Skip to main content
Help Center Community Shop

Question before I clean an SKS

sweaver
I know this topic has been beat to death, and I apologize in advance. Ive been reading all week on the best ways to remove cosmoline and I've found numerous opinions on the matter. I'm not going the route of gasoline or kerosene, I dont want the problems associated with them. I have narrowed it down to two and would like opinions on which you would use.

1. Mineral spirits, rub the stock with it and soak the metal in it.
2. Castrol Degreaser, spray and let it soak on stock a couple hours, soak metal in it. This takes alot of hot water, have to rinse off and reply several times.
3. Orange gojo on the stock, rub, rinse, repeat...alot.

Please let me know which of these you would do.

thanks,
shane

sig.jpg
0

Comments

10 comments

Date Votes
  • TWalker
    Any of those will work.

    I wipe off all I can first with paper towels.
    Then I take everything apart, except the trigger group.
    Next I clean with WD-40, spray and wipe, including stock.
    Then clean with alcohol, including stock.
    Finally I wipe again with WD-40 and then oil with Rem-oil or 3-n-1.
    I use lots of Q-tips for the small parts.


    "Let him step to the music he hears, however measured or far away." Thoreau
    0
  • Marlinman336
    Just finished two of them....I'd really recommend heat of some kind applied to the wood to pull out some of the cosmoline.

    I soaked the metal for about an hour in mineral spirits, and cleaned the stocks/handguards using mineral spirits and a cotton shop towel. I wiped off all the cosmoline that was loosened up on the metal, let the mineral spirits evaporate completely, and put it all in the oven at about 180 degrees, wiping off the cosmo as it seeped off (I have the blisters from a little "incidental contact" with hot metal to prove it)[:0][:D].

    I steamed the stock/handguard with a hand steamer after I cleaned it first with mineral spirits (hot water/dawn soap would work just as well). I let both dry for a day or two to make sure all moisture was gone, and then put the furniture in the oven at about 150, again wiping off the cosmo as it appeared on the surface. (Make SURE the wood is completely dry before you do this, or it WILL split).

    Worked really well. If I can figure the whole Photobucket thing out, I'll post some pictures.[:I][:D]

    If you have 40 bucks laying around, and you plan on doing this again, the steamer is available at your local Home Depot/Menards/Lowe's, and it does a fantastic job getting the cosmoline out of the cracks and crevices (such as the bayonet channel and the areas around the trigger assembly release spring and between the handguard and gas tube). It also does a great job raising small dents and dings....a household clothes iron works pretty well there, too, as does hot water, but the steamer can be aimed at specific areas without soaking the whole thing.

    Take care -


    MM336

    One more thing....if you decide to use the oven to heat the metal, watch the numerals on the grenade sight when hot. They seem to be some type of inlaid latex-type material, and they will pull off if you aren't very careful when wiping it down....don't ask how I know this....suffice to say the 50 meter mark on one of my rifles is now just a "0"[B)][:(!][:o)]

    An appeaser is one who feeds a crocodile - hoping it will eat him last.
    Winston Churchill
    0
  • sweaver
    I thought about the heat, but this actually has very little on the stock so the heat may not even be necessary. Its not even that sticky. The metal is coated though. I figured I would rub a while with spirits let it evaporate out and that would do it. We'll see I guess, looks like I'm going the mineral spirits all the way after your comments.

    Thanks!
    shane

    sig.jpg
    0
  • sharpshooter039
    I know this was not one of your listed options but diesel works great and is not near as hard to work with as alot of other things people say to use.If you issued a soldier in the field a weapon with cosmoline 99% of the time all he has is some diesel he siphoned out of a tank somewhere.works better on the metal than anything else I have ever tried but it will turn the wood dark.put a gallon in a bucket,throw all your parts in and let them soak about 30 minutes,scrub them down as you take them out,wipe dry,reassemble and shoot,,,take a rag with you the first time you shoot it because there will be a little run out when it gets hot no matter how or with what you clean it.

    [image]http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2004-10/869284/nogunnextdoor.gif[/image]
    0
  • sweaver
    One other thing I'm not 100% sure of is if there are any metal parts I shouldn't oil up before reassembling it. Any advice on that? I plan on putting a thin coat on all the metal once I'm done. Anything I should leave out?


    shane

    sig.jpg
    0
  • redice
    Steam works GREAT just tried it today on part of one of the sks's I have to do the cosmoline literaly drips off dont get me wrong thow it still takes some times but it does work well.

    Can get a steam cleaner just about anywhere I ordered mine from sportsmansguide also I used oven cleaner on the wood worked pretty well.
    0
  • Mr Gee
    i've used equal parts Bleach & water [for the wood] an soaked the whole stock over-nite, that will get most oil[cosmoline] out of the wood, the best is kerosene on metal [they wash cars w/it], but if don't want to go that way, Hoppies works an a tooth brush an lot elbo work,a very very hot water bath,an a good gun oil to finish up , i think you should put the piston back dry or at least almost dry


    confused....but learning
    0
  • Buffler
    I use mineral spirits and burlap rags or terrycloth
    towels. The burlap really cuts thru almost like sand-
    paper,but harmless,and fast! Try it,works for me!
    BE SAFE!! Buffler
    0
  • j-f-first
    I used brake parts cleaner for the metal.

    J&F
    0
  • nmyers
    I use acetone & a nylon brush. I found mineral spririts worked too slowly.

    Any solvent should be used outdoors, & you should wear industrial-type protective gloves. Aromatic hydrocarbons can be inhaled or absorbed, & are toxic, carcinogenic, & mutagenic.

    Neal
    0

Please sign in to leave a comment.

Recent Activity