long term parts storage

[ggdad1951]

I purchased a ring and pinion gear set for my 4.3 differential from someone as a "JIC spare" and want to store them properly for lord knows how long? Thoughts/suggestions please!

[TodFitch]

I'd probably coat them with grease or cosmoline, wrap them in some material that is grease resistant (maybe wax paper), bag them in sealed plastic, then put into a sturdy box. Between the grease/cosmoline and sealed plastic, they should be safe from corrosion. The sturdy box should protect them against mechanical damage.

While I associate cosmoline with things packed away during WW2, it is apparently still available: http://www.cosmolinedirect.com/

[moparmonkey]

Cosmoline. Lasts forever, will keep everything from rusting, and is what most of these parts were packed in originally.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cosmoline

[Don Coatney]

Coat them in grease, then melt candle wax to completely cover them, then place them in triple plastic bags using a vacuum device to remove all oxygen, then bury them somewhere in your back yard. Then when you need them in 2-3 hundred years if you remember where you buried them they should be good to go.

If you dont want to go through all this simply coat them in grease and place them in storage. They should last 50-60 years or until you are ready to use them.