So not too long ago it was that time again and I had to qualify once again to retain deployable status. Typical fair of training as it was, the real interesting bit came when me and the other folks who shot with me had to actually clean the rifles we were issued.
These had to be some of the most filthy M4’s I have ever seen. Even more so than the M16 A2’s that I practiced with back in BMT. The rifles looked like they hadn’t been touched at all since the last 2-3 range sessions they’d been through.
The carbon build up along the O-ring and the gas key was so intense that it took a dental pick and probably at least a good 15-20 minutes me scraping away at it just to get it visible again. Corrosion was evident on the bolt itself as well as the firing pin which also required a great deal of care. Most of our cleaning kits were lacking even the most basic cleaning supplies and we were supplied with a small dallop of CLP to clean both the bolt and Barrel, which is clearly NOT what was needed to get these rifles cleaned up properly (good enough to keep going is the goal I suppose). The cleaning brushes and rods looked ancient and likely wouldn’t provide a good cleaning to the bore even with 4-5 passes due to the wear and tear I saw on them.
Me and about 4 others in my group commented on this and the instructors stated that the rifles are cleaned after every range session, however, due to the porous nature of the metals, carbon seeps into the metals and after they sit for a while, they come out and combined with firing close to 200+ rounds per student, their carbon fouling is quite bad by the end of the day. They get not nearly every day, so the issue just keeps getting worse and never has a chance to clear up.
I have never ever heard of this before and wasn’t sure if they were just speaking out of their asses or not, but figured more educated folks could enlighten me.
Is this a thing? I’ve shot hundreds of rounds through my own AR15 in a single session, and never had this ever happened with my own personal rifle, granted, it goes to the range, gets cleaned and is only shot sparingly these days due to budget constraints.
These had to be some of the most filthy M4’s I have ever seen. Even more so than the M16 A2’s that I practiced with back in BMT. The rifles looked like they hadn’t been touched at all since the last 2-3 range sessions they’d been through.
The carbon build up along the O-ring and the gas key was so intense that it took a dental pick and probably at least a good 15-20 minutes me scraping away at it just to get it visible again. Corrosion was evident on the bolt itself as well as the firing pin which also required a great deal of care. Most of our cleaning kits were lacking even the most basic cleaning supplies and we were supplied with a small dallop of CLP to clean both the bolt and Barrel, which is clearly NOT what was needed to get these rifles cleaned up properly (good enough to keep going is the goal I suppose). The cleaning brushes and rods looked ancient and likely wouldn’t provide a good cleaning to the bore even with 4-5 passes due to the wear and tear I saw on them.
Me and about 4 others in my group commented on this and the instructors stated that the rifles are cleaned after every range session, however, due to the porous nature of the metals, carbon seeps into the metals and after they sit for a while, they come out and combined with firing close to 200+ rounds per student, their carbon fouling is quite bad by the end of the day. They get not nearly every day, so the issue just keeps getting worse and never has a chance to clear up.
I have never ever heard of this before and wasn’t sure if they were just speaking out of their asses or not, but figured more educated folks could enlighten me.
Is this a thing? I’ve shot hundreds of rounds through my own AR15 in a single session, and never had this ever happened with my own personal rifle, granted, it goes to the range, gets cleaned and is only shot sparingly these days due to budget constraints.
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