The Rusted Gear Hell Is Back: Here’s Where To Find Them After The Reset
We all signed the Expedition waiver, we all got our cool "Patchwork" skin, and now we are all realizing that we forgot how painful it is to upgrade the Gunsmith bench from scratch.
If you are like me, you recently looked at your stash, said "goodbye" to your fully upgraded base, and hit the reset button for the Expedition event. It felt liberating for about five minutes. Then you tried to craft a decent weapon and hit the wall. You need Rusted Gears. You remember them being annoying to find the first time, but you blocked out the trauma. Now, you are running through industrial zones finding absolutely nothing but disappointment.
Here is the reality: Rusted Gears are oddly rare for a world literally covered in decaying machinery. You can find high-tier blueprints like the Volcano easier than you can find a rusty cog. But I have found the route that actually works, so stop wasting your time looting random trash piles.
The Buried City Route
Forget the random industrial zones. You need to go to Buried City, specifically the Northwest section. This is the holy land of mechanical junk.
Your targets are Cars and Generators. These are the containers that spawn Rusted Gears. The problem is, you have to breach them. If you haven't re-leveled your breaching speed yet, this is going to be slow and loud, but it is the only way.
The "Generator & Car" Loop
There is a very specific path you want to run to maximize your odds. I have pulled two or three gears per run doing this, which is a miracle compared to the dry spell elsewhere.
Start at the Warehouse in the northwest. Do not just loot the shelves; you are looking for the heavy machinery. Specifically, check the eastern side of the building. There are two generators sitting next to each other there that seem to have a weirdly high drop rate for gears. Pop them open.
Next, move to Marano Station. You are not going for the ticket booths; you are going for the car park on the north end. This place is a goldmine. You need to breach the hood of every single car you see. It is tedious, and you are sitting duck while the animation plays, but the drop rate inside car engines is your best bet.
Finally, if you still haven't found what you need, hit the Parking Garage nearby. It is the same deal: generators and cars. Breach, loot, repeat.
The Secret Dam Spot (If You Dare)
If the Buried City is too hot, there is a sleeper spot on the Dam Battlegrounds map that people are starting to whisper about. Go to the North Exit, specifically near the Elevator Exit. There is a cluster of buses there.
For some reason, breaching and searching these buses has a ridiculously high spawn rate for Rusted Gears compared to normal cars. It’s risky because elevators are camper magnets, but if you spawn nearby, check the buses before you leave. One player even reported finding three gears in a single run just by hitting this spot.
Why You Are Struggling
The reason you can't find them is likely because you are looking in "industrial" areas generally, rather than targeting specific containers. Rusted Gears don't usually sit on shelves; they are inside things that used to function.
Once you have your pockets full, the extract is usually right next to the metro station there, so you can get out before a squad rolls up and steals your hard-earned trash. Good luck rebuilding that bench. You are going to need it.