Gun Cleaning

G

Geek-With-A-Gun

New member
Is it necessary to clean your gun after each visit to the range? I don't have a lot of time to shoot so I usually go during lunch when possible. I put between 50-100 round through the barrel and clean my gun after each visit. Is this overkill? I figured that there is no such thing as a gun that is too clean.
 
If you shoot corosive ammo(old miltary surplus, commonly soviet stuff) clean it ASAP of you will have rust in the barrel in hours.
Me peorsonaly I will put solovent in it at the range then clean it when I get home. I live a 15 minute drive from the range. I keep mine clean, but I was raised that way. Take care of the guns that take care of you.
Kinda like do you change the oil in your car at the recomended intervals?
 
I believe you will find the job easier the sooner the gun is cleaned after shooting. The gunk and residue has a tendency to harden as time goes on making the complete cleanup a little more difficult. I don't believe your gun(s) will suffer if you shoot at lunch and then clean 'em up in the evening. However, I am not a fan of shooting and letting the gun(s) sit for days on end.

Some people never clean their guns and those guns will most likely fail when they are needed the most. My personal preference, and it is a mind-set, is to clean my gun(s) immediately upon returning home from the range. I make it part of the total shooting experience and find it enjoyable and relaxing.

I learned my lessons while embedded deep into the jungles of Vietnam with a first generation M-16. I cleaned my rifle 3 times a day and it never failed or jammed, unlike some of my more unfortunate comrades that scoffed at me and had jams and failures, some of which may have cost them their lives.

I never forgot the words of one of my Drill Sargent's, "A clean rifle is a happy rifle, and a happy rifle will save your life one day." I have applied that to all my guns.
 
You may be putting wear on the gun when you clean it. Depending on how and to what extent. So my advice is not to overdo it.
 
I don't believe it is truly necessary unless you shoot old mil-srup ammo. I clean mine after every range trip just because my father was military and that is what he taught me. Probably overkill but I there are worse habits in life!:D
When I go deer hunting and I fire my rifle, I clean it once I get home. Just my two cents!
 
I don't think it's 100% necessary to do every time, but I like to do it anyway. If I don't clean mine regularly, I find them more difficult to clean down the road.

Same goes for my 1960's Gibson guitar. Every fingerprint is lifted and polished every time it goes back into it's case.
 
After short sessions like that I don't usually break out the copper solvents or anything. I just field-strip it, wipe out whatever light gunk may be in there, reapply lube, and call it good. A few patches with a little CLP on them and then a few dry patches for the bore. Gets the powder scum out.

After a few short sessions I'll go whole-hog and go after the copper fouling in the barrel.
 
This is one of those hotly debated topics with some strong opinions on both sides. I'm perhaps middle of the road and usually but not always clean my guns after each range visit. I am EXTREMELY careful to avoid damage to the muzzle crown with cleaning rod by cleaning from chamber whenever possible and using rod guide when cleaning from the muzzle.
 
A lot of people who have never had to rely upon their firearms for their lives think cleaning is not important. I beg to differ.

A clean firearm is a functional firearm. Powder and residue attract moisture. No firearm material except plastic is immune from rust; and plastic is not immune from malfunction due to residue. I think that if you value your firearms, and want to keep them for a long time, your present careful cleaning after each session is most wise. If you are using these same firearms for self defense then the advantage of keeping them clean is doubly important. There is a reality based reason that every military in the world and in the history of firearms has insisted upon keeping its weapons scrupulously clean.
 
There's a thread right now on the S & W forum dealing with the identical issue. I'm surprised at how many people acknowledge that they either never clean their guns or clean them infrequently. And, yet, there seems to be a fair consensus over at the S & W forum that shooting dirty doesn't really seem to harm accuracy or performance.

I'm personally pretty dubious about that but, then, I'm a fanatic about keeping my guns clean. I clean after every trip to the range, no matter how few rounds go down the barrel. All of my guns are cleaner today than when they arrived from the factory. And, all of them -- even those which I've owned for years and through which I've put 1000s of rounds -- shoot as accurately as they did the day that I bought them.
 
Cleaning?

I wipe down the outside and put a brush thru the cylinder's chambers and/or bore followed by a dry patch or two. after about 500 rounds I'll field strip pistols for a solvent cleaning and lube. Rifles get this treatment every 200 rounds or so. This depends on the type of primer, corrosive ammo demands immediate cleaning the proper way, with hot water.
Thst's the way I do it.:cool:
 
I'm new to firearms ownership, having only purchased my first gun a few months ago, so take my opinions with that in knowledge.

I've done a lot of reading on the subject, from people's experiences all over the spectrum to various manufacturers' recommended procedures.

I've decided on the following for my 3 guns (Sig Sauer P6, S&W 59, Ruger Mark II):

  • After every range trip, regardless of number of rounds fired:
    1. Field strip
    2. Wipe down everything inside and out with silicon-impregnated cleaning cloth
    3. Lubricate as recommended by the manufacturer for that particular firearm
  • Every 500 rounds, or one month (whichever comes first)
    1. Field strip
    2. Clean bore thoroughly with solvent as recommended by the manufacturer for that particular firearm
    3. Wipe down everything inside and out with silicon-impregnated cleaning cloth
    4. Disassemble magazine
    5. Clean and lubricate magazine as recommended by the manufacturer for that particular firearm
    6. Lubricate the rest of the gun as recommended by the manufacturer for that particular firearm
 
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Required or needed? no
Would i clean it? yes
I just cant stand to think one of my guns is dirty,let alone one thats my ccw.
Ive actually not shot a gun at the range since i wanted a clean gun to carry that day.I did let my guns sit 24 hours once as it was to late at night and i was tired,but you can bet it was done promptly the next day.

Im way to anal about cleaning,it doesn't help as much as id would like to think it does.But over many years it can make a difference.
The best reason i can give for doing it,is it allows for close inspection of the gun and internals.
Plus i enjoy handling them for some odd reason.
 
I've come to the conclusion that many of today's shooters were trained in gun cleaning practices by their fathers, who were WWII vets.

WWII weapons generally shot corrosive ammo and regular and thorough cleaning was absolutely necessary. We don't have to shoot corrosive ammo for most guns, any more -- but the habits of years past continue to repeat themselves.

I'll wipe a gun down and maybe even use a "bore snake"-type device after a range trip, but unless lead buildup is an issue, won't clean it like it's got to be carried into a surgical suite in the next few minutes.

I've taken both a CZ and a Glock, neither of which were carry guns, and shot them over a long period without cleaning, just to see what they'd do. Both continued to function flawlessly, for almost a year, with several thousand rounds through both. I finally cleaned them both thoroughly, because I was afraid someone would see them in their dirty condition. <grin> Maybe not all guns will do that, but many will.

Clean them as often as you want.
 
No, it is not necessary to clean every time you shoot. I wipe them down after every range session but no more. I have this revolutionary concept, I clean them when they need it. ;)
 
Just another 2 cents, but it seems to me that rust, grit and general filth (what ever that may be) will damage a firearm far quicker and more extensively than disassembling and cleaning after ever shooting session.

But like others I was taught to clean my firearms after every trip to the firing range, dirt pit or hunting trip.
 
I think that there's a distinction to be made between maintenance cleaning and strip cleaning. The former being simple steps like a flushing, wipe down and lubrication, while the latter entails breaking down the firearm, de-lubing, defouling, etc..

What I've found to be very effective is 'flushing' my pistols w/ break free after a range session. I use the aerosolized bottle to soak the chamber, bore and exposed underside of the slide, then I put the pistol nose down into a dish rack. Aerosolized break free foams easily, which is helpful because this causes it to coat surfaces more evenly.

When I've strip cleaned the pistols that I've maintained in this way, it's been apparent that the flushing works. I shoot about 3500 rds a year through a match 1911 that I may only break down once a year, w/o seeing any decline in accuracy or reliability. This is w/ ball ammo.
 
Just another 2 cents, but it seems to me that rust, grit and general filth (what ever that may be) will damage a firearm far quicker and more extensively than disassembling and cleaning after ever shooting session.
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Experience would indicate otherwise. Can't remember the last time I saw a firearm worn out from shooting but there have been a truckload that I would NOT buy because of the cleaning practices of its previous owner.


But like others I was taught to clean my firearms after every trip to the firing range, dirt pit or hunting trip.
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So was I and I do so until I did a little reading and decided to question the practice. Turns out that the world will not end if you do not breakdown and clean a gun every time you use it. It's an outdated practice that may be necessary for the military but really serves no purpose outside that realm.
 
What cleaning practices do some feel is harmful to a firearm?
I'd like to know so I could avoid them.
 
Who ever got the notion that non-corrosive ammo did not leave a corrosive residue wasn't thinking clearly. Any residue is corrosive...even oil.

Clean any tool you want to function properly the next time you use it. Clean any tool you want to preserve as much as possible. In the case of guns its even wise to clean a "clean gun" you put away last season and atleast once a year when retained in storage.

"Cleaning" permits more than just removing firing residue. In the process you should note any areas of wear, rust, missing/damaged pieces, etc. that you might not notice if you just stick it away untended.

Just because modern materiels may permit you to neglect something with no apparent harm doesn't mean no harm is happening. The only advantage I can see to deliberate negect is if one wishes an excuse to replace it earlier instead of later.

I consider cleaning my guns to be a part of shooting them and a range session is immediately followed by a cleaning session. Besides, I enjoy the whole process, know how, and am just not that lazy. But if I feel poorly or am tired when I get home; as long as they're not soaking wet (duck hunt) or not black powder arms, I know I can wait until tomorrow without fear.

Regards,

TB
 
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