I have been a gun cleaning fool this week! got a new project...

[Jester]

working on my great great grandfathers Winchester Model 97 shotgun that i will inherit one day. It is covered in surface rust and is about to get some serious steel wool action.
He actually used this shotgun back at the turn of the century to cut a horse thief in half in his barn.
Pretty bad ass piece of history!
similar to this one

[Jose]

Be sure to take some before and after pictures!

[Jester]

Be sure to take some before and after pictures!

Good idea, will do!
It is missing the forearm right now and i sent an email to a place that can get me another one for it to check pricing.

[CJ]

working on my great great grandfathers Winchester Model 97 shotgun that i will inherit one day. It is covered in surface rust and is about to get some serious steel wool action.
He actually used this shotgun back at the turn of the century to cut a horse thief in half in his barn.
Pretty bad ass piece of history!
similar to this one

Make sure it's surface rust and not rust bluing

[Roscoe]

[Jester]

Valuable or not, it will never be sold. It is just covered in a layer of surface rust.
I am gonna clean it up and make it look new and make a shadow box for it with some paper shells and some old black and white photos.

[CJ]

Valuable or not, it will never be sold. It is just covered in a layer of surface rust.
I am gonna clean it up and make it look new and make a shadow box for it with some paper shells and some old black and white photos.

JUST MAKE SURE IT ISN'T RUST BLUING

Old shotguns used solder among other things which gets eaten away by typical hot bluing. It was common to use a rust bluing method to avoid these problems. The shotgun I restored several years ago was turn of the century and it was rust blued. The owner wanted me to do a high polish bluing so I cold blued the gun. But, just be aware, sometimes it might look rusted and shitty, but that's the way it looked on the showroom floor.

[dee]

A proper rust bluing is thing of beauty.

Model 97's are an awesome piece of history.

[Jester]

JUST MAKE SURE IT ISN'T RUST BLUING

Old shotguns used solder among other things which gets eaten away by typical hot bluing. It was common to use a rust bluing method to avoid these problems. The shotgun I restored several years ago was turn of the century and it was rust blued. The owner wanted me to do a high polish bluing so I cold blued the gun. But, just be aware, sometimes it might look rusted and shitty, but that's the way it looked on the showroom floor.

Well just how in the hell am i supposed to determine that!?

unless you are talking about the browning.......i do love a rifle that has been browned.

[Jester]

Also have a 50 caliber black powder rifle kit i will be working on soon. you guys will dig it.

[YALE]

Model 97 shotguns were rust blued, up until the last couple of years of their manufacture. Do the research before you destroy the gun, lol. I'd just oil it, and leave it alone.

[Jester]

Model 97 shotguns were rust blued, up until the last couple of years of their manufacture. Do the research before you destroy the gun, lol. I'd just oil it, and leave it alone.

yeah, im starting to go that route. the more i look at it the more i like the patina.

[helosailor]

I would love, love, love to have an 1897, but especially an original G.I. one (with the bayonet lug).

[S_K]

You can clean up surface rust with very fine steel wool soaked in oil. Be very gentle and don't over do it.

[YALE]

You can clean up surface rust with very fine steel wool soaked in oil. Be very gentle and don't over do it.

That's not surface rust.