View Full Version : Rust on my carry gun!
HISTORY: Gun has been carried pretty much every day for the past two years. Carried in an MTAC Spartan for about the last nine months, before that, just carried in a nylon Desantis IWB holster. **If you are not familiar with the CompTac MTAC, it has a leather back plate with a kydex body. The Spartan has exposed rivets on the skin side of the leather back plate, but that is not relevant for this situation.
So I went to my parents house earlier today and mowed the lawn for my dad. It took about two hours and I was working up a decent sweat. I was carrying my M&P 40c in an MTAC holster (so it has leather backing large enough to keep the gun off my skin). I usually wear a wife beater tucked in under the holster, and some kind of t-shirt over the top. It was pretty hot so I took off my shirt and just had my wife beater (cotton) undershirt on. I untucked the wife beater so it would cover the gun as much as it could.
Anyway, about half way through the lawn job, I noticed that there was some condensation on the left side of the slide, at the very end (exactly where is rusted in the pictures). I used the shirt I had taken off, to wipe off the condensation and reholstered the gun.
Fast forward to just a few minutes ago, I pulled the gun out of the holster to transfer to the safe just now and I saw all the rust. I figured it was just a little surface rust and would just wipe off. MOST of it has wiped off with a little CLP on a paper towel, but there is still noticeable rust on the slide now.
I'm concerned that now this will happen much more often and just get worse every time. Will I need to have my slide refinished? Should I send it in? Am I doing something wrong to have caused this? What should/could I do differently? In the mean time, is there a better method/product that I can use to get rid of this rust?
Also, I carried all day yesterday up near Pawnee but it wasn't quite as hot (nice cool wind) and I for sure would have noticed the rust last night when putting the gun away.
Thanks in advance for any input.
http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/qq226/1stuart1/Guns/0531000136.jpg
http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/qq226/1stuart1/Guns/0531000136a.jpg
Here is after it was wiped off.
http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/qq226/1stuart1/Guns/0531002037.jpg
http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/qq226/1stuart1/Guns/0531002036.jpg
http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/qq226/1stuart1/Guns/0531001436.jpg
I would definitely contact S&W and tell your story.
That is a serve rust.
SSChameleon
05-31-2010, 08:03
Bummer. [Sweat]
I've been afraid of this happening to the .22 I carry when I run in the field behind my house. As the weather warms up the rattlers will get more active and I'll sweat more. If anyone has experience with sweating and keeping a gun from rusting I'm all ears.
OgenRwot
05-31-2010, 08:12
Should have bought a Glock [Neene1]
Bailey Guns
05-31-2010, 08:32
Should have bought a Glock [Neene1]
Exactly! The one with the ceramic slide that passes thru metal detectors. Ceramic doesn't rust!
Seriously, that's some pretty good rust. However, I wouldn't get too worked up over it. Keep the gun clean and make it a point to put a little extra oil or some sort of rust-preventative on the slide if you know you're going to be sweating. I wouldn't worry about the finish on your gun. It's not a show-piece and as unsightly as it is, that little bit of rust isn't going to affect the function of the gun. A little oil and 0000 steel wool (ask for 4-ought steel wool at the hardware store) should take that rust off without taking more of the finish off. Oil and rub lightly with the steel wool.
The Glock 22 I carried for the last several years on the PD looked like the slide was made of stainless steel forward of the ejection port due to all the holster wear.
It'll require a little extra maintenance but if you stay on top of it - wipe it down after every day's carry - it's not really going to hurt the gun.
Not a bad idea to send those photos to S&W, though. They might help you out.
Just keep in mind a functional, slightly rusted gun will give you the means to protect yourself as long as you have it with you. A gun you don't carry because it's just too pretty for holster wear or other scratches/dings isn't going to help you at all if you don't have it when you need it.
THe Yetti
05-31-2010, 09:38
Does it not say stainless right on the slide next to the rust? Stainless steel does not rust. I'd be calling S&W, as corrosion resistance is the entire selling point of stainless steel.
Thanks for the input guys. A few things:
-The slide is stainless, but doesn't it have some finish on it? Even though there is still some rust left after I cleaned it up, it only appears to be deep enough to be on the finish.
-I don't know how old the holster is because I bought it used from this site. I think the guy said that he had only carried a few times with it, and that is certainly how the holster looked. Very happy with the holster.
I'll try to get pictures of what it looks like now. My cell phone may have a hard time picking up the rust in the after pictures.
SA Friday
05-31-2010, 13:01
Stainless steel is a chemical mixture, and there are well over 25 different formulas of SS. Some are more resistant to oxidation than others. All of them are resistant to oxidation reactions, but NONE of them are 100% resistant.
With that said, Stewart, your ass sweats a lot of pretty caustic stuff.[Coffee]
Haha. I've run with my gun more than a few times, or had it sitting in the holster, in the bathroom while I took a hot steamy shower. Any time I've run it has been in a nylon holster, but for sure in the leather/kydex one while I showered. Realistically none of my actual sweat should have actually touched the gun at that point. Perhaps on the plastic grip, but that is it. I'm pretty surprised that this happened this time, and not all of those other times.
Maybe I should cut back on the spicy Mexican food and the wings huh?
SSChameleon
05-31-2010, 13:16
Maybe you should bottle up your sweat and sell it as bore solvent! [Swim]
SideShow Bob
05-31-2010, 14:15
Some people, including myself, have very highly corrosive perspiration. I have handled freshly cleaned firearms of friends and warned them to wipe them down afterwards, but they didn't believe me and put them away, and a day or two later call me to ask if I had acid on my hands because they found my finger and hand prints rusted into their firearms.
http://csi-miami.otavo.tv/wp-content/uploads/2008/09/csi_miami_w573_h_m.jpg
We know it was you, your fingerprints were rusted into the murder weapon
[ROFL2][ROFL2][ROFL2]
I think....it's time to sweat...some answers out of our suspect.
YEEEEAHHHHHHH!
That makes sense, other people on another sight have suggested that perhaps the holster has been collecting sweat and salt. That is a good suggestion, but I think it is too early for that to be the case, especially since I never really sweat enough to soak my underwear all the way through into my holster. Thanks for all the help so far guys.
Someone else had suggested occasionally wiping the gun down with a product called Eezox or something. I haven't had a chance to look into the product yet though.
I had honestly never heard of or seen a sweat-rusted firearm before. I'm kind of amazed. [Wow2]
That makes two of us. Here is what the gun looks like a day later after it was wiped off with CLP last night. Hard to see the remaining rust in these pics.
http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/qq226/1stuart1/Guns/0531002037.jpg
http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/qq226/1stuart1/Guns/0531002036.jpg
http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/qq226/1stuart1/Guns/0531001436.jpg
argonstrom
05-31-2010, 21:32
Still looks present inside the logo. :(
That sucks, man. If S&W doesn't do anything for you, I'll polish your slide for free.
Thanks man, that's a mighty fine offer of you. I think the stuff inside the logo is just surface stuff that the paper towel didn't reach. It is hard to see, but on the ridge just under the logo (where the glare is in the last photo) has a bunch of rust pits now.
This isn't the first rusted M&P I've seen. Still wouldn't keep me from owning one.
After seeing this pic I went and pulled my CCW M&P out of the safe. I carry in a Minotaur MTac or Raven Concealment holster. There are the first signs of rust starting on mine. I clean and oil this thing fairly religiously. Very disappointed.
Must be that Melonite finish or whatever is on there.
By the way, I've emailed my first post to Smith & Wesson, I'll let you guys know if I get a response and what it says. I forgot to tell them that I'm in Colorado and this shouldn't usually be an issue.
Also, last summer I carried when we tried to climb Mt Harvard, and that was a 12 hour, 12 mile hike. I carried in the nylon holster back then, either way, this wasn't an issue.
Could be worse.....
http://inlinethumb15.webshots.com/2382/2358124050057938534S600x600Q85.jpg
http://inlinethumb01.webshots.com/14336/2140831830057938534S600x600Q85.jpg
http://inlinethumb17.webshots.com/45136/2932669880057938534S600x600Q85.jpg
My take down lever had significant rust as well. I'd say they are about the same.
theGinsue
05-31-2010, 23:44
I never really sweat enough to soak my underwear all the way through into my holster.
Yeah, um, I REALLY didn't need THAT image running though my head.
That's really a shame. Hearing Graves indicate that his M&P had the same issue tells me the particular Stainless they use is ultra susceptible to rust for a current firearm. Disappointing.
dang, you can still see the remnants of the rust after it has been cleaned. I would do the steel wool deal Bailey was talking about. I've done that on a few older guns and it worked great.
Seeing this and the others stories I think I will be shying away from these guns.
maybe you can get it refinished, I would look into that route instead of having rust on your gun constantly.
I want to believe that since it hasn't been a problem before, that it won't continue to be a problem, but from the way I understand rust, I think I pretty much have to get it refinished or else deal with rust all the time.
argonstrom
06-01-2010, 02:16
I want to believe that since it hasn't been a problem before, that it won't continue to be a problem, but from the way I understand rust, I think I pretty much have to get it refinished or else deal with rust all the time.
If S&W doesn't do anything for you, I'll polish your slide for free.
I know I know, I saw and thanked you. I just need to decide if I want a polished slide or not. I've always wanted to polish the barrel, take down lever, slide stop, ejector, etc though.
Wow! I've never had a problem with my Glock, wonder what you can use to prevent that from happening in the future.
Makes me wonder if the coating that Smith uses has a high zinc content, and if its the coating, not the actual slide, that is being attacked by this corrosion! Anybody know what they use and if an MSDS is available? I wonder if its just a bad batch of the coating and if anybody else is having this issue with guns in the same serial number range....
The finish is called Melonite or something (I didn't bother to look it up). It looks like the rust was attacking the finish to me. What numbers on the gun do you need to tell what batch it is from?
I dunno on the numbers deal, I would do a google search of your serial number with that last 2 numbers X'd out and rust(smith 111XX rust), just a guess... or maybe google M&P rust, and see what comes up, and if this is a well know issue, and what smith has been doing for people. Ill take a look into melonite and let you know what i find. I have heard of the stuff, but not really looked into it...
In that case, the number is
I've already emailed S&W and waiting to hear back from them. So far they've always treated me very well.
I found this thread when I google searched for "S&W M&P serial number"
http://www.handgunforum.net/smith-wesson/9299-smith-wesson-m-p-must-read.html
What a bunch of sac riding fan boys.
You know nothing about this gun's history, it could have been sitting in an acid bath for a month for all you know,
but you post a pic of an unknown gun to make yourself feel better about your Glock? I Never understood people wanting to put down other guns to make themselves feel better.
Lame..
speaking of fanboys!
http://www.thehighroad.org/archive/index.php/t-310911.html
Interesting... maybe it is the coating combined with your used holster and either yours or the previous owners body chemistry? still cant find anybody giving the MSDS, may need to ask Smith directly for it... Im curious on thes EEZOX i have seen in other threads as well...
im sure your slide will either be refinished or replaced... i recomend getting it fixed, and walking away from anything with a melonite finish... go to glock or springfield... walther is also S and W so i guess dont bother with the p99...
...im sure there is more to come!
Well, I like the gun and don't anticipate getting something else just because it rusted on me one time. I'll just have to wipe it down more often I guess. Still considering taking The Internet up on his offer.
Now that I think about it, we went out and shot my 870 and .22lr on Saturday. I should probably clean those first thing tomorrow...
argonstrom
06-01-2010, 22:53
Still considering taking The Internet up on his offer.
Why not? It's not like it'll rus... oh, wait...
;)
Seriously, though, I'm not trying to be a jerk; I think it full on sucks that a quality tool has failed ("failed" is probably too strong a word, but you get my drift) a good person.
Let me see what Smith and Wesson says and we'll go from there. I can't possibly think you are a jerk for offering to do a nice thing over and over.
You should see my springfield xd sub after today! I've also carried it for over 5 yrs now but I'll do what I always do and oil it up and put it back on my hip.
Well post pictures.
Smith and Wesson returned my email. This is what it said:
Stu- I recommend you send it in for repair
Call for shipping infdo 800-331-0852 ext XXXX
That was the whole thing. I guess I'll call Monday and see what the deal is. Even though I've been able to mostly clean the slide (using my regular cleaning stuff), it is still noticeably discolored in that area. I guess I'll have to carry my full size CZ for a while until I get this one back.
Ok, I was trying to just bitch about it and be lazy but it does look pretty bad this time. Same as you I believe, iwb from comptac (minotaur) rusted on the inside leather part against my body.
Were you mowing the lawn?
buffalobo
06-05-2010, 22:59
My SIL and I were steered away from nylon holsters a couple years ago for just the reason you guys are discussing.
I use Safariland leather paddle holsters and love them. With little to no wear on revolvers or semi autos. Definately no rust. I am unfortunately a heavy sweater.
This rust was from a leather holster. I've never had an issue with my nylon holster and I've done much more sweaty things with the nylon one. Same with smchop, his gun rusted in leather as well.
What do you know?! I was sweating through the holster. This was from the next week. I wiped the gun off and took it out of the holster with a wipe down as soon as I got home though.
http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/qq226/1stuart1/Guns/0606001603.jpg
I'm gonna just start medicating my carry gun with Gold Bond Triple medicated powder, try and keep it dry and lose that not so fresh feeling. Yep leather holster for me as well. Tip for those who ride, on test rides on other peoples bike (especially rockets) tuck your shirt in otherwise at 80 mph your shirt flies up to your shoulders and your concealed firearm is no longer and a certain someone will stop you and ask whats up![Coffee]
I thought you were supposed to leave your piece with the bike owner as reassurance that you'll bring the bike back?
argonstrom
07-18-2010, 22:31
So, what happened with S&W?
Sorry, I thought I updated this thread already. I got the gun back on Tuesday (missed the FedEx guy on Monday). Brand new slide, new (and slightly different sights). The slide is darker than before and the read sight has some horizontal lines to cut down on glare I guess. I really like it and am happy with Smith.
However, I called them to find out what was going on, and the guy told me it was already on the way back. I asked what was done and how come no one told me anything. He basically said that they are so busy that they just do it and send it back. I greatly appreciate what they did, and for free, but setting expectations is always an important part of customer service.
I do believe that I need to wash my leather holster though, as it still leaves some residue on the gun when I holster it. Thanks for the help guys.
argonstrom
07-18-2010, 23:31
Nice work, S&W!
Quit sweating so much, Stuart. [LOL]
I crack under pressure; and sunlight.
I was wondering what folks are or more likely are not doing to keep the leather conditioned and in good shape. Pretty sure that treating the leather would be a good idea in these cases.
cowboykjohnson
07-19-2010, 10:42
Glad to hear all is good, and that my body is not highly corrosive![Tooth]
Dain was saying that I should wash it with saddle soap and put some conditioner on there. I plan to do just that as soon as I can.
Well, it's summer and my brand new slide from Smith & Wesson has started rusting again. Guess I should get a new holster.
Well, it's summer and my brand new slide from Smith & Wesson has started rusting again. Guess I should get a new holster.
what holster are you using? maybe its a problem with the gun? I have a leather MTAC and my glock is just like new (cept for the rear sights, which happens to smack into everything).
Maybe you should contact the CIA about getting one of those all ceramic guns that they keep claiming don't exist...
My sweat would probably turn them to brittle dust.
I'll raise you my fat ass sweats more than you!
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