i was given a magazine for a SMLE a little while ago.

it has a reasonable amount of rust coming up under the bluing. from a little research here it seems that completely stripping and re-bluing it would be a faux pas.

so i guess that leaves stopping the active rust and oiling it for future reference.

i read that boiling it for 25 minutes or so in tap water will kill the rust but leave the existing blue? is that correct?
is it ok to boil the lifter spring?

thanks
henry.

no pics, but for you marking geeks the lifter platform has a 3, a pair of broad arrows and a BSA (crown over Q?B over B) stamp. the body has 2 serifed 4's plus a P? or R? and K? or N? or V? on the back strap. no serial number.
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