Often gun owners have firearms handed down to them by a relative or given to them as a family heirloom. Keeping these firearms helps preserve memories and the heritage attached to them. That’s why you need to take great care in preserving the heirloom firearm itself.
We offer our 5 tips for firearm preservation
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Store Your Heirloom Gun in a Stable Environment
The NRA Firearms Museum recommends you maintain a humidity level between 45% and 50% and a room temperature between 65-70 degrees where guns are stored.
Wood is anisotropic, which means its structural properties can change in response to environmental stress.
Large swings in humidity may cause wood to swell across the grain or compress, leading to cracks or warping. The same goes for temperature swings: wood may expand or contract resulting in cracks.
Custom gun cabinets like the ones crafted by USA Gun Cabinets are a nice option for storing guns inside your home’s stable environment. They’re not only sturdy but their handcrafted from beautiful woods like oak, maple, and cherry.
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Handle Your Heirloom Firearm with Care
Many guns have a protective coating called bluing. It helps protect against rust and it called bluing because it leaves a bluish-black shine on the metal. A lot of gun enthusiasts try to maintain the bluing on a gun.
It’s tempting to literally handle an heirloom firearm, to show it off to friends, or to frequently admire it. If you’re going to do that, wear white cotton gloves! The oils in your hands are corrosive and can compromise any protective coating.
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Keep Antique Guns Clean
The first thing you want to do to make sure you preserve an antique firearm to make sure it’s clean before storing it.
Gun powder is corrosive so make sure the barrels are thoroughly cleaned. Run a patch through the bores to confirm there’s nothing that’s been left behind from years of use before you owned it.
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Oils Can Help Preserve Your Heirloom Gun
Gun oils can help clean and protect the outside of your heirloom firearm. Don’t use oil inside the barrels.
Gun owners often use the brand name Hoppes as a reference to gun oil generically. (It’s like saying you need a Band-Aid instead of a sterile bandage). Hoppes has been around since the early 1900s and is likely the most familiar gun lubricant, but there are others on the market.
And again, prevent oils from your hands from getting on your antique firearm (see Tip 2).
Additionally, a thin coating of microcrystalline wax can provide long-term protection.
Displaying Heirloom Guns
Our Amish-made wooden gun cabinets enable you to proudly store and display your heirloom firearms. With options for glass etchings and rub-through distressing, our gun storage options are worthy of your firearm collection.
We sell small gun cabinets with storage for 5 firearms up to larger cabinets that can store 20 guns. All the materials used to create our wood gun cabinets are sourced and made in Pennsylvania.
It’s only fitting that you store your heirloom firearm inside a cabinet created in Pennsylvania. After all, the first most commonly used rifles, the long rifle (also known as Kentucky rifle), originated in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
Find even more details on caring for your collectible firearm from the NRA’s senior curator.
