Long-Term Concealment of Firearms

[Swindle1984]

What are some good methods of concealing/storing your firearms for long periods of time without them being discovered by law enforcement or nosy people?

I've been told that filling a pan with vaseline or cosmoline and bringing it to just under the temperature to boil water is one way to prepare a protective coating for the gun you plan to store. Submerge the gun completely and let it "cook" for a while, then remove it. It should have a complete coat of vaseline/cosmoline on it. Then wrap it in saran wrap or similar plastic wrapping and simply bury it. If someone is looking for the gun/s with a metal detector, scattering large numbers of nails, bolts, bits of sheet metal, and other items beneath the soil should throw off all but the most determined of searches.

However, this still poses several problems. First of all, the gun, while protected, is still exposed to the elements and could be damaged somehow. Second, anyone digging around with a shovel could accidentally come across a new firearm, free of charge. Third, it's quite possible to forget where you buried the darn thing. Fourth, once you do dig it up again, it's going to be a pain in the ass to clean out all the gunk.

So what are some alternative methods of preserving and concealing your firearms? How would you keep scopes, magazines, ammunition, slings, and other parts/accessories in good condition where they won't be discovered by anyone looking for them? What about wooden stocks, handles, and the like?

[chaoticentity]

for long term I would dissasamble the weapon into primary unsprung parts, that is no parts that could seize or are under load. then I would douse the whole thing in motor oil (synthethic heaviest weight you can get that pours) then wrap in a protective cover that can take weather, probably clingwrap a towel and another layer of cling wrap. Then I would secure it to the bottom of a large rubbermaid tote and bury it upside down in the ground (so as to leave an air pocket). This however is overkill, I live in the US, so I would simply remove parts under load and lock it in my gun vault. If the day comes that they want to take my guns away they can, over my cold dead body.

[Psychlonic]

I wonder how well a firearm that was vacuum sealed would store. Maybe place a light layer of oil inside, sealed it shut, place the container inside of another container which is airtight, waterproof, and possibly filled with oil. I have caching manuals that describe some pretty elaborate methods, but if vacuum sealing would work well, that'd definitely be the way to go.

[john_smith]

Found this one on frugal´s: http://www.logicsouth.com/~lcoble/dir5/gunstor.txt

[Skean Dhu]

Don't forget that you don't just need to protect it from water but from oxygen as well. So if you were to bury it in a rubber maid container you'd want to add silica gel or comparable oxygen absobing agent. Metal can't oxidise without oxygen.

[ninja42]

I thought Silica Gel absorbed water, not oxygen........

Still the best way to go are ABS or Tylene type tubes plugged on both ends. These can be made in every size and quickly buried with an earth auger. Also the Blue plastic barrels for storing chemicals are good as long as they are virgin.
The only drawback with these is that the metal closing strap may rot, the lid pops off and the contents are exposed.

ninja.

[WMD]

AFAIK silica gel is just a water absorber. But there are oxygen absorbers available, too. And if you want to, you can always flood the whole pack with nitrogen or argon and then seal it. I think the most difficult part is finding a good cache site.

[xyz]

Unsure if anyone has mentioned this, but on a couple of survivalism sites I attend, but this is the method I have seen used for storing longarms (anything that's not a handgun basically).

You cut a length of PVC sewer pipe slightly longer than the OAL of the longest gun you wish to store. You then glue an endcap onto one end and heavily oil all the guns as you wait for the glue to set (a grease is probably a better choice here, as some oils attack PVC). Then put all the guns into the pipe, along with any ammunition, e.t.c. Oxygen/moisture absorbers are then added and an endcap is glued onto the second end of the pipe.

The whole thing is buried vertically in a hole dug using a post hole auger (tool for digging fencepost holes). If it is vertical and several feet below the ground it will be less of a target for metal detectors. You can also scatter scrap metal around the area to "jam" metal detectors.

Mark the location in some way so that you can come back later, dig it up, carefully hacksaw the pipe open at one end, and retreive the guns.

[MMIV]

If you strip all the parts down, coat them with oil and place them into one of those vacum bags(the bags where u can suck the air out with a vacum cleaner). Then place them in the plastic barrel with a moisture asorber, and place the upside down and if possible bury it on a slope so that moisture cannot enter.

(Don't use crap like u=you around here. Its not a chatroom so type full words. - kingspaz)

[Gamekeeper]

Why don't use those vacuum foodsavers? Waterproof and airthight storage for a long periode of time and you don't have any oil contamination.

Something like this:
http://www.pleasanthillgrain.com/tilia_1.jpg

[NightStalker]

If you bury the pipe vertically, you'll never be able to remove, as the earth will compact around it and grip it so tightly that you'd need a D9 to pull it out, and Lord help you if there's anything you can't reach at the bottom 'cause you'll be playing Dig-Dug all night trying to get the whole thing uncovered.

Instead, make a frame that fits inside, with a perforated grate at the bottom, and put all your stuff inside that.

Then, when it comes time to retrieve your stuff, you dig down only as far as the top endcap, cut that offf, then pull up the frame with all your stuff in it, with the oil staying in the pipe. :)

Oh, and I'd use a silicone oil if I could afford it, as there are soil bacteria that can eat petroleum-based oils, but I've never heard of anything eating silicone.

[Isotoxin]

You really should not use lots of oil or grease at all. Use the PVC with sealed endcaps and use CO2 or argon to purge the air from the container. Be sure to have NO oil on the ammo and make sure the ammo does not come into contact with the gun.

A set up I like is to have a cheap rifle like an SKS with 3-4 mags and a blister pack of ammo along with a cleaning kit and a few stripped down MREs, some Iodine tabs and some silver coins and cash.

I really like the idea about a grate at the bottom to pull everything out.

[nswsps]

Every four years in my country someone kills someone with a specific type of firearm causing mass hysteria and buybacks / compensated confiscation of firearms. The majority of assault rifles went into PVC tubing filled with magnetic oil, sealed with silica gel and into post holes in the deck on alot of farming properties.

Kids still go out with metal detectors trying to score an AK. It's a functional method which has kept weaponry servicable for in excess of 25 years that I've seen with my own eyes, I've heard that people have dug up oil sludge in wooden box stored WWI rifles, et cetera also.

Nice patriotic line about having guns taken away by chaoticentity, I honestly don't think that America's firearms community is big enough or united enough to do anything if your government were to take your guns away to be honest. Take it from me, our community of firearms nuts are all generally above average income earners, college graduates and by law all of us can only keep firearms if we're sporting shooters.

We top gold in numerous firearms related sports in the olympics, yet we still get our guns taken off us. The masses are pussy whipped, accepting it is the only way to be able to organise a contingency plan. :P

[nbk2000]

NO CO2! That's acidic unless absolutely dry! And it's likely that some moisture will be in there, regardless of the dissicants.

Argon or nitrogen purging is better, with argon being the best as it's MW is higher than oxygen.

[Pb1]

The majority of assault rifles went into PVC tubing filled with magnetic oil

Magnetic oil? Could you elaborate on this?

[neo-crossbow]

I wonder how well a firearm that was vacuum sealed would store. Maybe place a light layer of oil inside, sealed it shut, place the container inside of another container which is airtight, waterproof, and possibly filled with oil. I have caching manuals that describe some pretty elaborate methods, but if vacuum sealing would work well, that'd definitely be the way to go.

I can answer that, 10 years ago our bans came in. When I saw the memorial on the tellie thought I better make sure I wasn't going to witnes TEOTWAWKI and dig up rust....

I prepped it with an assult of hoppes no9 oil, removed all the springs and put them in a zip lock bag and they got a hammering of oil too. mag springs were removed and also in the bag. Then I ran it through a multi-vac heat sealer (commercial size) with mags, rifle and springs in bag, and 100 rounds of mil. sealed ammo also. I had to rely on that seal as it wouldn't fit into the pipe liked I had hoped (mags moved in the shrink phase) so like that it went (ever so gently) into the ground after 2 more runs through the multi.

dug it up, hit it with the shovel (should have burried something over it so I knew when to slow down) and its all good. What was (as I remember) mint wood is flaked (must be from the oil) but all the blueing is 100%.

shot alright but the sights were off slightly (probably from the shovel) it got the same treatment this time plus the pipe as I taped it into place for the first run in the multi.

[Jacks Complete]

I'm suprised no-one mentioned the wood and oil thing.

As neo-crossbow said, his wood was a bit dodgy. Damned right! Oil, mineral oil, eats wood. It softens it, and makes it useless for a precision weapon. One of the bigest issues with target rifles of the old school is that if you oil the bolt and it runs back into the wood, your accuracy drops right off, since the bedding rots and softens, leading to a shifting point of impact.

I've seen photos of AKs that have just been lost or perhaps buried in the desert and are perfectly useable a few years later, and I've also seen photos of AKs where the stock has rotted right off, and the soldier is holding it with a towel wrapped around the back end instead of a stock!

I would probably split the wood from the metal, as wood doesn't like vacuum packing either, as wood contains moisture! Stash the metal parts, and stash the wood parts. Keep a barrier material between them.

[AZDesertRat]

I hope I am not stepping on any toes since I am fairly new, but has anybody though of using dessicant to absorb the moisture in a gun container. I spent several years (decades actually) in the glass business building insulated windows. We would fill the hollow metal strips between the glass with desicant to draw out the moisture. I also learned that when the dessicant gets wet, you can re-new it by heating it in the oven for several hours. It works great for removing moisture from small areas. In fact I fill up an ordinary sock with it and keep it in the bottom of the gunsafe:rolleyes:

[Dank$taVegas]

PVC sewer pipe,

I have used this method a number of times, although I don't like to burry my stuff (too much work and the time consumed to extract the contents is just not worth it to me, so I made a….. I guess you could call it a "Ghillie Case" as I got the idea after reading a article on Ghillie Suit's how to make them. It's great for storing thing one dose not want to keep in his/her house like Home made silencers, guns, fake documents, incriminating evidence & ammunition. So if you live in the right area (Country or a place with lots of trees or even very bushy) this will be the way to go since digging will leave disturbed medium for some time, until it grows back it is very easy to pick out. When police are search out side, how often do you think they look up a tree, and how many trees do you think they are going to search if someone gives them a tip 1, 10, 100, 10,000 100,000 +…. Not very often! They will be searching for a buried hide if they bring in metal detectors, so why not hide it in a place they will not look "In a Tree". Where I live conducting a search of the trees on my property would be a job of enormous proportions, I'd like to see them pull that off. The location of your hide should be mark with the use of a GPS so you will never forget about it. The Ghillie Case can be hoisted up and down in a fraction of the time it will take you to dig and cut the top off the other hide, plus it's reusable time and time again.

"Ghillie Case"
Materials needed
1)PVC Pipe-Size of your needed stash
2)Paint-to paint parts of the PVC pipe to help blend in to area of operation
3)Burlap- cut into strings to break up the cylinder shape of the pipe and help camouflage
it
4)Dye (Cloths dye) colors of your area of operation to dye the burlap to help blend it in to the surrounding area.
5)String, to give the burlap a place to be attached to.
6)Dremmal tool, with an assortment of pieces, PVC saw, etc

It's section of PVC pipe with one end cap cemented into place, and the other left un cemented for easy access( The un-cemented end piece should have a generous helping of grease spread on & around where the cap slides on to help keep out the elements and the use of the salt pack that come in electronics from a store is not a bad idea. I got creative when I made my 1st one and with the use of a dremmal tool, I etched out a pattern into the pipe, to resemble tree bark.

Then with the use of paints I painted the PVC tube and end cap's be sure to use no pattern, so as to not give off a man made object. Try to match the color of the paint with the color of the tree you plan to hide it in.

I then took to cutting burlap into strips which I dyed all different colors (Depends on your area of operations) but try to stay as close to the color of vegetation as the tree has; and attached them Via string wrapped around the PVC pipe (Which were also dyed to match the other colors).

Case is now ready to be put together and taken out to its new home. One will need to touch up his work once it is in the actual hide, to help conceal it better, braches can provide concealment from below (Left life). The out come of mine was very good, and can barley see it from the ground, and I know it is there, someone who didn't know would have no idea it was there.
I have not stored any full fire arms in it yet, but do keep a barrel for a .22 which I modified by adding threads to it, and keep various other illegal nick knacks in it that I would not want anyone to come across.

[Tackleberry]

What are some good methods of concealing/storing your firearms for long periods of time without them being discovered by law enforcement or nosy people?

I've been told that filling a pan with vaseline or cosmoline and bringing it to just under the temperature to boil water is one way to prepare a protective coating for the gun you plan to store. Submerge the gun completely and let it "cook" for a while, then remove it. It should have a complete coat of vaseline/cosmoline on it. Then wrap it in saran wrap or similar plastic wrapping and simply bury it. If someone is looking for the gun/s with a metal detector, scattering large numbers of nails, bolts, bits of sheet metal, and other items beneath the soil should throw off all but the most determined of searches.

However, this still poses several problems. First of all, the gun, while protected, is still exposed to the elements and could be damaged somehow. Second, anyone digging around with a shovel could accidentally come across a new firearm, free of charge. Third, it's quite possible to forget where you buried the darn thing. Fourth, once you do dig it up again, it's going to be a pain in the ass to clean out all the gunk.

So what are some alternative methods of preserving and concealing your firearms? How would you keep scopes, magazines, ammunition, slings, and other parts/accessories in good condition where they won't be discovered by anyone looking for them? What about wooden stocks, handles, and the like?

Oxygen and moisture kill weapons. Sonobouy tubes are the best. Removable, screw on lid and 1/4 inch grey poly. We use them for fence posts. Pain to required colour. Cement the lids into the ground and screw in the body. Run over one, pick it up and screw it back in. The PVC and sonobouy tube idea is ok if you remove all the oxy and moisture. Buy desiccant bags about the size of a hand held bean bag (dont stint here). Put them in the oven to dry them out. Instructions for this are nearly always on the bag.!Stand the pipe vertically and place in the weapons or goodies. Get a small candle on a thin wire. (coat hanger is good for this) and place it lower than the lip of the pipe. The candle will go out when all the oxy is gone, quickly throw in the desiccant and seal the lids. I have stored weapons for many years in this manner. Ammo tins and the same procedure will protect your ammo as they are sealed when the lid is closed. For absolute positive sealing, get the box that has the removable lid (H60) by rotating a handle and pushing out four legs that lock the lid into the top of the box. 1/4 inch steel construction and very durable. Some of the donts are:
Dont seal the barrel with plugs at either end as this just causes a sealed environment. Leave it open with grease inside . Just get a grease gun (GP grease) and pump down the chamber until it comes out the other end.
Dont leave the bolt in.
Dont leave the bolt cocked.
Dont use clingwrap, little pockets of moisture will be trapped in the plastic and cannot get to the dessicant. (Paper breathes, even grease proof) Use grease proof paper, Brown paper will serve at a pinch.
Dont grease the stock. Linseed oil then grease proof paper.
Dont leave ammo in the magazines.Dissimilar metal corrosion is the big enemy
Dont leave a scope on. Remove it and store it in the house. Pretend its for stargazing if necessary.
Any questions, email me
cheers