Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Handguns Some please tell me the truth...

Sorry. I've got my Dad's (he's still alive but is 91) in my safe. It's a 1934 38-44 Heavy Duty 38 Spec. It looks almost identical to the 45 ACP in the pic, having a slightly shorter barrel.

My second centerfire handgun was a model 19 Smith .357. The nickel on that one was badly scratched. I've had a lot of nickel guns because I like the old ones and many were of that finish. I once had a Winchester '73 32 WCF that had been nickel plated. It was a special order gun with a very long barrel and double-set trigger. Wish I had a pic of it.

I have a nickel plated S&W 57 6" bbl., bought new in 1980. I've used it plenty since, carried both in a shoulder holster or a strong side Safariland hip holster. There is not one "flake" on it and for all practical purposes, still looks nearly new.

My wife's S&W 36, 3" Heavy Bbl., .38 Spec.,is nickel plated. I bought it for her new in 1976. She carries it CCW, mostly in a leather Coronado Handgun purse, but sometimes when we are up in the mountains, in a Simply Rugged pancake belt holster. It still looks almost new, with zero flaking, etc.

We don't "baby" them but I do always take care of them.

I've no problem with nickel handguns from S&W.

L.W.

Well thanks a lot Leanwolf, I had just about put this out of my mind.

Hmmmmmmmm....what do you use to clean them with?

Funny you mention that McInnis. I have an old Smith 29 that Marker Bros Machine Co. "Black Chromed" for me way back in the late 60's after I went to a 1911 as a duty gun. I've been told it's "electroless nickel (?)" or something like that. Very tough, looks like a quality blue job and doesn't show holster wear much even with lots of holster carry. E

Please treat your firearm with more respect than that..

If not, well then I guess a 'thank you' is in order.. WD-40 users help keep guys like me in business...

I just wipe them off with a large piece of old 100% cotton tee shirt, then I put a bit of Break Free on a cotton pad and apply that thinly. I've never had any problem with the nickel finish.

L.W.

But how do you clean the bore?

I use Tetra-Gun Solvent. Cleans out the gunk and then when the additional patches come out clean, I use a very lightly oiled (Break Free) patch to push through the bore and cylinder holes.

L.W.

Meh. The mention of WD-40 always brings out the snobs.

Not knowing what you do for a living, though, I have to ask how you think removing powder fouling with WD-40 is going to contribute to your livelihood.

I have to agree...WD40 is about all I use for cleaning my guns and they all...including the nickel ones, look like new. After a good wipedown they then get sprayed with G96 Silicone Spray. Keeps everything off the surface and doesn't stain cloths.

Nickel S&Ws...never have had a problem with them. The first centerfire S&W I owned was a Model 19 purchased in 1980. Fired 10K documented rounds through it, brought it up to S&W about 1974, had them nickel it, carried it and shot it 10K more rounds and sold it in 1980...was excellent in the box and sold for more than I bought it for.

My now ex-wife bought a Model 36 2" nickel in about 1977. She still has it and it has a lot of miles on it....mostly in her pocketbook.

Have had several 57s and 58s over the years and taken care of wear less than blue guns in the holster.

Consecutive pair of 57 6" guns...



8 /38"...



One of the best shooting 57s I ever had...that is 12 rounds DA at 10 yards...



...58



Class A 57...





I only own one nickel gun right now...the engraved 57 but would again like to find a nickel 60s vintage 57 4" for the collection and to shoot....

If you take care of it the finish will out last you...

Bob

ps...I still remember the day about 1969 when I was down the Lyman Blue Trail Range in Ct. A guy there with a brand new 6" nickel Python. At the end of the first cylinder full the nickel had blown off half the cylinder and the barrel ahead of the flashgap....he was not pleased....

LMAO... Do some research, sir, then get back to me...

Since you're obviously new here I'll try to explain further..

Me: Full-time gunsmith since '98, have my own shop and build custom rifles based (mostly) on the Winch. M70 action and have done so for many of the members here on the 'fire..

I see all types/kinds of firearms come into the shop for various maladies but one thing sticks out as a common item: gummed up actions from people who use WD-40.. I have warned repeatedly against the use of that particular product for firearm maintenance.. It's a great product for loosening rusty bolts/nuts on old farm machinery, but it has no place around firearms..

If you're going to safely remove gunk, crap, fouling or whatever from your firearm please consider using another product; whether it's Hoppes, Butch's Bore Shine, Kroil, Ballistol, whatever.. Those will do the job w/o harming the firearm or causing functional issues..


And I'm hardly a snob, sir...

Best wishes..

Oh, goody goody ..... this is going to spiral into a WD-40 thread.

Lee has it correct, I also benefited from those that swore by WD-40. Properly cleaning and lubing guns all gunked up with the WD-40.

Carry on, gunsmiths need the money!

I have my Dad's nickle plated CZ 27 that he brought back from WWII. About 1/2 dozen times a year he pulled it out of the night stand and shot a few tin cans. Afterwards he cleaned the barrel with Hoppes 9 and always wiped it down with a piece of cloth diaper and 3-IN-One oil.
The nickel is about 98% overall today.
Oh, and I carry on his tradition.

I doubt it. I used to use WD on guns, but I don't anymore unless I've got a screw I need to get out or some such. When Lee says something, he's usually right.

Personally, I try and keep my guns clean enough that I can do a quick wipe down with RemOil and put 'em up. Most of my cast bullets are from Missouri Bullet Co. anymore and are hard enough that there is not leading to contend with. So as long as the bore is fairly clean, I don't have to mess with that. If it's dirty, I run some patches with Rem Oil.

If I've been shooting a corrosive or have a particularly dirty gun I take on trade, I'll use the black powder cleaning method. I break the gun down as far as is practicable, take it to the sink and give it a thorough scrubbing with dish soap and hot water. Loads of really hot water to rinse-until no more bubbles. Usually there is no drying necessary. Then RemOil it up. I watch the gun for a couple of days in case some rusty oil shows up on it. Usually it doesn't.

I had an odd experience the other night when I deviated from the two above methods. I was using some cleaner on a Garand I bought and the rags and patches were coming away without fouling on them. To be fair, I was out in my garage and working by the light of my garage door opener since all four fluorescents had went bad. I got done and went to oil it with RemOil and got A LOT more gunk off the action with the RemOil. I pretty much re-cleaned with my oiling agent then. The cleaner was "Powder Blast" by Winchester.

I've been using a lot of "PB Blaster" on my farm stuff for a number of years now. It's pretty common in the stores. I used to use WD unless the screw or whatever was really stuck, but anymore I just use PB unless I can't find any around, then I go back to WD40.

I use WD-40 for cleaning and break-in, but I also wipe it all off. The last time I sent a firearm to a 'smith for cleaning was never.

As for the nickel finish question, I don't like the looks so I stay away. On the practical side, in a pinch I can fix a scratch on stainless or blue, but repairing a nickel problem is always going to be a PITA.

Actually, I don't much care for the looks of stainless either, but the practicality can't be ignored for some uses.

New here, but not new to firearms. I've been using WD-40 to remove powder fouling from the outside surfaces of my guns for better than twenty years. It works, in that capacity, as well as anything I've ever tried.

During most of that time, I've been encountering people who have knee-jerk reactions to any mention of WD-40 and who demand that I use something else on my guns. My universal question is "Why?". To date, no one - you included - have been able to give me a straight and sensible answer.

The single best thing you can do for a firearm that has been out in the rain all day is to liberally spray it down with WD40. I don't "clean" with it 'cause it doesn't "clean", paper towels, rags and patches (with the appropriate solvent) will clean. Everything has its place.

Water Displacement (formula) 40 (they got it right on the 40th try).

It's meant to displace water. It does that very well. It will also gum up a firearm action in less than a year if used religiously.