Weatherproofing a 94 for hunting.

[drboomboom]

Looking for a deer rifle, I got a Winchester 1894, manufactured 1969. I've always wanted a Winchester 1894 and this one had a Kwik-Site mount with an oversized scope that I'm changing (don't hate me for having a scoped 94 I'm already itching to get another one that I can restore). Our hunting season in Middle Tennessee can be pretty damp...heck it can be downright wet. The stock and forend came already stripped down. I'm looking at using spar varnish to weatherproof them and plan to use paste wax all over the rifle. What do you folks think about this? Any other suggestion?

Thanks in advance.

[Modoc ED]

By all means, finish the wood and wax the gun but don't let a little water stop you.

If you are hunting and it is actively raining, shield the rifle from the rain as much as possible but when it comes time to take the shot just stick the rifle out in the rain and proceed as usual. DO NOT store the rifle wet even for a minute once the day is over. Dry it and clean it thouroughly and put some good gun oil on it. Hoppes #9 works great for this purpose.

There is a product called "Corrosion X" that displaces water and puts a thin water repellant coating on metal. Spray your rifle with that or put it on a rag and wipe it on before you go out in wet weather.

[O.S.O.K.]

Spar Varnish is great stuff - we have this on the wood around our sinks in our bathrooms which see water constantly. Just be sure to seal all the way around! And paste wax does a good job on the metal too.

[Old Savage]

Finn Aagaard wrote a story about taking a Remington 338 to Alaska for 2 weeks and coating it with Johnson's paste wax. He purposely didn't attend to it for that time. He said it had a few small rust spots.

[salvo]

You should also find a compatible paint thinner for the varnish your using and mix the first couple of coats 50/50. The thinner will let the varnish soak into the wood further.

[rjohns94]

Ugly Duck already is weatherproofed. don't know what it is, it is like a teflon tuff coat:

[Mike D.]

Winchester, and othe rifles, were manufactured to be used in all kinds of weather. I don't do anything to my guns, regardless of age and wood condition, other than wipe them down completely with a slightly oiled cloth after being out in the weather. None show the slightest signs of rust, but that may be due to the very low humidity of the far west. Whatever, a gun is meant to be used outdoors. Clean and dry then thoroughly and you will not have a problem. Mine are kept in "Bore-store" sacks between uses, which does help to mitigate corrosive issues.

[Tycer]

A piece of electrical tape over the muzzle.

[RSY]

Learn how to, and get good at taking the forearm off. Then, if it gets wet, just take it off, clean normally and replace the forearm. No need to do anything crazy. Tycer's tip is a good one, too.

Also, Birchwood-Casey has an amazing product called Barricade (formerly Sheath) that is a must-have in my opinion. From their website:"

Barricade® Rust Protection for Firearms
BARRICADE Rust Protection protects your firearms from rust. It rapidly drives out moisture from metal pores and deposits a transparent coating which seals the surface with a protective film. Withstands 500 hours in ASTM humidity test and 96 hours in ASTM salt spray test. BARRICADE Rust Protection is also an excellent penetrant for loosening rusty or frozen parts, as well as a good lubricant and an effective bore cleaner. Contains FPR to wipe off corrosive fingerprints on all your firearms. Available in spout or aerosol cans."


Scott

[C. Cash]

I've hunted in heavy rain with my Mod. 94 while chasing piggies in AZ. This may sound a bit extreme, but I used a hefty bag....the kind that will cover everything except for the end of the butt. You can cover the butt by placing it under the armpit and the whole gun is protected. When needed, I put my hand in the opening in the bag to grab the wrist/lever, put the muzzle down and let go of the bag with the other hand and and the bag just falls off....very quick and you lose nearly no time. Your gun will get rained on no matter what at some point so expect that, but the method I used kept the wood from getting saturated. Wipe it down with an oil rag when you get back to the truck. When home, pull off the butt, and pull the forearm off as noted. Use some good moisture displacing lube and spray the action and barrel getting wherever water/moisture might go....let drip dry, and your good.

In light drizzle, I would probably just tote the gun and not worry.....spraying it and wiping it down later, though I would probably still pull the wood and oil. That's just me, and yes I probably have a touch of OCD, among other maladies .

[O.S.O.K.]

If I were going to be hunting in wet weather alot, I'd just get a poly stock set and use the Barricade on the metal. And I second the electrical tape on the muzzle - will blow off when you shoot and not affect accuracy.

[Tycer]

I've had blued/walnut guns out in the rain for several days at a time with no other protection than what was on them from the last time I cleaned them with Ed's Red. I do disassemble and dry as soon as possible. Bluing is porous and the oil on your rag soaks into the pores. That's why many say if your finger leaves a print in the oil, there's too much on your gun and it just collects dust, which is hygroscopic. For me that has been enough. I see no reason not to use carnauba, it probably mixes well with the gun oil as carnauba is a fat.

[drboomboom]

You fellas are great. I'm getting a lot of really good ideas here. I'll get some Barricade and Johnson's wax (is that a carnauba base?). The poly stock idea is good, but the wood on it came stripped, I'm thinking of just waterproofing this as well as I can and then getting some nicer finished stocks for the summer furniture. So just stick the tape over the muzzle and it doesn't affect the shot, I really like that one. Thanks.

[Old Savage]

RIG is one of the best products on the market. It was derived from anti rust tests in WWII I believe and did very well by comparison to all the new stuff out in some newer tests.

[Ysabel Kid]

IIRC, someone here applied basically a truck-bed liner to a levergun stock. Maybe not the prettiest thing in the world (though it looked pretty sharp to me), but one heck of a all-weather hunting arm!

[1894cfan]

Just had a thought, instead of electrical tape, how about a un-lubed condom? Worked for GIs in WW2!! Or if that's too wild for ya, how about a baloon? Red one maybe?

[J Miller]

Lets Step back in time for a moment.

It's 1908 and rancher Klem McCaid just picked up his new 1894 Winchester rifle in that new fangled caliber 30WCF. He just had to try that smokeless stuff.

Now in the wilds of the west he's out on horseback hunting and the weather just opens up and dumps on him. (Been there, done that.)

Fast forward to 2008;
Rancher Mel McCaid is showing off his great grandfathers ancient Winchester 1894 rifle in the old and proven 30WCF caliber. No bluing left, wood is a bit worn, lots of honest use, but no rust to speak of.

Question:
What would rancher Klem McCaid have used in 1908 to protect his brand new investment? No hitech fancy aerosols and chemicals then.



Just a thought, cos I think we worry to much about things now adays.


Joe

[Mike D.]

Excellent analogy, Joe, and my feelings, exactly. The less "foreign" additives you put on your guns the better off you are. Nothing looks better than a well used, but cared for,
firearm. I don't care if I spend $$ or $$$$ on a Winchester, it does me no good collecting dust in a darned safe, so out it will go into the fields, forests and mountains.

[slimster]

Thanks Joe, you just gave me a new perspective on things. So many of us admire an old gun with honest wear on it, but so few of us are anxious to let that honest wear appear on our bright shiny guns.

[J Miller]

Thanks Joe, you just gave me a new perspective on things. So many of us admire an old gun with honest wear on it, but so few of us are anxious to let that honest wear appear on our bright shiny guns.

slimster,

I think it's just a sign of the times really. Most of us have many guns. Sometimes multiples of the same make, model and caliber. So we tend to baby them. Back in Klem McCaid's day, he might have had to save up several months wages just to buy that rifle. It's the only one he'd be likely to have and he used it daily. We basically play with ours. Even those of us who hunt rarely treat our guns as the tools they really are.

My 1950 Win 94 still looks 'almost' new. If I don't get out of IL it will still be that way when I croak.
I seriously doubt that I'd ever be able to use my guns to get that well worn look of the guns of yesteryear.

When my guns get wet, and they have, I simply dry them out, and wipe them down with a lube/rust preventative. My choice is Industrial PCL. It's made by Breakfree. Hard to find. I had to order my last bottle from Breakfree. Really good stuff.

Joe

[shdwlkr]

I have an old 94 that someone parkerized and no one wanted seems they wanted a collector and I was looking for a shooter that weather wouldn't bother to much and I found it a good price.

[swshooter]

I used spar varnish on stocks quite a bit 30 years ago. Strip the wood of all finish. Sand as smooth as you want it. Mix 50-50 varnish and thinner and heat as hot as you can stand to touch. Apply generously with a cloth pad and then work well into the wood with your hand. When it seems to have absorbed all it will take, wipe it down with a clean cloth and let it dry. Make sure it is completely dry. steel wool off the surface gloss and apply straight varnish. Let it dry than sand lightly. Repeat until the pores are completely filled. Remove surface gloss with steel wool than apply finish coat. Let dry and apply good paste wax. Make sure you varnish all surfaces inside and out. Very tough very water proof finish, and it looks good too. The new varnishes are probably even better and they won't darken the wood nearly as much.

[Carlsen Highway]

Where I hunt over here all year round in New Zealand, we get more water that anywhere i know of. I think we have some of the highest rainfall in the world. I have a Winchester 94, and i just use it. Its never rusted. I dry it off each night and oil it, escecially the bore. No problem and no rust. The stock is fine. I havnt done anything special to it. I dont think you need to do anything at all, but thats just me.
If you use electrical tape over the muzzle to keep mud out when your clambering around, remember that you have to take it off each night and run an oily patch through the bore, then next morning pull a clean patch through and put some new tape on. If you just leave the tape on, condensation overnight may rust the bore if you do that long enough.
Dont stress about weatherproofing. Its a rifle, just clean it and oil it and use it, it will be fine. I ffind the older Wicnhester rifles do well in wet conditions.
(i did own a Brno rifle that used to rust if you even looked at it with a watery eye though.) My .30/30 was made in 1952 and i think the nickel steel they used makes a big deffirence.