How often (timewise) do you clean your gun, regardless of usage?

How often (timewise) do you clean your gun if they don't get used?

  • More than once a month

    Votes: 6 7.9%

  • Once a month

    Votes: 10 13.2%

  • Once every 2-3 months

    Votes: 17 22.4%

  • About once every 6 months

    Votes: 11 14.5%

  • About once a year

    Votes: 15 19.7%

  • I wait more than a year to clean if they don't get used

    Votes: 17 22.4%
  • Total voters
    76
D

duucfho

New member
OK, this poll is a little different than what Visaman posted here
http://www.thefiringline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=340927

His poll asked basically after how many rounds would you clean your gun. I think most everyone here agrees that guns get cleaned after every use, regardless of rounds.

I wanted to know, how often do you clean your guns regardless if they DON'T get used? Say you have a bunch of guns in your safe, and unfortunately don't get to shoot all of them as often as you like (safe queens?). How long do they sit in your safe before you clean them again? A month? A couple months? Once a year?

I only make it out to the range once every month or two. Each time I shoot all my guns, then clean them afterward. But as my collection grows (damn gun bug), I can't realistically take all of my guns, so some will sit longer in between uses. Just curious how often others clean.
 
Roughly once a year I pull out anything that hasn't been shot/cleaned recently and give it a good inspection and a wipedown with lube/protectant. I don't have that much so it's not a great trial to do.
 
Ill wipe my guns down and reoil them about once every couple weeks fired or not just to keep every thing lubed and smooth. You never know when you will need to fire it and i dont want any problems, and it gives me a chance to play with them a little.
 
I would never clean a gun if I haven't fired it unless it's new, new to me, or been in someone else's care or possession. Over-zealous cleaning has done more to harm firearms that normal use.

For enjoyment and familiarity, I will have them out of the safe often.

I suppose if I had some that sat for a number of years without being fired I might take them apart and give them a quick touch-up or inspection, but no more than that.
 
My carry gun about once a month, if I didn't shoot it, but I doubt it would ever go that long. If I shoot, it gets cleaned. Everything else gets cleaned when it gets shot, never in between.


I think most everyone here agrees that guns get cleaned after every use, regardless of rounds.
Click to expand...

There was a thread regarding this quite recently. It depends on whether or not you think a gun "needs" to be cleaned after being shot. I don't think I'd want a gun that "needed" to be cleaned every time I shot it in order to keep functioning. I do it because I want clean guns and I think it's the best way to take care of them and check for problems, not because I "need" to clean it.
 
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mike, I kind-of like it, too.
I was the first person to vote for "every 6 months" though.
I check on my guns at least once a month, but if there are no spots and they all look good, I don't get them all out to clean them.
I will admit that I've let some sit well over a year, though.

Shooting is a totally different story. I may wait a day or two if I get tied up, but usually it's directly after a range trip. Carry guns get it when they get dirty or get shot.
 
I think most everyone here agrees that guns get cleaned after every use, regardless of rounds.
Click to expand...
I would disagree with that. If your gun is so sensitive you feel you need to clean it after just a few rounds, you should consider another gun, IMO. For the topic, I clean unfired guns annually, more so I can inspect them and make sure there aren't any issues than anything else.
 
My carry gun about once a month, if I didn't shoot it, but I doubt it would ever go that long. If I shoot, it gets cleaned. Everything else gets cleaned when it gets shot, never in between.
Click to expand...

This :)
 
none of mine just sit

I clean 'em rarely, but always before pistolsmithing.

I don't clean 'em after shooting them; I shoot them after cleaning them to confirm their reliable function; know what I mean?
 
"know what I mean?"

I said that once on one of these boards and was soundly hooted at and called names. "What's the matter, don't you know how to put 'em back together." I still clean my carry guns and then shoot a mag/cylinder before carrying.

Meanwhile, any of my guns that are going to sit for extended periods are wiped down with RIG - inside and out - and are good for years.

The older I get the less I worry about having perfectly clean guns. I do wipe off the fingerprints. The safe queens get cleaned the most thoroughly.

After I bought my Kimber Stainless Gold Match in '99 I decided to shoot it more and clean it less. I only field stripped it, cleaned the bore, wiped out the big chunks of crud and relubed it. Every 5,000 rounds I'd hose the frame out with gunscrubber and spritz a little anti-rust spray (like Barricade) down in the guts. It still runs fine with no appreciable wear.

John
 
Carry guns get it once a month. Everything else after the range, and check in on 'em now and then; and after the range can still be once a month :D
 
If they aren't getting shot they get an annual inspection / cleaning. I live in a very arid climate though... if there was ever any moisture here I might do it more frequently...
 
Arid here in Virginia is 40% to 50% RH. Right now it's 56*F and 83% RH. It's not raining or foggy either.

Ha, I finally remembered that Barricade used to be called Sheath. I was drawing a blank last night and was too lazy to walk to the basement and look at a can. Great stuff, but I still stocked up on RIG when they discontinued it.

JT
 
Blued finish that I really care about at least oil it once a month.

Stainless,does'nt require all that attention.

Once every three months.

But I will never just forget to oil or clean my guns at least every several months and see if they are o.k..

I clean them every time after I fire them though.

Too many horror stories of forgotten guns getting corrosion on them.
 
I just opened the safe and pulled everything out and cleaned it all up. Took about 6 hours. The safe has about 3x what it was designed for. No more room for anything, my daughter's Brit 303 and 20 ga pump have a home in her room, no room in the safe.

I guess it is time for another safe....I want to add a gun/safe room to the house. Would be cool!

Everything is clean and happy. found some new scratches from my move 3 years ago. There are only a couple that are not repairable. The scratched in the wood was no problem, but the couple new scratches in the blue is bugging me.

Mel :cool:
 
I generally clean my guns when they are fired, so most of my handguns get cleaned fairly regularly.

My carry gun gets cleaned once every 3-4 weeks if its not shot.

My other guns, pistols and rifles, get cleaned maybe once a year if I haven't shot them. I probably have a few rifles that haven't been cleaned in 3 years or more. Maybe I should consider selling some.....
 
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