosen for it's function and does offer better rust resistance than plain steel which is a plus. 300 series would be corrosian resistant but wouldn't resist the pressures as well. It's all a trade off.

 

[Crystalship1]

Lower maintenance = YES!!
No maintenance = NO!!!