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Re: Anti-rust?
Tim,
You really weren't too far off the mark there. But even very fine sandpaper is probably too coarse. See instructions below from the Rules for the Management and Cleaning of the Rifle Musket, Model 1855. (I'm feeling lazy this morning. Full bibliographic citation provided upon request.)
Note that it calls for flour of emery cloth. Emery cloth is readily available at most hardware stores and places that sell auto refinishing materials. For the brass parts, use rottenstone. Rottenstone, a form of decomposed limestone, can be found as a furniture finishing product. We issued it to the students at an NCO school for reenactors a few years ago to be used as brass button polish.
TO CLEAN THE BARREL.
1st. Stop the hole in the cone (3, e) with a peg of soft wood;
pour a gill of water (warm, if it can be had) into the muzzle;
let it stand a short time, to soften the deposit of the
powder; put a plug of soft wood into the muzzle, and shake the
water up and down the barrel well; pour this out and repeat
the washing until the water comes out clear; take out the peg
from the cone, and stand the barrel, muzzle downwards, to
drain, for a few moments.
2d. Screw the wiper (50, c) on to the end of the ramrod (6,
e), and put a piece of dry cloth, or tow, round it, sufficient
to prevent it from chafing the grooves of the barrel; wipe the
barrel quite dry, changing or drying the cloth two or three
times.
3d. Put no oil into the vent (3, e), as it will clog the
passage, and cause the first primer to miss fire; but, with a
slightly oiled rag on the wiper, rub the bore of the barrel,
and the face of the breech-screw (2, e), and immediately
insert the tompion (55) into the muzzle.
4th. To clean the exterior of the barrel, lay it flat on a
bench, or board, to avoid bending it. The practice of
supporting the barrel at each end and rubbing it with a strap
or buff-stick, or with the ramrod, or any other instrument, to
burnish it, is pernicious, and should be strictly forbidden.
5th. After firing, the barrel should always be washed as soon
as practicable; when the water comes off clear, wipe the
barrel dry, and pass into it a rag moistened with oil.
Fine flour of emery-cloth is the best article to clean the
exterior of the barrel.
TO CLEAN THE LOCK.
Wipe every part with a moist rag, and then a dry one; if any
part of the interior shows rust, put a drop of oil on the
point or end of a piece of soft wood dipped into flour of
emery; rub out the rust clean and wipe the surface dry; then
rub every part with a slightly oiled rag.
TO CLEAN THE MOUNTINGS.
For the mountings, and all of the iron and steel parts, use
fine flour of emery moistened with oil, or flour of
emery-cloth.
For brass, use rotten-stone moistened with vinegar, or water,
and keep free from oil or grease. Use a hard brush, or a piece
of soft pine, cedar, or crocus-cloth.
Remove dirt from the screw-holes by screwing a piece of soft
wood into them.
Wipe clean with a linen rag, and leave the parts slightly
oiled.
In cleaning the arms, great care should be observed to
preserve the qualities essential to service, rather than to
obtain a bright polish.
Burnishing the barrel (or other parts) should be strictly
avoided, as it tends to crook the barrel, and also to destroy
the uniformity of the exterior finish of the arm.
_________
It is not essential for the musket to be dismounted every time
that it is cleaned; for, after firing it in fine weather, or
when there has been no chance for the wet to get between the
barrel and the stock, it can be perfectly cleaned in the
following manner.
Put a piece of rag or soft leather on the top of the cone, and
let the hammer down upon it; pour a gill of water into the
muzzle carefully, so that it does not run down the outside;
put a plug of wood into the muzzle, and shake the gun up and
down, changing the water repeatedly until it conics out clear.
When clear, withdraw the leather, and stand the musket on the
muzzle a few moments; then wipe out the barrel (as given in
the second rule for cleaning), and also wipe the exterior of
the lock and the outside of the barrel around the. cone and
cone-seat, first with a damp rag, and then with a dry one, and
lastly with a rag that has been slightly oiled. In this way,
all the dirt due to the firing may be removed without taking
out a screw.
If, however, the hammer is observed to work. stiff, or to
grate upon the tumbler, the lock must immediately be taken off
and the parts cleaned and touched with oil.
Ron Myzie
Originally posted by stx
View Post
You really weren't too far off the mark there. But even very fine sandpaper is probably too coarse. See instructions below from the Rules for the Management and Cleaning of the Rifle Musket, Model 1855. (I'm feeling lazy this morning. Full bibliographic citation provided upon request.)
Note that it calls for flour of emery cloth. Emery cloth is readily available at most hardware stores and places that sell auto refinishing materials. For the brass parts, use rottenstone. Rottenstone, a form of decomposed limestone, can be found as a furniture finishing product. We issued it to the students at an NCO school for reenactors a few years ago to be used as brass button polish.
TO CLEAN THE BARREL.
1st. Stop the hole in the cone (3, e) with a peg of soft wood;
pour a gill of water (warm, if it can be had) into the muzzle;
let it stand a short time, to soften the deposit of the
powder; put a plug of soft wood into the muzzle, and shake the
water up and down the barrel well; pour this out and repeat
the washing until the water comes out clear; take out the peg
from the cone, and stand the barrel, muzzle downwards, to
drain, for a few moments.
2d. Screw the wiper (50, c) on to the end of the ramrod (6,
e), and put a piece of dry cloth, or tow, round it, sufficient
to prevent it from chafing the grooves of the barrel; wipe the
barrel quite dry, changing or drying the cloth two or three
times.
3d. Put no oil into the vent (3, e), as it will clog the
passage, and cause the first primer to miss fire; but, with a
slightly oiled rag on the wiper, rub the bore of the barrel,
and the face of the breech-screw (2, e), and immediately
insert the tompion (55) into the muzzle.
4th. To clean the exterior of the barrel, lay it flat on a
bench, or board, to avoid bending it. The practice of
supporting the barrel at each end and rubbing it with a strap
or buff-stick, or with the ramrod, or any other instrument, to
burnish it, is pernicious, and should be strictly forbidden.
5th. After firing, the barrel should always be washed as soon
as practicable; when the water comes off clear, wipe the
barrel dry, and pass into it a rag moistened with oil.
Fine flour of emery-cloth is the best article to clean the
exterior of the barrel.
TO CLEAN THE LOCK.
Wipe every part with a moist rag, and then a dry one; if any
part of the interior shows rust, put a drop of oil on the
point or end of a piece of soft wood dipped into flour of
emery; rub out the rust clean and wipe the surface dry; then
rub every part with a slightly oiled rag.
TO CLEAN THE MOUNTINGS.
For the mountings, and all of the iron and steel parts, use
fine flour of emery moistened with oil, or flour of
emery-cloth.
For brass, use rotten-stone moistened with vinegar, or water,
and keep free from oil or grease. Use a hard brush, or a piece
of soft pine, cedar, or crocus-cloth.
Remove dirt from the screw-holes by screwing a piece of soft
wood into them.
Wipe clean with a linen rag, and leave the parts slightly
oiled.
In cleaning the arms, great care should be observed to
preserve the qualities essential to service, rather than to
obtain a bright polish.
Burnishing the barrel (or other parts) should be strictly
avoided, as it tends to crook the barrel, and also to destroy
the uniformity of the exterior finish of the arm.
_________
It is not essential for the musket to be dismounted every time
that it is cleaned; for, after firing it in fine weather, or
when there has been no chance for the wet to get between the
barrel and the stock, it can be perfectly cleaned in the
following manner.
Put a piece of rag or soft leather on the top of the cone, and
let the hammer down upon it; pour a gill of water into the
muzzle carefully, so that it does not run down the outside;
put a plug of wood into the muzzle, and shake the gun up and
down, changing the water repeatedly until it conics out clear.
When clear, withdraw the leather, and stand the musket on the
muzzle a few moments; then wipe out the barrel (as given in
the second rule for cleaning), and also wipe the exterior of
the lock and the outside of the barrel around the. cone and
cone-seat, first with a damp rag, and then with a dry one, and
lastly with a rag that has been slightly oiled. In this way,
all the dirt due to the firing may be removed without taking
out a screw.
If, however, the hammer is observed to work. stiff, or to
grate upon the tumbler, the lock must immediately be taken off
and the parts cleaned and touched with oil.
Ron Myzie
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