Mosin-Nagants from Big 5

[FuzzyBrows]

lots and lots of cosmoline when i got my 91/30. its not as bad as it though it would to clean it up pretty good. i boiled a hot pot of soapy water for the bolt, trigger and other small parts and put the stock on some newspaper and let it bake in the sun to sweat out the soaked in cosmoline in the wood. sand and refinish with some wood stain. not to steal the OP but i shot some mil surplus ammo out of it and didnt neutralize the salts with wd-40 or windex and accidentally let it sit for the ride back from the desert. next thing i knew the bolt was rusting pretty bad. i thought if i got some limeaway rust remover it would be good as new but as i sprayed it on (soak actually) it took off the rust but corroded the steel. anyone knows how to restore it back to its original shine?

[johnthomas]

lots and lots of cosmoline when i got my 91/30. its not as bad as it though it would to clean it up pretty good. i boiled a hot pot of soapy water for the bolt, trigger and other small parts and put the stock on some newspaper and let it bake in the sun to sweat out the soaked in cosmoline in the wood. sand and refinish with some wood stain. not to steal the OP but i shot some mil surplus ammo out of it and didnt neutralize the salts with wd-40 or windex and accidentally let it sit for the ride back from the desert. next thing i knew the bolt was rusting pretty bad. i thought if i got some limeaway rust remover it would be good as new but as i sprayed it on (soak actually) it took off the rust but corroded the steel. anyone knows how to restore it back to its original shine?

I'm not sure what you mean by corroded the steel, pitting or just took the blue off. Inside the gun or outside, barrel receiver?

[FuzzyBrows]

i sprayed limeaway on the bolt itself. the bolt had a nice shine almost when i first got it but after the corrosive ammo and limeaway, it turn the bolt dark like if you left a tool outside for a night and dew get on it rusting it and even if get the rust off, the metal kinda lost its original sheen. i cleaned the bore and barrel out with hoppes 9. i wanted to chrome the bolt to make it look like new again but i thought was it really worth it for a rifle i got for 79 bucks? but it would be nice to be able to restore the bolt.

[Rude Robert]

wow, it rusted that fast, mine didn't.

[offrdmania]

Its because lime away has a mild acid in it and you took the finish off exposing the raw metal. Use simple green or dawn dish soap. Both have a neutral Ph and both cut grease without harming the finish and both are water soluble.

[johnthomas]

Try polishing it with 0000 steel wool and ajax using a little water to create a paste. I like to use paste wax on areas that rust easy, lasts longer than a coat of oil.