Handgun cleaning:when, how often?

V

Vinnie Harold

New member
Hello.

I have a Glock, STI, Kahr, and CZ 75. All these eat 9mm FMJ when I take them to the range. I go to the range every other week, and shoot no more than 250 rounds through whichever weapon I take.

At the same time, I also take a SA USFA (45 long colt) or a 22 caliber Ruger Mark III.
These guns eat ball ammo, and the SA gets 100 rounds through while the Ruger will get 300+ rounds when I take it to the range.

By cleaning, all I mean is removing the slide, the recoil spring, and the barrel.
Then using Hoppes #9, Breakfree CLP, and gun oil, cleaning and lubricating these pieces and also down inside the frame.

How often is it necessary to perform this "cleaning" operation?

Am I missing anything?

Thanks

Vinnie
 
I clean every gun I fired at the range when I get home. Some clean after a specific amount of firing. Some clean when the moon is in a certain phase. I prefer knowing that my gun is clean and serviceable.
Gun cleaning shouldn't simply mean cleaning, it should also mean inspection for wear or potential problems.
 
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I would say every time you go to the range, clean it. If you use your guns as defensive tools as well as the range, you should take good care of them.

One note about the Glock. Make sure when you clean the face of the firing pin plate, just inside the ejection port, do not let any solvent or oil run down into that channel. (hole) I always clean this area with my muzzle end of the slide at 90 degrees. A detailed strip of the slide (removing the back plate on the rear of the slide) should be done after two to three thousand rounds by a Glock certified armorer. My two cents.
 
I clean every gun every time I come home from the range. The exception is if I'm planning another range trip in a day or two, then I'll hit them with the spray cleaner (CLP or similar) and give them a good wiping down with a clean cloth followed by a silicon cloth, but not get out the bore brush and cotton patches. I've recently bought a bore snake and that seems to do a great job for these "partial cleaning" days, and it seems like using it in conjunction with cotton patches might speed up the complete cleaning.

My loyal old 16 ga Ithaca M37 pump, which stands coyote guard by the front door 24/7 and gets the occasional buckshot round or two put through it, only gets cleaned at the 3/4 waxing Gibbous moon.
 
Everytime for me too.... except rimfire. I only clean my Ruger 10/22 and Mk II when they're too dirty to function well.
 
I may wipe my gun down but clean on periodic basis - kind of like changing oil on a car every few thousand miles or in this case every few hundred rounds. I know I am in the minority on this but as they say, "It's your train Jessie, you can rob it anyway you want."
 
Thanks guys.

I appreciate the input, but I was hoping for a different response. I have been cleaning after every range visit, and I was hoping that I was overdoing it.

But, I guess cleanliness is next to godliness goes for firearms as well.
 
I field strip and clean my guns (and mags) after every range trip. If left unshot, I clean anyway every six months or so.
 
If I'm firing corrosive ammunition, then I clean the weapon using a bore cleaner that can dissolve the salts. Hoppes #9 always worked for that and Blue Wonder seems to work as well. I found out a decade ago that windex and hot water weren't necessary for cleaning up after corrosive primers...

I used to clean my handguns every time I went to the range. Most of the time I was cleaning an already clean weapon. Now I just check over things, make sure it's properly lubricated and inspect the pistol.

I'd say mine are cleaned on average every 400 or 500 rounds. I usually fire no more than 200 rounds during a range session. I also load cleaner ammo, TMJ rounds or plated bullets for everything, which are many times cleaner in my pistols than FMJ ever was.

It also depends on the environment as well. A range environment is practically sterile (unless you live in the desert maybe) compared to a field environment like hunting, military, law enforcement, all day carry, etc.

You could also try doing something like cleaning one weapon each range trip and just lubricating and inspecting the rest.
 
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For target / plinking handguns, I don’t clean them until accuracy drops off, or malfunctions start. For .45acp or 9mm, that’s upwards of 500 rounds, or more. For .22LR it could be over 1000 rounds. I do however keep them well lubricated. For carry / self defense, clean them after each session. Mags, once a year wether they need it or not. I’m a firm believer that over cleaning wears a pistol more then shooting it.
 
Centerfire:
After a range session:
1. Run an oily patch wrapped on a plastic brush thru the barrel.
2. Clean what I can reach without disassembly with , tooth pick, Q-Tip and patch.
3. Wipe to remove excess grease, cleaner, etc.
4. Lube.
5. Basic wipe down to remove salts from sweat.
6. Every 500 or so rounds, I might disassemble to clean and maybe use a bronze brush depending on how bad the barrel looks.

Rimfire:
After a range session:
1. Run an oily patch tied onto a weedeater string.
2. Clean what I can reach without disassembly with tooth pick, Q-Tip and patch. Many times I use WD40 to spray out the trigger area of my Ruger MKIIs.
3. Wipe to remove excess grease, cleaner, etc.
4. Lube.
5. Basic wipe down to remove salts from sweat.
6. I avoid disassembly as much as I can.
Ruger MKIIs gets disassembled for cleaning once in a while.
Buckmarks and S&W 41 -- lost track when I last disassembled for cleaning.
7. When I disassemble, I might run a bronze brush a couple of times.

In 2010, approx 8000 rounds of .22LR mainly 3 pistols - 2 Ruger MKIIs and 1 Buckmark. I might have disassmbled the Rugers 1 or 2x each.
I can't remember If i ever used a bronze brush on my Buckmarks.

If I touch a firearm, it gets a wipe down after.
All my firearms get a periodic wipe down and with greasy/oily patch and oily patch thru the barrel for rust protection.
 
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TMJ or FMJ?

Testuser,

What is the difference between total metal jacket and full metal jacket?

I looked them up, and unless I missed some small detail, they appear to be the same.

Please educate me? I fire the red box Federal American Eagle 115 gr or 124 gr FMJ in my 9 mm's. How is TMJ different than that?

Thanks

Vinnie
 
Mike38 said:
For target / plinking handguns, I don’t clean them until accuracy drops off, or malfunctions start. For .45acp or 9mm, that’s upwards of 500 rounds, or more. For .22LR it could be over 1000 rounds. I do however keep them well lubricated. For carry / self defense, clean them after each session. Mags, once a year wether they need it or not. I’m a firm believer that over cleaning wears a pistol more then shooting it.
Click to expand...

That's my philosophy as well. At any given time only about 1/3 of my guns are "clean". The rest are "clean enough (for me)".
 
Total Metal Jacket means either an electroplated bullet or a FMJ bullet with a gas check. I load both types.

FMJ rounds leave the base of the lead bullet exposed. Hot powder gases melt the base of the bullet releasing lead into the atmosphere and some on your internals. Many times you'll find TMJ referred to as FMJ, so it's best to check the box. (For example, Ammoman.com lists TMJ rounds as FMJ. You can see TMJ printed on the box.)

TMJ is often used on indoor firing ranges to reduce airborne lead levels as only a small fraction of lead comes from firing a primer. I've found it has the added benefit of leaving my pistol cleaner. HP or SP rounds will also do the same thing, by covering up the base of the bullet.

On the factory side, CCI Blazers and Speer Lawman ammo tends to be loaded with TMJ bullets, as well, as Winclean and a few other lead free brands. Try a box and see what you think.

Here's a chart from Pri Partizan that summarizes it better than I can...

http://www.prvipartizan.com/handgun_b.php
 
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Carrying?

Remember a gun is not only dirty when firing a few hundred rounds. A day afield or in the case of a carry gun a day in your pocket can be just as dirty as firing. Every handgun gets cleaned every week even if not fired. Hunting guns get cleaned every time they go out. Everything is cleaned after firiing. Maybe i should buy stock in hoppes.

Vermonter.
 
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