[Usp45ct]

so I have a Costa Carry VIP. Great gun, but I don’t carry it often. It is stored in a safe that is 70 degrees with 30% humidity. Doing a cleaning and I noticed rust on the plastic grips. The rest of the gun is pristine, just some rust on the metal inserts on the grips.

I must say, this has soured my feelings about STI. Their stance is not covered because maintenance not done correctly. I guess they deduced that from the pictures.

Anyone else ever experience this?

 

[gun_fan111]

I think I remembering a tiny touch of rust on the metal insert inside the plastic grip of a used 2011 pistol I bought couple of years back. It cleaned up easy and I made sure to oil that spot, have not seen it come back.

It is a bit of a shame that they would not protect those small pieces of metal though.

 

[Usp45ct]

I think I remembering a tiny touch of rust on the metal insert inside the plastic grip of a used 2011 pistol I bought couple of years back. It cleaned up easy and I made sure to oil that spot, have not seen it come back.

It is a bit of a shame that they would not protect those small pieces of metal though.

I guess on a $2500 gun, I expected better. I spend time cleaning my guns. I am sure it is easy to clean up, I just gotta figure out what happens if I really start carrying it. Do I trust it?

 

[Razer]

How about a picture?

 

[azpoolguy]

Is it a 9mm or .45?

 

[Bender]

Corrosion is a product of neglect.......not STI's fault.
You have created the issue by not cleaning the insert when wiping the pistol.

 

[Au Jus in Bello]

I guess on a $2500 gun, I expected better. I spend time cleaning my guns. I am sure it is easy to clean up, I just gotta figure out what happens if I really start carrying it. Do I trust it?

Physics doesn't stop for price point. Rust is a nuisance, but this seems a very minor incident and I'm not sure what STI or any manufacturer should have done to prevent it, or is supposed to do now.

Save for something done incorrectly at the factory (for instance, failure to entirely clean the firearm of salts after a bluing bath), it's otherwise on the owner to prevent rust and corrosion.

Clean it up and stay on top of it now you know there's an added element of vulnerability.

Why does a spot of rust on the grips cause you to question your trust in the gun for carry?

 

[Usp45ct]

I will get pictures up but be aware, this is not a simple wiping the pistol down, nor would following their maintenance. To access this, a complete disassembly of the frame is what is needed. Currently, I do that every 9-12 month for this, and every other gun I own to include Volkmann, WC, EB, and NHC and Rock Island.

Inferior materials is a reason I am questioning this. Would I be shocked to see rust if in a damp environment on a leaf spring....no. On the rails where the trigger is when the gun lives in a safe....yes.

 

[Descartian]

I’ve seen that corrosion before. It’s the bushing/nut inserts on the inside of the grips. I’ve had a couple used guns that I’ve bought have that. I would assume that sweat from your hands gets in through the grip screws and sits there and rusts them. It can happen. You can buy a complete bushing set with screws and wrench for less than $10 from Dawson. https://dawsonprecision.com/grip-bushing-kit-standard-for-sti-2011-by-dawson-precision/

As far as stainless goes, it is by far not rust proof. Rust resistant yes but not proof. I’ve had a bunch of stainless parts get very minor rust over the years, mainly because I did not clean, lube and protect as I should. I have a stainless Kimber micro 9 that has surface rust on the slide because it’s a summer gun and it’s got sweat on it. No ones fault but mine for not cleaning it and lubing it often.

I’ve eaten had hard chromed parts rust on me.

 

[RatBikeRod]

I took the 4.0 Tac I got a while back down for a deep cleaning and found rust on the grip inserts, panels and on the sear spring.

I soaked everything in cleaner, used some steel wool on the parts to knock off any surface rust, replaced the sear spring and got oil into every nook and cranny.

To be honest, I have never found rust on another of my guns. I was quite surprised this one had so much surface rust inside.

All good now, but I will keep a close eye on it.

 

[Au Jus in Bello]

Inferior materials is a reason I am questioning this. Would I be shocked to see rust if in a damp environment on a leaf spring....no. On the rails where the trigger is when the gun lives in a safe....yes.

Except neither analogy corresponds here because those would be potentially critical issues. In this case, rust occurred on an isolated spot on a non-critical item (I hasten to even call it a "part" since it has no impact on the firearm's function).

Not trying to be argumentative, trying to increase peace of mind that the firearm's likely fundamentally sound and a spot of rust on grip inserts shouldn't call into question the quality of the firearms itself.

But the bottom line is for a carry piece one should be maintaining and shooting it often enough to know it's good to go; not trying to infer implications from essentially peripheral issues.

 

[AZ Husker]

If you fail to change your car's oil and the engine blows do you blame the builder?

 

[Old Sea Dragon]

Salt from your sweat? That will expedite rust development in a hurry.

 

[Usp45ct]

Here are this pics. I doubt it was sweat as I carried it less than 10 times and holster never touches my skin, much less the gun. Only time carries would be during the winter.
Why would I sell it? When I move to a free state, this would make a great nightstand gun as well as a carry option. If these parts rust in the safe, no way would I trust them to work when I needed them too.

 

[Usp45ct]

If you fail to change your car's oil and the engine blows do you blame the builder?

Look at the pics then judge.

 

[gun_fan111]

Yep, that looks like what I had.

Tape it off and spray some Rust-oleum?

 

[Bender]

Eezox......follow the directions

 

[Au Jus in Bello]

Here are this pics. I doubt it was sweat as I carried it less than 10 times and holster never touches my skin, much less the gun. Only time carries would be during the winter.
Why would I sell it? When I move to a free state, this would make a great nightstand gun as well as a carry option. If these parts rust in the safe, no way would I trust them to work when I needed them too.

Hardly any rust, and no impact on function. Equating a third-party grip makers inserts to the quality of the parts in the gun doesn't add up.

Much ado about nothing, but it's your firearm to sell if your peace of mind isn't there.

 

[Kodiak61]

Oil all the things.

 

[Usp45ct]

Hardly any rust, and no impact on function. Equating a third-party grip makers inserts to the quality of the parts in the gun doesn't add up.

Much ado about nothing, but it's your firearm to sell if your peace of mind isn't there.

3rd part grips...really?

I am old enough to remember Ford Explorers rolling over and killing people on due to something with the tires. No one really stopped buying the tires from whatever company sold the tires, people did stop buying the explorers. Who a gun manufacturer picks as their OEM means I blame the company who picked that product not the component manufacturer. If STI stated these parts tend to rust, make them out of Stainless steel...problem goes away...at a few bucks more. Again, if I paid say $700 for this gun, hey whatever. But a $2400+ gun, yeah, stupid me, I expect more. Gotta wonder how cheap the material when rust appears in a 30% humidity safe. BTW, I paid $285 for a Rock Island. Same conditions, no rust.