Thats a good question. So heres a good answer. Stainless Steel firearms will be a lot easier to be kept rust free. But firearms are not made of 300 series stainless steel. 300 series is what is used in food processing but unless specially alloyed with other materials it is to soft for gun barrels. 300 series doesn't rust. Guns are made of 400 series stainless steel or higher. Less chromium and or nickel then 300 series. It still has great rust protection but eventually it will rust. The higher the number series stainless steel you have the lower its rust prevention ability.
So do not purposely make your firearm "rust". Clean it as you would any other firearm and on the same schedule. It is more forgiving but why chance pitting or damaging the finish just because you thought the stainless steel wouldn't rust?
Miketyson
2007-02-21 17:15:25
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answer #1
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answered by miketyson26 5
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Bound's hubby here:
First, stainless steel is not a finish. It is an alloy (metal). From a machinist's stand point, stainless steel is very brittle and can chip easily when machined. Like any metal, stainless steel will rust. However, stainless steel is more resistant to rusting. The best characteristic of stainless is that is needs less frequent and less intensive cleaning and maintenance than carbon steel.
If you neglect your gun and do not give it an occasional cleaning it will rust.
Good luck.
2007-02-22 07:25:20
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answer #2
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answered by gonefornow 6
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Stainless steel is very vulnerable to saltwater (ie. ocean water) and I have seen a picture of a S&W model 60 that was buried in the sand of a shore for quite some time (saw it years ago in a Guns and Ammo article) and it was completely rusted and pitted. StainLESS-not stainPROOF. Big, big difference. I have also seen k-frame stainless guns with very light rust spots on them. Hardchrome (not the cheap "jeweled" chrome that flakes off) and electroless nickel are far superior to stainless in rust prevention. A really good combination (some say overkill) is blackened stainless steel (Robar pioneered this for guns). Traditional nickel and chrome can flake or get compromised by chemicals and bluing is beautiful but must be very protected. I prefer a good bluing to all the above as I store my firearms very well.
2007-02-22 01:47:19
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answer #3
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answered by david m 5
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A great deal depends on the stainless. It will rust however it neglected and in damp or wet conditions.
There are other finishes out there that are extremely resistant to rust, at least as much as stainless is. For instance NP3 which is a teflon based finish by Robar can stand up to 1,000 hours of salt spary without rusting. What's more the teflon is so slick that when the entire gun is finished it doesn't require any oil for lubrication. Check them out at:
http://www.robarguns.com/np3.htm
Good luck
2007-02-26 20:57:59
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answer #4
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answered by Christopher H 6
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A friend of mine, a firearms dealer, was plagued by a flood. He got all of the inventory out of harms way, but his personal firearms were in a vault and could not be retrieved before the water engulfed that level of his home. When he removed a stainless steel rifle from the vault, it rusted immediately upon removing it from the water, while he was looking at it. Stainless steel deserves as much attention as any type.
2007-02-23 21:22:20
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answer #5
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answered by Turk_56 2
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It is very hard to oxidize stainless but not impossible.
I don't think that you are looking for a lesson in metallurgy so I will make this simple.
Stainless is the most corrosion resistant method used in the gun industry. If that is your main concern, then without question stainless is the way to go.
2007-02-22 09:55:59
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answer #6
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answered by ronjambo 4
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Without exposing it to corrosive chemicals (acids, bleach, etc), stainless simply will not rust at all.
My answer would be,
"Pretty dang difficult!"
Galling, or greying of finishes can happen from exposure to salt spray or from not cleaning the salts from your sweat off the gun, but this is a purely cosmetic problem that can be polished away easily.
2007-02-22 00:02:09
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answer #7
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answered by Anonymous
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Hi Gorgeous. Stainless steel will rust, but not easily and will remain rust free with relative little care. Blue steel is less rust resistant and nickel eventually may pit.
H
2007-02-21 23:59:47
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answer #8
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answered by H 7
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Your location has a lot to do with it. I lived in AZ for years, my stainless guns were bullet proof. :-)
Moved to the Oregon coast and found I needed a little more maintenance. Yes they will rust but not with a little maintenance. I try and stick with stainless, titanium and polymers.
2007-02-22 08:39:46
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answer #9
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answered by Rol 4
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Not easy but it does happen, on my Stainless S&W-5906 there is a bit of rust under the grip, it is black. You can use a 3M synthetic sanding pad to clean it off, don't use steel wool.
2007-02-22 16:03:28
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answer #10
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answered by MD 2
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