Proper care for stainless slide

[Eric_Oh]

Hey,

I have a bitone service model and after seeing a couple of pics of rusted stainless slides, i wanted to ask what all of you thought was sufficient in protecting my slide against rust.

Right now i've been very good about cleaning my gun after each shooting session but in regards to the slide, after using solvent to clean off the entire slide, i oil the slide rail areas and thats about it. I do use a silicone cloth to rub down the exterior of the slide after i fully reassemble the gun. Is that sufficient? I also oil the sight areas once in a while as well. since teh sights are stainless.

Please any and all advice appreciated. LEt me know how all of you take care of ur stainless slides.

[Arrowman]

eric, i have a stainless XD nine milemeter, i have had absolutly no problems w/ slide rusting. just fyi, i wish u good luck w/ finding an XD that fits you. good luck
.

[HamsXD]

It looks like you're doing everything to prevent rust to form on your slide. So just keep it up, if you find some rust, then change your cleaning habits. But I wouldn't worry about it too much. You're doing fine.

For the slide rails, I lightly coat mine with some grease.

[Arrowman]

the most that i do is a little hoppes nine ever once in a while....i have never seen any rust on my xd, not on the atainless slide nor on any of the hardware.

[Meta4]

Out of curiosity, should you change your cleaning technique if using a stainless steel slide on a carry gun?

-James

[Delija]

i've been very successful using a polymer car "wax" on all my guns. The stuff (Klasse) is only available mail order ...made in Germany. It's not cheap, but it lasts forever.

It is sort of like shrink wrapping your gun (or car) in a plastic protective coating.


You can build up the stuff in layers (as opposed to conventional waxes that when you apply a coat it removes the prior coat).

I've been using it on all my guns for months. My XD wihich is not stainless has been exposed to salt water, salt air, all kinds of dirt and florida humidiy. Not a speck of any rust.

My 1911 is stainless.

The stuff seems to work great. I can wipe the treated surfaces with some CLP oil to clean off the dirt and it does not seem to remove the polymer. I think only a detergent will remove the polymer...but I see no reason to not just let the polymer built up.

It also gives a nice look to the guns, and a definite feel..sort of a plastic kind of feel....imagine a "saran wrap" kind of feel to the gun's surface. Not "sticky", but a kind of soft textured (subtle but "grippy") feel. It is extremely thin....(the protective coating) but seems to be impervous to any moisture. I know it's supposed to last for over a year on a car's paint (with regular washings), rain, sun, etc.

Anyway, so far so good.

Anyway...here's a link to the product...I use the AOI (all in one) and then just build up layers of the glossy sealant. Seems to work great as I said, and on my car it's amazing....

I have no connection with the company....just love the product.

http://www.properautocare.com/klasse.html

Peace,
D.

[Paladin]

Your approch will probably work just fine. If you are still concerned, you can apply Boeshield T-9 or Armordillo to your slide. I use the Boeshield on mine since Florida is so humid. It lasts over 6 months on my cast iron cabinet saw table which is located in my garage so I know my slide is well protected.

[InspectorNugger]

+1 for the Blue Wonder Armadillo. After reading a lot of positive comments on this product from the forum members, I gave it a try. The application is easy enough and it seems like it coats pretty good. I usually clean & lube with Break-Free CLP and it doesn't seem to take the Armadillo coating off the slide. No rust, no problems at all.

[Eric_Oh]

Thanks for the replies guys...

i have the armadillo and used it once... but i was afraid the solvent i use(kleen bore solvent) would take off the coat of armadillo and then i'd have to spend that time again applying it. That coupled with the fact that armadillo is a pain to get out of all the small indented portions of the slide make me not want to use it often.

Will the solvent i'm using take off the armadillo?