Ballistol-Good Rust Preventative? Fact or Fiction

[John Boy]

http://www.theopenrange.net/forum/index.php?topic=9308.0

[slide]

I have not been impressed with ballistol although some folks like it. Supposedly the main ingrediant in ballistol is mineral oil. Everybody has got their favorite. Seems like there are new ones coming on the market all the time.

[largom]

I have tried Ballistol and was not impressed. A much better product is Sheath, now called Barricade, made by Birchwood Casey. An even better product is T-9 made by Boeshield. Sheath/Barricade is available at Walmart. T-9 by Boeshield can be hard to find but is available on the internet. Both of these products dry with a thin waxey film. If applied to your guns bore it should be removed with mineral spirits, acetone or similar solvent before shooting.

Larry

[MasS&W]

I keep a bottle of ballistol around for when I put blued or stainless guns in storage. Little spritz and a little smearage keeps rust at bay for a long long time. Beware of nickel or other plated guns, the copper undercoat will be eaten away in short order by the solvent components in ballistol.

[utk]

I found my boyhood air rifle many, many years ago. Barrel looked good, even after all those years years of storage. Shot it for an afternoon and then oiled the barrel with Ballistol before putting it back on the shelf.
Some ten years later I "found it" once again and had a look into the barrel: full of rust.

No, I will never, ever use Ballistol on guns again.

[Gunfreak25]

If you want long term storage, paste wax is also great on metal. A lot of museums use wax on antique firearms instead of oil which just collects dust. Wax can be dusted without being removed or touched up. Also gives a nice shine to a dull blue job! It may fingerprint during shooting heat, but a quick wipedown with a cloth at home before going back into the cabinet brings it back.

[bigdog454]

I took a piece of CR steel, a couple of years ago, and coated it with different oils and rust preventatives; did not include ballistol. Then I placed it out in the weather for 3 weeks,of those I tried WD-40 had the least rust. I won't use WD on the working of a gun but it's great on the outside or the inner barrel. It does leave a film.
BD

[utk]

I have read about ATF beeing a good rust preventative. The same stuff used in Ed's Red.
So, after cleaning my gun it automatically gets a thin coating of ATF. Maybe a coat of straight ATF would be safer in damper climates?

[c3d4b2]

Here is a link with some info

http://www.accurateshooter.com/technical-articles/corrosion-protection-products/

[Ernest]

gummy but the very best thing that I have found for rust proofing is alox. I use it in the shop all the time. Dilute with varsol and spray on . I have never had anything that I used it on rust but it does leave a gummy finish that is hard to wipe off but that is why it works so well.

I really like to use ballistol. It is not a long term rust proof solution but it does everything else very well.

[smokeywolf]

WD-40 (Water Displacement-40) is -I've been told- #1 diesel fuel with a few additives to improve smell and prevent nozzle caking.
I have used Ballistol, but not enough to form an opinion. Many black powder shooters use it.
I have been using G96 for about a year, and so far, am seeing positive results.
When I was a kid, my father used something called ZEP. The smell of ZEP and Hoppes #9 was always present in his shop.
As far as rust removal, Kroil was invented to loosen rusted bolts; like manifold bolts.

smokeywolf

[HangFireW8]

Ballistol? WD40? Let's get serious. Get Fluid-Film. If you can handle the smell!

Wax works well, too.

HF

[calaloo]

Eezox is an excellent rust preventive. Someone did a test using Eezox and another leading product on steel wool. He left the treated samples a few feet from the Atlantic Ocean for a year. The sample treated with Eezox won. It smells nice too.