Reading MJines Elephant report regarding Zimbabwe in March made me wonder what might be the neccesary items to have along to properly maintain a fine Double in wet weather.

Mike was kind enough to respond to me via PM about this question.

Let's hear your suggestions and "tricks" as well.

Cheers
Jim

I am thinking a Searcy Double in stainless steel and synthetic stock and a can of WD 40 would do the trick.

Done an extremely wet elephant hunt in the past with my Heym.

Kit included.

000 steel wool
RIG Grease/RIG Rag (kept the breach face well coated, and good overall wipe down each night.)
Assorted gun oils
Bore Snake (Not for in depth cleaning but to get the moisture out of the bore and dust, Also grease the end of the snake real well and coat the barrels for the trip home)

Johnson's automotive paste wax! Electrical tape over the muzzles.

Along with oil,paste wax and bore snake a light weight water proof gun sleeve would be nice. I had a thin water proof cloth sleeve that would roll up and go in your backpack or pocket. Thought about having one made from those ultra thin water proof pants that Cabelas sells. Each leg would make a sleeve.

Anhydrous Wool fat mixed 50/50
(by gentle heating) with vaseline.

Kept in an old film container.


I like some of the other suggestions above.

Brooks beat me to it (but he must have got the idea from me!). I carry wax and tape when hunting in AK, too.
Cal

quote:

Originally posted by Hasher:
I am thinking a Searcy Double in stainless steel and synthetic stock and a can of WD 40 would do the trick.

If there was such a thing, I bet they would sell like crazy up here in Alaska!

What Mike said.

Never, ever, never, ever, use WD-40 on a firearm. You will destroy it's solders and fine working pieces. If you do use WD-40, promise to never sell me your firearm. I've seen too many bad things happen.

For wet weather, hunt as normal, and try to keep your muzzle down. At the end of the day, use Clenzoil plentifully and take your gun apart as much as possible, bore snake through the barrels, wipe off almost all the oil, and let dry out overnight. Do not zip it up in a case or store in hard case. It needs air to dry out both the moisture and the Clenzoil.

Fine guns, even those not made of stainless, were and are meant to be used in inclimate weather. The Scots and the Brits have just as bad of weather as most of the wet areas of the world, and I've never seen a stainless gun come out of Scotland.

How does WD40 destroy solder and fine working pieces?

I was told the oil is shellfish based!

quote:

Originally posted by Snowwolfe:
How does WD40 destroy solder and fine working pieces?

WD-40 is hygroscopic and will attract moister to hidden parts of the gun; such as soldered areas, fine working parts, etc, and cause rust which will deteriorate these parts and cause weakening or destruction of these areas.

It can be used effectively on more insensitive metals such as chains and sprockets, etc, when rust has built up to loosen and break things up. But even then, these stronger metal items should be thoroughly cleaned and then given a proper lubricant after cleaning with WD-40.

WD-40 is not a lubricant, never has been. It is a penetrator, it breaks down, and leaves the exposed metal with no lubrication.

Find me one single gun company that recommends the use of WD-40 on their firearms as a lubricant or cleaner.

http://lifehacker.com/5891936/...ould-i-not-use-wd+40

http://diy.stackexchange.com/q...ould-i-not-use-wd-40

WD-40 is a Water dispersant-- use as intended to get rid of the water--then lube--its really simple----would work as great on a double as it does on a Bolt-action, a snowmobile engine , or an airplane. Just use it properly.

Q20. Gets water out and has never done any damage to my English guns in 20 years of use.

You really want to keep it simple as lugging 10 tons of junk around mean less dry clothes to use that the end of each day.
I would say that most hunters would be better off with an extra pair of socks and boots than all the fancy kit that can be had,

Pull through, zip lock bag with patches soaked in BALISTOL oil. and wax for sealing the gap between stock and metal.

Ezzox, dry to the touch, doesn't let grime cling, just works!

NEVER use WD-40. It's a forbidden product in the Mil-Spec world. OK for Garden tools and to disperse water but on a fine rifle? Never

quote:

Originally posted by jorge:

NEVER use WD-40.

+1

Jim, I use the electrical tape and a spray on lube/wax that does not migrate on bolt action rifles. I have been using a product called Barricade and it works well.

For a double, I would use paste wax, a small rag, Q-tips, bore snake and electrical tape. I have used finger cots instead of electrical tape but that might look a little off on a double.

Matt

quote:

Originally posted by Alaskaman11:

quote:

Originally posted by Hasher:
I am thinking a Searcy Double in stainless steel and synthetic stock and a can of WD 40 would do the trick.

If there was such a thing, I bet they would sell like crazy up here in Alaska!

There are a few out there.

Check out Sentry Solution's products they make a Tuff Cloth to wipe down all metal surfaces as well as a Marine Tuff Cloth for even heavier moisture problems. The Seals use the Marine Tuff Cloth on all of their weapons before they take them swimming. I have use their products on all of my hunting trips rain and shine as well as my competitive pistols and shot guns
http://www.sentrysolutions.com

Not specific to DRs but here in NZ we hunt in wet weather all the time.

The MOST essential part of my kit is some dry tissue paper. I always carry a roll of toilet paper in my day pack when in the bush. It comes in very handy to dry out the rifle and the scope.

Note: I do not rub the paper on the scope lens but just pat it dry.

All the oil & grease comes after the paper treatment. In my experience cloth does not remove all the moisture during really wet / humid weather.

searcy SS/extractors great for wet climates

or if you would prefer to clean and oil

Great suggestions, all!

I've been looking for one of those Bore Snakes for my 450, but the only ones that come close are for pistols. Any suggestions?

I use the 410 shotgun size in both 416 and 458 rifles.

hmm. I went to Midway and dind't see the 410 size. thanks!

There are no substitute to Rangoon Oil -period!

quote:

Originally posted by bronzepig:


searcy SS/extractors great for wet climates

Soooo, my first thought was "That's a sin..."

My second thought was "yeah, but sinning is kinda fun!"

BPig, nice tool there!

jorge,

I am certain it was Cabela's where I picked up a bore snake in .458,several years back.

Something else to consider is a Rapid Rod (you want the long version). The Rapid Rod folds up into a nice neat case, and no it is not coated but will do for in the bush chores.

quote:

Originally posted by rnovi:

quote:

Originally posted by bronzepig:


searcy SS/extractors great for wet climates

Soooo, my first thought was "That's a sin..."

My second thought was "yeah, but sinning is kinda fun!"

BPig, nice tool there!

i see this as Alaskan Wet Dream.