Preservation or needless babying?

[Fushigi Ojisan]

After going through the Brownells catalog a bit more, I have a couple more questions. While I do not plan on shooting any of mine much, or with anything aside from factory ammo, I wanted to take a couple steps to make them last longer.

* Are recoil/side buffers worth it? Given that I have fresh recoil springs and don't plan to fire anything other than commercial WWB, is this something beneficial or not worth it?

* Speaking of recoil springs, should they be replaced by age or use? I generally swap them out when I acquire something, but now that some of my acquisitions are pushing 15 years old and spent most of that time in a safe, do I want to replace them before taking them to the range again, or is it more a function of how many times the slide moves?

* I have one pistol (will write about it soon) that came to me with some pretty nasty rust under the left grip panel. Its cleaned up now and I am using Eezox as my choice of protectant overall. Does it make sense to cut out a piece of "Gunwrap" corrosion-resistant paper to slip between the frame and grip to prevent further rusting?

Would appreciate your input on this and any other long-term preservation tips. I want shooters, not museum pieces

Information

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[Chuckindenver]

recoil spring buffers are a waste of money, and will make more issues then cure.
a new spring is a good thing, but with a collector pistol, id leave it be,
when you have the pistol stored, you an relieve the spring presssure, by letting the spring stick out of the front of the pistol,
unless it gets rusty, the spring should last forever,
simple cleaning, and a application of GI rifle grease seems to work just fine, stored in a treated light gun case.
i leave the end open an inch.. seems to make me feel better.

[AKA Hugh Uno]

* Are recoil/side buffers worth it? Given that I have fresh recoil springs and don't plan to fire anything other than commercial WWB,

I used a shok-buff in my 1911 range gun that was eating 99% military ball and an 18# spring. The gun was being shot 1-3 nights a week and 2-4 boxes per night. I doubt it made any difference but didn't hurt and reliability was fine. You might go with a 17# or 18# spring if you are using ball equivalent ammo exclusively which might help reduce battering.

* Speaking of recoil springs, should they be replaced by age or use?

USE
1500-2000 rounds seems to be the recommended amount of use. AGE has absolutely NOTHING to do with spring life (unless you are on the planet Mercury or something like that).

the best way to stop rust is to REMOVE it (ALL of it) You can then do anything you like in the way of nostrums (CLP etc.) to prevent further problems.

[Johnny Peppers]

If you are worried about shooting a collectible pistol, the finish will wear off before you begin to have mechanical problems because you didn't change a recoil spring. John Browning designed the pistol to function with a 15/16# recoil spring, so anything any stronger is just for your own amusement.
As far as storage, I have used the Robert's Arms Specialties boxes for years with a sheet of Brownell's VPI paper, and have never had any issues. The pistol is always wiped down with a thin coat of light preservative oil just to remove fingerprints.

[pdawg1911]

Johnny,

I have been using those boxes as well with the double side paper he offers. Does the VPI paper offer any benefit over what I am using?

Regards,
Pat

If you are worried about shooting a collectible pistol, the finish will wear off before you begin to have mechanical problems because you didn't change a recoil spring. John Browning designed the pistol to function with a 15/16# recoil spring, so anything any stronger is just for your own amusement.
As far as storage, I have used the Robert's Arms Specialties boxes for years with a sheet of Brownell's VPI paper, and have never had any issues. The pistol is always wiped down with a thin coat of light preservative oil just to remove fingerprints.

[Johnny Peppers]

Johnny,

I have been using those boxes as well with the double side paper he offers. Does the VPI paper offer any benefit over what I am using?

Regards,
Pat

I still have some pistols wrapped in the double sided paper (kraft paper that is plastic coated on one side) from the first boxes I bought from Bob more than a few years ago. I have never had a problem using either paper, and I live where it is very humid. I often wondered how the plastic would react in case of a fire even though the boxed pistols are in a gun safe.
The VPI paper was not expensive, and just gives a bit of extra protection.

[Fushigi Ojisan]

Thanks for the advice so far.

Is this the VPI paper?


http://www.brownells.com/.aspx/pid=1...P_trade__PAPER

I use old cigar boxes (after making sure they are dried out) lined with a kind of heavy wax paper.

As for springs, some were supplied by Bill Ricca (military surplus) and some from Wolff. I'm thinking of getting the Chromium Silicon springs from Wolff since I heard they are awesome as magazine springs.

[AKA Hugh Uno]

Corrosion Protection Products for Rifles, Shooting, Benchrest Competition, Varminting and Firearms Storage

[Neal Myers]

I would not use cigar boxes for anything but cigars. MANY types of packaging paper & cardboard have high acid content; under the right conditions, even the vapor emitted by these products could damage your guns. Only use boxes made for gun storage. (Or, use gun socks.)

VPI is rarely necessary. You should be using either a Goldenrod or a can of dessicant inside your safe to keep humidity low. And, your safe should be somewhere that it is not exposed to large temperature fluctuations.

[Fushigi Ojisan]

I would not use cigar boxes for anything but cigars. MANY types of packaging paper & cardboard have high acid content; under the right conditions, even the vapor emitted by these products could damage your guns. Only use boxes made for gun storage. (Or, use gun socks.)

I use wooden cigar boxes (and yes I know they were intended to hold moisture, which is why I dry them out first) lined with a protective paper used to wrap automotive parts. I have used this setup for several years and had only one rusting issue with one pistol the entire time. I also check them regularly.

Thanks to Johnny Peppers post, I may take an inventory of what I have and look into protect-a-gun. I am sure I can use the cigar boxes to store other things.

Speaking of which, how would one handle the storage of additional magazines for the pistols using these boxes? Or just in general? I would like to try to keep the mags together if possible and labeled if not.

VPI is rarely necessary. You should be using either a Goldenrod or a can of desiccant inside your safe to keep humidity low. And, your safe should be somewhere that it is not exposed to large temperature fluctuations.

I some desiccant inside my primary safe, a 60-watt bulb in the general area running all the time, a fan to move air around, and a dehumidifier set to 45%. Plus the room itself is a heated basement so no temperature issues.
In my little universe, the VPI is cheap extra insurance.