Revolver cleaning

The OP's isn't going to get much of a clean just by using Ballistol. IMO, all Ballistol is just good for lube and making a gun smell bad.

I use Hoppe's #9 (an actual solvent), no CLP. Since all my revolvers are stainless, I use a brass brush to scrub the front of the cylinder and forcing cone to remove burnt on powder.

After all the scrubbing is done, I use either a Kleen Bore Lead Away patches of one of those Birchwood Casey lead removing cloth.

Once this is all done, I give the gun a good lubing.

Ed's Red works for me. I get the brass brushes from HF and scrub revolvers using lots of it.
On my stainless steel Redhawk a trip to the laundry tub and heavy duty degreaser's do the trick.

Driftwood Johnson said:

Howdy

I do not clean after every shooting session. And I gave up long ago trying to remove the carbon rings from the front of the cylinder, they are just part of shooting revolvers. ...

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ColtPythonElite said:

My dirty revolvers are like a badge of honor. I don't clean them until the cylinders starts binding up or I get tired of getting soot all over me from handling them.

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I have always enjoyed reading posts from these two guys and make it a point never to miss one. Now I can better understand why I like them so much.

If only Bob Wright had made a similar cleaning frequency comment in this thread, that 'trifecta' of revolver demi-gods would have had me dreaming sweet, but slightly dirty, revolver dreams tonight!

il.bill said:

I have always enjoyed reading posts from these two guys and make it a point never to miss one. Now I can better understand why I like them so much.

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Thank you for the kind words on my part.

I clean after every range session. A couple of years ago I gave up on that smelly toxic Hoppes I used for decades for some solvent from a company called Gunwerkz. I can clean indoors if need be and the wife never notices a smell. Works just fine.

If you're interested (I have no affiliation): https://gunwerkz.com/

For .38/.357 revolver chambers I use a .375 rifle brush. They are three times as long and a bit larger than your typical bore brush.

walnut1704 said:

I clean after every range session. A couple of years ago I gave up on that smelly toxic Hoppes I used for decades for some solvent from a company called Gunwerkz. I can clean indoors if need be and the wife never notices a smell. Works just fine.

If you're interested (I have no affiliation): https://gunwerkz.com/

For .38/.357 revolver chambers I use a .375 rifle brush. They are three times as long and a bit larger than your typical bore brush.

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Ever chuck that brush in a cordless drill and run it in your cylinders?

walnut1704 said:

... I gave up on that smelly toxic Hoppes ...

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Hm. If you are referring to Hoppes#9 you are, apparently, one of the few who does not enjoy the aroma (which comes, primarily, from amyl acetate, IIRC). Just sayin' ...

At $14 for eight ounces, I'll stick with my Ed's Red.

Kano Labs' Kroil will get 99% of anything out of the barrel and cylinder of any revolver.
On stainless steel I use a led-away cloth but NEVER on a blued gun.

George P said:

Ever chuck that brush in a cordless drill and run it in your cylinders?

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No, I've never found that necessary and I know somebody that screwed up a Dan Wesson .357 doing that, so I avoid it. I think he may have used a stainless brush though. He scored the heck out of the chambers and extraction became impossible. They tried to hone it out but then the chambers were a bit off so it went off for a new cylinder.

GBExpat said:

Hm. If you are referring to Hoppes#9 you are, apparently, one of the few who does not enjoy the aroma (which comes, primarily, from amyl acetate, IIRC). Just sayin' ...

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Doesn't bother me really. Can't say I like it. Wife complains about the smell.

jaguarxk120 said:

At $14 for eight ounces, I'll stick with my Ed's Red.

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I buy the bigger ones. ER works well and is cheap, but also toxic.

Hoppes is also toxic

kidneyboy said:

I beg to differ....

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I have a bottle of Ballistol and it doesn't clean very well. Ballistol is a decent lube, but that's about it. Ballistol is really good at making things smell funky.

GBExpat said:

Hm. If you are referring to Hoppes#9 you are, apparently, one of the few who does not enjoy the aroma (which comes, primarily, from amyl acetate, IIRC). Just sayin' ...

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I love the smell of Hoppe#9, it goes with cleaning guns. I find it funny that some people that say Hoppe#9 smells bad, use Ballistol.

I have tried Ballistol and don't find that it cleans very well.

I see old guys at gunshows greasing old guns up with it from stem to stern to make them look better. I guess it's good for that.

ColtPythonElite said:

I have tried Ballistol and don't find that it cleans very well.

I see old guys at gunshows greasing old guns up with it from stem to stern to make them look better. I guess it's good for that.

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Something that they could have accomplished for le$$ with a bottle of 10W-30 oil from the dollar store.

I remember I cleaned a gun with nothing but Ballistol, it made the safe smell like baby vomit.

stchman said:

Something that they could have accomplished for le$$ with a bottle of 10W-30 oil from the dollar store.

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Yeah, but they spray the wood, too.