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Posted: 11/8/2013 6:07:16 PM EDT
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I've noticed a few old threads dealing with the use of VCI (Volatile Corrosion Inhibitor) impregnated materials (Zerust, etc.) in the long term storage of firearms. Generally these threads consisted of someone asking "Have you ever stored your guns in VCI bags?" and someone else chiming in "I use cosmoline!" before the tread dies. As more and more of us are taking steps to cache away everything from biscuits to bullets, I thought it might be time to resurrect the topic.
I first stumbled across VCIs when I was consulting to Toyota a couple of decades back. Toyota was shipping everything from parts to entire cars in container ships on long trans-oceanic journeys. Corrosion from salt spray was a huge problem which Toyota solved in a variety of ways, not least of which was VCI impregnated paper and packaging materials. Earlier VCI formulations had contained a variety of chemicals, including various amines in a class that was later determined to be carcinogenic. I was in some meetings back then when this issue came up. It turns out that, in the early 1980s, a company called NTIC (the Zerust folks) and some of their competitors developed new VCI formulations based primarily on sodium nitrite, a common food additive. So... no hazardous substance concerns and Toyota happily solved their trans-Pacific corrosion problem with VCIs. Then, in 2003, the US Marines were looking for a way to store M16 A2s and asscoiated parts, long term, more efficiently. A bunch of testing was done at USAMC LOGSA PSCC in Tobyhanna, PA on a VCI impregnated resealable bag designed by Heritage Packaging. As a result, the US military adopted a VCI bag which is marketed commercially as the ZCORR FSP Bag. (ZCORR call their technology VpCI, by the way. Vapor Phase Corrosion Inhibitor. A way for their marketing folks to eliminate that pesky word "volatile" from their narrative.) So, with that history in mind, I began to use VCI-based products in earnest about four years ago. I live at the beach and my west-facing windows draw in wonderfully refreshing but incredibly corrosive salt air from the Pacific ocean. The stuff is amazingly destructive. Everything from Harleys to video projectors have suffered under the onslaught of sea air. I have a desk near two west-facing windows. It's a place I tinker with the occasional Sig Sauer and build the occasional AR. And, for the longest time, unless I was particularly vigilant, any small tools or parts I left laying on the desk were covered in rust in a few days. My gun safe is filled with desiccant and a dehumidification bar, but as my firearms collection grew, I started to have nightmares about rust-pitted barrels and rust-covered bolt carriers. So I looked around for a solution. My Toyota experience with VCIs came to mind and I began to pick up various flavors of VCI-based anti-corrosion products. One of the first things I did was to buy a roll of VCI drawer liner from Zerust. This stuff is designed to line tool box drawers. I covered all the shelves in the safe and cut a piece as a work surface for the desk by the window. I also found some very cool VCI tube designed to fit inside pipes and rifle barrels. Each of my firearms is now stored with a length of that in the barrel. It's yellow and protrudes several inches, so there's no liklihood of loading the weapon with it in place. The reason I'm writing this now is a fascinating discovery I made today. I have several small ceramic cups I use to organize small parts. Last week I was building up a rifle and left some fasteners, springs and allen keys in the cups. Three of the cups sat on the Zerust work surface. One sat about 6" away. Today, five days later, the parts on the Zerust sheet are perfectly fine. A bit cold and damp from the sea breeze, but not at all corroded. The screws and allen keys in the other cup are a different story. The top surfaces are completely covered in rust. The allen keys are recoverable, but the screws are too pitted to use. So... I'm sold. The stuff works. I intend to use a ZCORR FSP bag for long term storage of an AR. I'm curious if anyone else uses VCI products. Comments? Oh, and one more thing... If you use a VCI product, do some research on how VCI works. Here are some tips: 1) DO clean your firearm well prior to storage with a VCI. Keep lubricated parts lubricated but don't over-oil. 2) DO NOT handle the firearm after cleaning. The oil from your fingers contains acids. The oil prevents adhesion of the VCI molecules and the acids can attack the underlying metal. Use gloves. 3) DO NOT coat the firearm with oil or any other corrosion inhibitor. Oil isn't necessary and can be problematic. VCIs work by binding the VCI molecules to the bare metal, preventing adhesion of water molecules. A spray of oil can trap water molecules against the metal. And cosmoline, these days, is just nasty to work with. 4) DO seal the firearm in a bag - either a VCI bag or a bag with a VCI product inside. The VCI molecules saturate the volume of air in the container. Sealed, a VCI can last fire years or more. Unsealed, the active life is drastically reduced. 5) DO accompany VCI with a good desiccant, unless you're certain the humidity inside the bag is low. Recently, vacuum seal VCI bags have become available. A vacuum sealed VCI bag with a small desiccant pouch will likely keep your firearm safe and pristine for decades. |
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