Thread: Rusting Howa's

My SS Howa mini action practically rusts in front of your eyes. Way worse than my other stainless or blued rifles. Only seems to be the action, barrel is fine. Anyone else found this? Also any ideas on prevention? Gun oil did bugger all, eezox seems to be better but still the odd it of rust just sitting in safe let alone hunting!

hmm, either Howa are rubbish or you need to look at your safe .

not one spot of rust on mine, none on any rifles in the safe

It seems you need to passivate the stainless steel parts.

Basically boiling the stainless steel part in a citric acid solution. It removes rust and it removes the free exposed iron that is prone to rust --- leaving only nickel and chrome in touch with the outside environment.

The nickel later oxidizes, which further protects the part.

NB! Of course, don't do this to carbon steel items.

WD40, takes a a few applications to seal them.

My 1500 (short action) 223 has had this issue - a lot of rust appeared quickly - very similar to the one that was on here for sale a wee while ago. The other Howa I bought 3 years ago hasn't had this issue at all with the same treatment and handling.

Originally Posted by Cordite

It seems you need to passivate the stainless steel parts.

Basically boiling the stainless steel part in a citric acid solution. It removes rust and it removes the free exposed iron that is prone to rust --- leaving only nickel and chrome in touch with the outside environment.

The nickel later oxidizes, which further protects the part.

NB! Of course, don't do this to carbon steel items.

Hmmmm - my Howa did the same. @Cordite is onto it I think we used to passivate boat fittings (which are a higher grade of SS) or they'd "spot" as well.

Yup howa rifles are terrible for this. So seem to be worse than others. My .308 gets rusty arond the action. Bolt and barrel are fine.

My howa doesnt do this but my tikka does they live in the same safe

My Tikka does the same on the action though.....when I inquired about it I got the answer"....its all in the name....stain less...its not stain nothing..." thought it was quite funny at the time but after giving it some thought it makes sense. For stainless to achieve the hardness needed for knives and barrels for that matter its needs to be mixed with carbon ect ect. So it does require some kind of oil/protection but not as much as normal steel.

Interesting thing to keep in mind! Just because something is 'stainless' does not mean it won't corrode. All of the Howa's I have owned, have been great rifles and have never rusted (however I do live in a very dry climate and don't hunt on the coast/Fiordland). I have seen some terribly rusted Tikka's in the past too. So it could be to do with how it is stored, or the mix of metals in the build. Either way, it's really gutting when a rifle rusts!!!

Interesting, never had a blued rifle rust as readily as the howa, kinda defeats the point of paying extra for stainless for extra corrosion resistance.

I'm the same @Hunty1

I love my .308 but that rust really annoys me. I'm contemplating getting a mini but will buy a blued one if they are cheaper. A quick wipe with an oily rag removes rust from blued steel, but the rust on my howa is stubborn as.

In saying that the stainless barrels seem to be fine and that what counts the most in the field.

My browning A5 (possible circa 70's but couldn't track it by the serial number even after contacting Browning), would rust if you turned your back on it.
PITA.
Gunsmith type at my local gunclub did some repairs on it after my son managed to jam it when I wasnt there one weekend. Also stripped and reblued it for me.
Came out a new gun-almost. Showed it to a good mate who just remembered it as almost shiny and he was gob smacked. Some pitting on exterior of muzzle but still pretty good.
It was a bitch for rust.
It did get a hiding but always tried to keep it oiled. Didnt seem to matter

Eezox or similar. It works. I treat my stainless Howas with this and keep up the treatment with use. I'm also diligent about properly drying the rifles after wet use - and they often gets used in drenching rain. I strip it down, dry it in front of the fire or in the sun in summer, and re-apply the Eezox. No rust. I have left my .243 on the bike overnight in the rain (long story) and it was fine.

Comments re Tikka are spot on, they do it too, though not to the same extent. Several stainless brands will rust if not maintained.

There's a really interesting YouTube video testing all the different coatings, you should see untreated stainless steel in the warm salt water spray after 12 hours. Looks like it's been on the bottom of the ocean for 12 years. Cerakote was mint!