Preserving an old recoil-pad?

[Tom Roller]

I have a period jostam anti-flinch on a VH and it's in pretty darn good shape for it's age. The shape is still perfect and while it's definitely hardening a bit it is still fairly pliable. It is starting to chip slightly at the edges.

Other than not storing the gun resting on the pad is there anything that can be done to help keep it in good condition?

[Dean Romig]

Probably not. Atmospheric conditions, exposure to oxygen, "ozone", sunlight, and "time" are the enemies of these old pads.

[Pete Lester]

Apply some Armor-All with a rag every now and then. It will make the pad a little bit slippery at first. I found it has made some old rubber pads a little more pliable and it is supposed to protect against UV damage.

[Tom Roller]

For some reason I had though that applying armor-all to old pads was a bad idea? I think I'll file that thought in the "bad information from the internet" folder.

Since it seems that no one makes or sells jostam anti-flinch pads nowadays it's hard to get info....is there any way to date the pads?

This one has the two patent dates on it - the later being 1927.

[Dean Romig]

There are conflicting schools of thought concerning the use of Armor-All.
Being in the automotive business I have heard from countless people that this product has caused vinyl dashboards to crack and split.

[Pete Lester]

Have used it for as long as I can remember on every vehicle I have owned without a problem. Used it on the dashboard and vinyl parts of the interior cab of a pickup truck I owned for 16 years and never garaged, never experienced anything other than the having the film attract dust.

Shooting twist and damascus barrels was thought to be a bad idea at one time too :)

[Dean Romig]

Like I said, "two schools of thought".

[Pete Lester]

Well here is my last thought. It's an old rubber pad starting to show signs of age. Either ArmorAll will add some life to it or it won't. My experience says it will probably extend it and most likely won't hurt it. Eventually the gun will need a new pad whether you ArmorAll it or not.

As an alternative I also would not be afraid to try rubbing a little Mink Oil on it which is for leather.

Bottom line it's a recoil pad that is not going to last as long as the gun.

[Norm Growden]

There's a used Jostam on ebay I ran across last night. I didn't really check it out closely, but it might be an upgrade to what you have.