What is a good way to take off some very superficial surface rust on the top of a bolt?

quote:

Originally posted by FlyingAce:
What is a good way to take off some very superficial surface rust on the top of a bolt?

Good oil and a tooth brush...if that fails substitute some 000 steel wool for the tooth brush.

I use oil and 0000 "Steel Wool" to knock off any rust on a gun......before it pit's the steel. I had a small spot of rust on the bolt of my old field gun that, after knocking the rust off, left a shadow type stain that's still there.....one of these days I'm gonna try the Flitz metal polish on it.

-Ron

Using steel wool won't mess up my jeweling any will it?

I first confess that I don't own a jeweled bolt.
That said, if you use the really, really fine steel wool - like 0000 - then I doubt it. I imagine you would have to work on the bolt for a long time to remove enough metal to screw up the jeweling.

Me? I use 0000 steel wool and Flitz while I'm watching TV to polish a bolt. It won't pull out the itty, bitty pits, but it does make the metal look nice!

I use bronze wool with oil now as it seems to take care of the rust but doesn't affect bluing or steel as much as steel wool.

I'm retired so I putz around with my rifles all the time. However, somewhere along the line, I think it was in Outdoor Life in the very late 1950s, someone recommended using a number 2 pencil eraser to remove light rust, or one of those ink erasers. While reading this post that old thing came back to me. Have a nice day. Tom Purdom

quote:

Originally posted by 7x57mm:
I'm retired so I putz around with my rifles all the time. However, somewhere along the line, I think it was in Outdoor Life in the very late 1950s, someone recommended using a number 2 pencil eraser to remove light rust, or one of those ink erasers. While reading this post that old thing came back to me. Have a nice day. Tom Purdom

I read the same thing years ago and tried it out, and for very light rust it seems to work alright.

quote:

Using steel wool won't mess up my jeweling any will it?

Not like the rust will.

The 0000 steel wool did not affect the jeweling on the bolt to any noticable degree.....I have not noticed any wear on the surrounding blueing from the 0000 steel wool either, but I have always used 0000 and gently rub until the rust is "just" removed....no longer.

Ron

What Rick 0311 said.. If the rust is superficial enough then sometimes a bit of penetrating oil and wait a few minites and it wipes off with a cloth. Try that first then increase the aggressivnes of your approach as needed. Steel wool will git'er done but can remove blueing and/or alter the finish.

Just take a little oil and 0000 steel wool and then spray it with "Breakfree" corrosion preventative or they make a cloth that is saturated and you can wipe down the gun with that. It works!

Another retiree checking in. I learned about 0000 steel wool and oil about 15 years ago, and have used that method ever since on cases of light rust. The results are surprising, and you end up with nicely polished steel.
LLS

Brownell's sells bronze wool for removing rust, use some penetrating oil (Kroil or COrrosion-X) and it will remove the rust without scratching the steel at all.