Short- and Long-Term Storage
We’ve all heard the story, told by some friend, or friend-of-a-friend: one day, cleaning out some storage closet in Great Grandpa’s basement, some lucky devil unearthed a long-forgotten shotgun case. Like Howard Carter in Tutankhamen’s tomb, said lucky devil opened the case only to reveal a priceless and perfectly preserved gesture of London’s Best.
It’s a classic fairytale, and one we shotgunners all dream might befall us. Yet realistically, were a gun to spend years if not decades squirreled away in a case, or confined to a closet in a damp basement, the treasure revealed would likely not be one of gleaming metal and lustrous walnut. More likely, the uncased gun would showcase the hallmarks of inadequate storage and the ravages of time: rust, pitting, crazing under the wood finish, mildew, and all manner of other issues, seen and unseen.
Over the course of a lifetime, guns will go through periods of non-use. Often, such fallow periods will last only a few months, those between the season’s last day and the following opener. At other times, guns will intentionally be taken out of commission and put away for longer periods, as a grandchild comes of age, or the market matures to enhance the value of an investment. But guns, which are in many ways comprised of natural materials, are in essence living pieces of art. They can degrade as time passes, and they are at the mercy of their environment. For this reason, preparation for storage, and regular monitoring, are key to the long-term health of guns at rest. Moreover, unique considerations must be made to ensure the safe storage of a gun that will sit for a period of weeks or months versus a gun that will sit for a period of years. What follows is an overview of those efforts, as offered by Del Whitman of D.C. Whitman Custom Gunsmithing.
Regardless of the storage plan or intention for a shotgun, it is vital that a shotgunner maintain routine care of the gun leading up to that storage period. Regular cleaning, conditioning of wood, etc. should be a practice that will help ensure that the gun at rest does not harbor, or perpetuate, any underlying issues (i.e. oil soaking, etc.). Before storing, one must complete a routine cleaning. Make sure that bores are thoroughly scrubbed with clean brushes and swabbed with dry patches. Pull the choke tubes, clean the threads on the tubes and in the muzzles, and lightly grease both before re-fitting. Apply a light coat of restorative liquid wax to the stock and forend. Apply a thin coat of light rust preventative to the metal surfaces, and make sure the excess has been removed. Pay careful attention to clean away any corrosive or hygroscopic substance that may be on surface wood or metal. For example, blood that is rich in iron molecules will readily attract water to surface metal, and seemingly innocuous droplets of soda or cola left on a wood finish will corrode that finish in rapid fashion. Leave surfaces clean, dry, and protected in preparation for storage.
Perhaps most importantly, take this last thorough cleaning as a time to assess the whole gun for damage and proper function. It is vital that any fixes be recognized at the start of the off-season, as gunsmiths do not work quickly. Don’t delay in seeking professional repair while there is time at hand, and when the gun is not needed. Those who wait until late August assuming a gunsmith might turn around a repair by dove opener are sure to be disappointed.
Once the gun is cleaned and surfaces prepared, the greatest additional consideration for what we will call “short-term storage” is the environment in which the gun is to be stored. First and foremost, consider safety. Guns should be stored in a locked room, safe, closet, or cabinet, ideally away from ammunition. Guns should never be stored loaded. They should also not be stored in cases, trunk or otherwise, as the case materials can absorb and hold moisture up against the metal and wood finishes of a gun, causing damage. In the event that a gun must be stored for any period outside of a locked room or safe, trigger locks or the ingenious Nosparo chamber locks are a must (https://uplandbasecamp.com/product/nosparo-shotgun-locks/)
With safety attended to, one must assess and monitor the humidity and temperature of the storage environment, namely the safe, gunroom, or closet. An ideal environment maintains humidity in the 30%-50% range, and temperatures between 50 and 70 degrees F. The more critical factor, however, is consistency and air flow. Pockets of moisture can sit in confined spaces next to an exterior wall, or against a wall containing plumbing. Moreover, exposure to direct sunlight through a window or other aperture can cause directed heat or UV damage. Consistent environmental humidity and temperature should be maintained, and can be augmented with small space heaters, de-humidifiers, desiccant units, etc. and monitored with a simple, battery-operated Bluetooth hygrometer/thermometer unit. These inexpensive devices are remarkably handy and can be set to trigger an alarm when suboptimal temps or humidity levels are approached.
There is much said about storage orientation of guns, specifically whether they should be stored muzzle-up or muzzle-down. Recall, if restraint is used in applying oil there should be no concern of oil running out of the action and soaking the stock wood. Therefore, guns can be stored muzzle-up. If one prefers to store guns muzzle-down, be sure that the muzzle rests on a surface that will not collect ambient moisture and pit or corrode the muzzles. Use a pad of synthetic felt or something similar as a rest. Finally, it is generally advised to use snap caps to release spring pressure on the hammers when guns are stored. Just remember that certain guns, when disassembled without the ejectors cocked, will prove very hard to re-assemble without manual cocking. This can be quite unsettling to the gun owner and require a trip to the gunsmith. If hammers are released, re-cock them by opening and closing the gun before dis-assembly.
When preparing a gun for “long-term storage” of many months or years, similar considerations apply. That said, typically a more advanced strip-and-clean will be required. This process will reduce the gun to its base parts, at which time each component can be applied with a more advanced rust preventative. Items like LPS2 may be sufficient for internal moving parts, but an LPS3, which is essentially a lubricant with a solvent carrier, may be a better choice for surface metals. LPS3 contains a solvent that evaporates once applied, leaving behind a slightly heavier coat of rust preventative almost like a wax, which will provide stable metal protection for years. Standard liquid wax products can be applied as a wood conditioner.
From a storage standpoint, many of the same rules apply for short-term and long-term storage. However, if a gun is being stored long-term, it should be placed in an area where no harm can befall it. Make certain it cannot be landed on, tipped over, or touched by any foreign object. Keep it in a low-traffic area. At the same time, however, the gun should not be so tucked away that it is forgotten. Guns in long-term storage still require checking-on, and the old “out-of-sight, out-of-mind” adage can be problematic if the gun is forgotten and routine check-ins are not maintained.
When prepping guns for curated storage, Del Whitman always includes with the gun a maintenance log. While properly treated metals can sit untouched for decades, natural facets of the gun such as wood, leather pads, or rubber pads require routine maintenance. All guns should have a scheduled check and maintenance, at which time wood finish is restored with a liquid wax, leather pads are treated with a fine wax shoe polish, and rubber pads are touched up with an Armor-All type of synthetic conditioner. A 6-month maintenance cadence should be sufficient for most guns, provided the storage environment is stable.
Otherwise, during long-term storage the major consideration is that any handling, shooting, etc. MUST be documented and attended to before the gun is put back into storage. Even a single handling can leave sweaty, salty fingerprints on a gun barrel that, with time, can etch themselves permanently into the finish. A gun that is taken out occasionally for a single, ceremonial fired shot cannot be put back into storage without a repeat of the thorough preparation process. Bits or powder residue or debris can, over time, prove devastating, if they are given the weeks and months to work away on metal. Any cleaning, shooting, handling, etc. must be logged and reviewed to ensure that a proper maintenance cycle is maintained. Such is the case with artifacts or museum pieces, and guns demand the same attention.
It is our sincere hope that one day, while digging in Great Grandpa’s basement closet, you too will uncover a gun case, one that holds an exquisite example of the gunmaker’s art. But if you do, it is also our hope that Great Grandpa was a real stickler, with a penchant for record-keeping and a weakness for digital hygrometer/thermometers. We hope that the gun you find was stored away from other objects, and the case somehow never contacted surface wood or metal. Guns, after all, demand our responsible care and respect, when in use and when at rest. They can indeed last many lifetimes, but only when cared for properly, and stored with their preservation in mind.
First Published in Shooting Sportman Magazine
