Look forward to the replies. I would have assumed just leaving them as-is in manufactures original packaging,  which I guessed would have been designed to keep them preserved for a good long while.    But don't really know.

I would soak them in mineral spirits , dry them, and then spray them with Birchwood Casey Barricade.
Then wrap them in vapor wrap

https://www.brownells.com/gun-cleaning-chemicals/oils-lubricants/rust-prevention/6-oz-barricade-sku167016800-4955-11073.aspx


https://www.brownells.com/gunsmith-tools-supplies/shop-accessories-supplies/gun-storage-materials/gun-wrap-paper/gunwrap-paper-prod1197.aspx

I use vaccum sealed bags... the food saver  ones. A light coat of oil and I seal them up. Have more than a couple of rifles and parts stored that way.

Pre-clean with mineral spirits as above.  Who knows what manufacturers’ preservative coatings are, but I don’t trust them.  Liberally wipe down all parts with a quality, mineral-based oil.  (That includes “synthetic oils”, which use a petroleum base.  Just don’t goof and use a vegetable-based oil…). Don’t “soak” the parts, but don’t be stingy - they shouldn’t drip, but should be so oily that you can easily see the oil.  Get the insides of the parts (especially things like bolts) well oiled too.

Wrap assemblies in two thicknesses of butcher paper - this keeps them from becoming stuck to whatever you put them in.  I like unbleached craft paper for this kind of thing; it’s dense and not absorbent. You don’t need coated paper.

Now put the wrapped stuff in your 6-mil bags with the VCI paper.  My VCI paper is in 4” squares; one of those should be plenty for a good-sized assembly.  

Press the air out and zip the bags.  For truly long-term storage, you could over-wrap the zipper bags with clear package tape.  I’d fold the zipper part over and tape it down against the rest of the bag to both ensure a seal and provide a sort of “tamper evident” wrap.

This process is based on a variety of methods I’ve seen used to protect military parts.  Nickel-plated electronic components, bare aluminum, steel fasteners with whatever kind of finish, you name it.  The Corrosion Control instructor in my class put it simply: “you need air for corrosion, tarnish and deterioration, so keep air away from your parts.”  Sure, a vacuum bag would remove most of the air from the bag, but whatever chemicals may be on the parts could break down the bag.  Oil directly on the parts will keep air away from them better than anything.

I’d use LPS-3. It’s made to prevent corrosion on steel long-term.

I’ve had great results with it in fertilizer environments.

LPS3 good stuff. Dries to a waxy consistency. Used it quite a bit in aviation as a long term preservative on airframes.

CRC SP400.

Bad ass.

^ That’s a good one too. Buddy of mine uses it in the same application I do and I think it holds up a little better, but is harder to clean off.  Would be no big deal on gun parts.

A good cleaning is definitely mandatory before use.

Toluene works great.

I took some brown packing paper and put the bolts in it, hosed it down with gun oil then vacuum sealed them in foodsaver bags.

Have four bolt kits and two full BCGs done this way. I don't really ever intend to open them unless I see something amiss in which case I will clean them off with brake cleaner and re-oil and seal in new bags. The paper was really just to keep the sharp edges of the bolt lugs and the gas key from compromising the integrity of the vacuum seal.

There is some info out there that using oil with good VCI is counter-productive.  The VCI can't get to the surface through the oil, and it's kind of redundant.  I've seen some suggestions to pack parts dry with VCI, but I'm too chicken for that.

I'd either pack them in oil in regular plastic, or use VCI.  I don't think there's a need for both, but I am not an expert.

Zerust and Poly Gun Bags are a good source for the stuff.  Zerust sells VCI products for industry, installing into electrical boxes, etc.  A while back I repacked stuff in Zerust, and used their small plastic pieces in all my little parts containers/bags.  So far so good, and I just tossed them in.

ETA: Also have a couple VCI emitters in my safe for good measure.  They last a couple years.  I can tell if I go a week between opening the safe, everything has been coated.

Way too much complexity here.

Clean the parts as usual using whatever process and products you like. Normal solvents, brushes, picks, q-tips, etc are totally fine.

Once everything is clean, heavily coat the parts with a zero solvent content rust preventative and put them in a zip-lock bag. Fluid film, Woolwax and Corrosion-X are the main ones I know of and for long term storage, I would use fluid film. It is easy to find at lowes, napa and autozone; easy to use and perfect for this application.

The VCI removes moisture from the inside of the Bag ,etc.
They also remove any oil on the part.
So a year later the part comes out of the bag completely dry.

Maybe I am lucky but I had luck storing a long gun for 8 months without ever taking it out of a pelican case. All I did was put a evadry in the case and the long gun was in a gun sock. It was cleaned normally like how I always do.

No rust, nothing. It worked right out of the box without issue.

I live near a beach too and humid is roughly 60% where I am. I think you guys are way overthinking it. It's a gun and it has rust preventatives on it already as it is not raw steel that is exposed. You can take it out in the rain, sing a song, and come back in and it'll still be a-ok.

This works.  I have a couple that have been sitting in a safe for 10 years, they are just fine.

Doing something simple would never do on AR15dotCom.  You must go full bore and complicated or not at all.

True.

I just put an upper away for long term storage using the method I described. I will be sure to post pictures of the pile of the destruction I am left with when my method fails and everything turns to a rusty pile of dust in the next few weeks.

Want to know how I store my spare bolts? I got them in a ziploc bag and shoved into a gym bag (aka "spare parts bag") that I keep spare parts in.

I have really expensive HK416 bcgs and some really nice Colt ones that I keep as spare. Been doing this for the past 12 years and haven't noticed any sort of rust or anything in any of them that would suggest this is incorrect.

So I think you're over thinking it. So long as you're not storing it in the basement or something but I keep mine in a room closet that on average has about 50-60% humidity.

Keep it inside the house with you.