[BigNic]

I'll be at our cabin up north in a couple of weeks. I plan on shooting my WASR while we are there. I need a little winter weather AK advice.

I will arrive early on Friday, will be shooting Saturday morning, and driving home Sunday evening. I'll be shooting Brown Bear. What would you reccomend as the best way to protect my rifle...

Should I leave it in the truck until we shoot on Sat, or bring it inside? Would it be wise to put my WASR back into the truck right after we are finished, to try and avoid condensation moisture from the temperature difference inside the cabin?

The cabin will be packed with friends and family, so finding cleaning space inside will be a challenge... will it be ok to not clean it until I get home on Sunday?

How would you handle it...

[raven11]

i would get a padded, lockable, hardcase and leave it inside the truck(not in the bed) frankly its a military rifle, you can leave it in the truck and clean it when you get back and nothing will happen to it

[PlasticGuy]

I'd wipe it down with oil just like normal, take it in the cabin if you can, or leave it in the truck if you can't. Waiting to clean it until you get home won't matter unless it gets a lot of rain/snow on it, and even then another wipe down with an oily rag would be enough to get you home for a better cleaning. The only really bad thing you could do is to leave it in a case with moisture. Other than that, it should be fine.

[SidX]

Wipe it with some oil when you are done shooting and clean it when you get home.

Keep it in the truck, keep it in the cabin, either or.

How far north? I'm an hour or so north of Pittsburgh and have had my AK out quite a few times in the snow already. Tons of fun and I get the range to myself.

[BigNic]

Thanks guys!

Originally Posted by SidX

Wipe it with some oil when you are done shooting and clean it when you get home.

Keep it in the truck, keep it in the cabin, either or.

How far north? I'm an hour or so north of Pittsburgh and have had my AK out quite a few times in the snow already. Tons of fun and I get the range to myself.

Cooks Forest, in Sigel PA

[SidX]

Originally Posted by BigNic

Cooks Forest, in Sigel PA

We use a cabin just up the road from Clear Creek State Park in Sigel.

Have a great time.

[WIG19]

Mine in bold.
Have fun!

Originally Posted by BigNic

I'll be at our cabin up north in a couple of weeks. I plan on shooting my WASR while we are there. I need a little winter weather AK advice.

I will arrive early on Friday, will be shooting Saturday morning, and driving home Sunday evening. I'll be shooting Brown Bear. What would you reccomend as the best way to protect my rifle...
Just keep secured in whatever way you can lock it in the vehicle. Sounds like there might be some merriment as well, so out of sight, etc.

Should I leave it in the truck until we shoot on Sat, or bring it inside? Would it be wise to put my WASR back into the truck right after we are finished, to try and avoid condensation moisture from the temperature difference inside the cabin?
If it's a plain old (badly) park'd WASR, just oil it well on the exterior so that resistance stays in the finish. Until I get mine moly'd by Jim Fuller that's what I do and I've purposely brought it in from -17 to see what happened and it's fine. But I'd do that, use it all weekend, keep it outside for reasons noted above.
The cabin will be packed with friends and family, so finding cleaning space inside will be a challenge... will it be ok to not clean it until I get home on Sunday?
Absolutely.
How would you handle it...
Letting some oil do its work with the parkerization will take care of the exterior. One thing I'd do before hand is minimize the oil-based lube inside the gun if it's really cold. I'm not saying run it dry, but if you anticipate running the gun in cold weather regularly - and you should, that's the AK's forte' - invest in a can of Lubriplate from Brownell's, or some other quality white-lithium grease. Smear some on the contact surfaces; anything riding on rails, surfaces where the bolt rides against the hammer. Not too many places to worry about, and it doesn't take much, just a bit more than a film. Good stuff and a can will last you a lifetime. You can use the same stuff on your arctic weather boltguns instead of running them "dry" as well. Oil as its place, but severe cold isn't one of them. Your AK will run just fine.

[Navitimer]

It's an AK...you can leave it stuck in a mudpuddle for a year if you need to and it will be fine! In all seriousness, have a great trip...sounds like fun!

[BigNic]

Thanks everyone!

...and yes, there is always merriment at this event!

[War Hammer]

Remember, if you leave it out in the cold, don't touch any of the metal parts with your tongue.

[thornesguns]

Originally Posted by War Hammer

Remember, if you leave it out in the cold, don't touch any of the metal parts with your tongue.

you mean no licking it clean??