guns over mantle?

[SpookBoy]

You see guns hung over a fireplace or a mantle from time to time, Will the smoke not damage the gun, cause rust or dry out protective oil? just askin before i go showing off the antiques

 

[TheManHimself]

If that much smoke is coming into your house rather than up the chimney, you'll probably want to clean your chimney and check the batteries in your carbon monoxide detectors.

IOW, if your fireplace is in good order, there won't be enough combustion byproducts contacting your firearms to have any effect on them. My grandfather kept his duck gun hung above the fireplace for years, and to this day the gun has a slight smell of the wood fire about it, but there's no rust or corrosion evident so far as I can tell.

 

[JonnyReb]

With a fire burning, hold a lit match at the top of the opening of the firebox. If you see the flame being pulled into the fireplace, you'fe fine. If the flame comes back torward the room, you have draft issues and will possibly damage you're guns.

Traditionally i've heard, guns were hung over the fireplace because it provided a warm, less rustable atmosphere to put them.

If you have vent free gas logs, DO NOT put your guns over them. They put out huge amounts of water vapor and will destroy the finish on them....J.R.