Advice on Cleaning a Chrome Colt Python

[Agsalaska]

Good afternoon fellow High Roaders,

EDIT- NICKEL, NOT CHROME. NOT SURE WHY I TYPED THAT AND YES I KNOW THE DIFFERENCE.

A couple of years ago I acquired a 1984 Colt Python. It has been fired I'm guessing a couple of hundred times but is in excellent condition.

As strange as it sounds I put it in the safe that day and just left it there. It was pretty clean and all of that. I watched a video this week on how Colt revolver triggers stack in comparison to S&W revolvers and decided to pull it out.

Now I am going to go shoot it, probably Friday. But my question is cleaning. I converted to Ballistol from Hoppes some time ago and use it pretty much exclusively(thanks hickok45). But several internet smart people say that Ballistol is bad for nickel guns and whatever I do don't use it.

So questions.

1. Is that true
2. How would you clean this gun if you took it to the range and shot it a couple of times a year.

Thanks in advance for the feedback.

 

[Bazoo]

I’m not super familiar with pythons. If I’m not mistaken it would be nickel. Hoppes 9 will eat nickel if left on for any length of time.

Not sure about ballistol as it stinks.

 

[Agsalaska]

Reverse Angle. I do have original Colt grips to go with it.

 

[Pat Riot]

Wow! That’s a beauty!

 

[Bazoo]

The way I’d clean it for limited shooting would be spray it all over with remoil, wipe the dirt out of it with a rag. Toothbrush the extractor star and under the star. That should be dry. Then, drop of lube like hoppes oil down the cocked hammer face. Drop up the trigger opening. Drop on the hand, and another on the bolt. Wipe anything that runs out of the openings dry. Never use a dirty rag to wipe the gun as it will scratch.

 

[Agsalaska]

Yes it is nickel. I have no idea why I said chrome. I was looking at rims for my truck earlier and it must be stuck in my head.

 

[.38 Special]

On a damaged surface it is at least theoretically possible for just about any oil to work its way under the plating and eventually cause it to lift. I don't doubt it has happened - which probably explains why nearly any gun care product has, at one time or another, been accused of ruining plated guns - but have never personally seen it during decades of fooling around with guns.

I use Ballistol - and Hoppe's, and WD-40, and whatever else is on hand - on nickeled guns without hesitation, and have never had any issues.

As for the rest, I personally wipe off any powder fouling with a rag dampened with, usually, WD-40 - although if the can of Ballistol is closer to hand, that's what I'll grab. Then I'll run a patch wet with same down the bore. Then, with the cylinder open, I'll place a clean white patch on the breech face, angle the gun so that light shines on the patch, and look down the muzzle for either lead or copper fouling. If there is lead I will tear it out with Chore Boy on a brush. If there is copper I will use a mild abrasive, like JB Bore Paste, to remove it. (Copper solvent with ammonia is one product which probably is not a good idea for use on nickel plating, and is why I tend to stick with cast bullets in plated guns.)

Once a year (less often on infrequently used guns) I pop the side plate, flush the works with brake cleaner (or something like Simple Green, if you are really worried about the plating), and then add a drop of light oil to each pin and blow it through the works with compressed air.

And that's it. I've been accused of "under-cleaning" - but my accusers are all anal-retentive lunatics.

 

[JCooperfan1911]

Denatured alcohol as solvent and bore butter to lube the gun and surface.

 

[Bazoo]

Unless you have serious fouling, a wet patch followed by a dry patch is all I give the bore normally.

Everyone does it similar but different and there isn’t any real wrong way. I too use wd40 sometimes, especially for fouling and soot in the frame opening. But many speak against it.

 

[J-Bar]

I was warned not to use any kind of copper solvent when cleaning a nickel gun, because the nickel is probably bonded to a copper coat underneath. If the copper solvent gets under the nickel, the nickel starts to peel.

I use Kroil on mine, then polish the nickel with Flitz. Thanks Bannockburn for the guidance.

 

[Old Dog]

Wait, what?! OP picked up a pristine nickel Python and just put it away for "a couple of years?" That bad boy looks friggin' awesome; I probably would've taken it to bed with me every night for the first couple of weeks...

I think we had a thread a while back when one of our members, can't remember who, but has a background in chemical engineering, talked about using solvents such as Hoppes #9 on nickel. I'll see if I can dredge it up. The search feature didn't find it for me...

I have only one nickel handgun, a M10 snub, and I've used everything in my inventory (including Hoppes) on it with no harm to the finish. But I do make sure after cleaning to wipe it down quite carefully with a clean microfiber towel...

 

[Jonesy814]

Avoid any gun cleaning product that contains ammonia, like Hoppes #9

 

[Agsalaska]

Fair. I am shocked I did it. Right before Covid hit I bought several guns in an estate type transaction and within just a couple of weeks the world went Covid sideways. I got two of the guns to the range but not the others. Because of that I really haven't done a lot of recreation shooting. Meanwhile I had to teach both my children how to shoot and shoot deer, hunted heavily all seasons, and changed my EDC gun. Just been busy with other projects.

.

 

[doubleh]

91% alcohol to clean, Mobil 1 for lube, and Johnson's paste wax for protection.