Material to lean barrels on in gunsafe?

Ray B

AH legend
Joined
Aug 19, 2016
Messages
4,639
Reaction score
8,085
Location
WA St, USA
Media
81
Hunting reports
USA/Canada
1
I'm reworking the notches onto which the gun barrels lean in the safe. Rather than having bare wood I'd be putting some material on the notch to contact the steel of the barrel. I'm wondering if I should oil the cloth or put some sort of rust preventative substance on it or at a minimum if there are certain fabrics that I should avoid? Thoughts?
 
I use felt on my wall mounted racks, cabinets and safe. Sure haven't had any issues over the years.
 
If you have an old leather belt you don't like (or doesn't fit anymore)...it could find a new purpose.
 
Synthetic felt won't hold moisture. Don't use leather. Most leather nowadays is tanned in a way that will cause rust and discoloration of blued metal.
 
You must now include a picture of the finished project!

I’d second the felt.
 
Synthetic felt won't hold moisture. Don't use leather. Most leather nowadays is tanned in a way that will cause rust and discoloration of blued metal.
Good to know.
Gonna have to figure out something else to do with those shrinking belts.
 
Silver cloth. It is made without any chemicals that would cause silver to tarnish (and presumably steel too). That or felt.
 
I purchased my gun safe over 35 years ago and they just used the same carpet that they had on the shelves.

Zero problems in all those years.
 
Any felt will work. Just be careful with the glue that it doesn't bleed through. Some have chemicals that may damage metal.
 
I too use felt like Von Gruff.
 
Any felt will work. Just be careful with the glue that it doesn't bleed through. Some have chemicals that may damage metal.

Stay away from Gorilla Glue or anything like it. I can attest that it will cause corrosion. Use older formula wood glues or good old Elmer's.
 
I built a set of sliding drawers for my suburban way back when. I lined the gun pockets with cheap rug material from Lowe’s. Never had an issue, protected the gun etc. with any kind of safe dehumidifier you should not have any moisture issues. If moisture is in the safe at all it will affect all gun parts not just the part touching the material.
 
I have most of my rifles in separate gun socks. It keeps them from getting dinged up and any rust on the contact point of the safe. If you have a lot of rifles, that might get confusing though...
 
Sorry if I’m the last one to know about this, but: Is there something bad about the gun barrel touching bare wood.
You know, asking for a friend.
 
Sorry if I’m the last one to know about this, but: Is there something bad about the gun barrel touching bare wood.
You know, asking for a friend.
No not at all, mine all do and have done for many (many ) years
 
For the felt, does it need to be wool or synthetic? My main concern would be that it would hold moisture and lead to rust.

felt is fine or carpet. I also place a moisture eater in the safe.
 
CAustin,
Thanks for the reminder to check my "moisture eaters".
I need 6 as my whole family shoots and have multiple guns.

BTW, I have four take down guns in cases but no moisture eaters in them. They may be OK if in the safe with moisture eaters. ??
 
How about neoprene? Shouldn’t cause any corrosion and won’t retain moisture while maintaining its compression over time.
 

Forum statistics

Threads
58,955
Messages
1,274,366
Members
106,371
Latest member
PiperArreg
 

 

 

Latest profile posts

Preparing for the adventure of a lifetime. Looking forward to my 2026 Africa hunt with Van Wijk Safaris in South Africa.
Monster Free range Common Reedbuck!!
34d2250a-fe9a-4de4-af4b-2bb1fde9730a.jpeg
ef50535d-e9e2-4be7-9395-aa267be92102.jpeg
What a great way to kick off our 2025 hunting season in South Africa.

This beautiful Impala ram was taken at just over 300 yards, took a few steps and toppled over.

We are looking forward to the next week and a half of hunting with our first client of the year.
Handcannons wrote on Jaayunoo's profile.
Do you have any more copies of African Dangerous Game Cartridges, Author: Pierre van der Walt ? I'm looking for one. Thanks for any information, John [redacted]
 
Top