Belgian 1889 Project

[browningautorifle]

Now the hard part of waiting. Give it time. I know we had longer more detailed threads here somewhere, there were pics too. That must have been a really long time ago...

[Aragorn243]

It's been about 2 hours now. I wire brushed the orange off most of the parts and put them back in. Looks like it's working. Just went out to check it, good thing I did, I tripped the GFCI when I plugged it back in. It wasn't doing anything.

[browningautorifle]

That would have sucked...come back the next day and it's all rusted again from just soaking... Be patient, this will become a fixation to see how much more rust will come off. Let it do as much as it will...can't wait to see the end result.

[Aragorn243]

I've been checking it about every 15 minutes. It's just outside. I'm thinking I will shut it down after 4 and clean everything up and put things that still need it back in. The small items will probably be done by then. I just hope I'll be able to get the sleeve off after this. I don't like the thought of all that water in there now with no way for any rust, etc to get out. I may end up baking the barrel just to dry it out. Probably just set it on top of a heater. One thing I've noticed is that it is not turning all soupy and thick on top of the water. It's just getting cloudy I have 5 gallons of water in the sled so maybe that's why, not as concentrated.

[browningautorifle]

I just hope I'll be able to get the sleeve off after this.

Strap wrench? Hold the rest in a padded vice? Someone here must have done that, I'd be tempted to warm the threads with a torch. That might be bad though. Someone here will know...

[Aragorn243]

I have a book which does not mention the 1889 but does discuss the 88 commission rifle. They should come off by hand. This one is obviously rusted on. I don't know if the electrolysis will get at the stuff in the threads or not. Hoping it does. Warming is mentioned but can discolor the metal. Not that it is an issue with this one. I may go that route.

[Aragorn243]

Four hour cleaning and things are looking good. Was able to move the rear sight slide and get the magazine removed from the trigger assembly. Moved the barrel closer to the rebar and it is bubbling away now. So proximity does appear to make a big difference. Four screws now clean.

[browningautorifle]

Sounds like it's doing fine. Maybe the jacket will need an over night dousing of Kroil or some such after...maybe not. Strap wrench... That buttstock heel will be a pig though, couple guys here have done wonders. frankderrico might be a good candidate for you just sending the stock and stand back...if you look at some of the resurrections he's performed?

[nuget102]

For some smaller parts, you can try vinegar. I'm trying it with my gun currently, and I've used it on bolts before. Just about 1/2 vinegar and 1/2 water (or all vinegar if you like..) and soak the parts for a few hours. Once done, scrub the rust off and it should be clean as heck. Dip it in a solution of baking soda and water (I do a couple spoon fulls) just to neutralize the acidity from the vinegar. Your vinegar can be the cheapest stuff you can find, and the cheap stuff usually works best.

[Aragorn243]

nuget, I've used vinegar in the past, I brought back a Swedish M38 from the dead a few years ago, that's on this site somewhere also. It has some problems for which I would not recommend it for your Turkish Mauser. The biggest is that is will remove all the original finish along with the rust. Secondary is that really deep pits will not be removed but converted to black rust which is pretty stable but still there. This is my first attempt at electrolysis and I wish I knew about this when I did the Swede. For me, this is the way to go now as I have a tendency to get these rifles in this type of shape. So the expense of getting the materials is well worth it. For one Turk Mauser, I don't think I'd do it. Drawbacks are that it's kind of a mess and I think this is something that I will save parts up for and do them all at once rather than as needed. Although I could use a bucket for small parts that would be just fine.