cleaning ak

[random_gun]

I watched a bunch of utube videos on rifle cleaning and got so confused

per the manual with saiga sporting rifle(if I understand it correctly), run oiled brush from the muzzle then use patch, repeat this 8-10 times

that's a lot of work... swapping the head(brush and patch holder) 10 times, change patch 10 times, apply oil 10 times...

Will the brush and metal rod damage the chrome coating in the barrel if I clean it too often?

What I did was run oiled brush twice(pushing+twisting.. dunno if it would scratch the inside of the barrel), the then run patches(still pushing+twisting) until the patch comes out pretty much clean. I shot 10 rounds, the 4th patch came out clean... I did it from the chamber to muzzle like some dude did in utube video
Then I used patch to wipe gas tube, bolt, bolt carrier
sprayed oil on bolt(avoided spraying on firing pin) and bolt carrier(I only sprayed the parts in contact with the bolt), wipe off excess with patch

that's tons of work for 10 rounds...........

1. what is Hoppes 9 solvent for? the manual didn't mention anything about it
especially im using the brush
2. from muzzle or from chamber? (from chamber makes sense to me cuz muzzle is usually dirty, i don't want to push the gunk all the way onto the trigger group)
3. reming oil spray bottle(with teflon lube)? proper product to use?
4. should i oil all the moving parts(bolt carrier rail, recoil spring, trigger group)? Just spray on them?
5. what kind of cleaning do I need to do if I dropped the ak in the mud(no mud/water got into the gun as far as i can tell)?

Sorry im new to guns.... just confused

 

[The-Reaver]

Look man, I think your looking to deep into it.

Take your little spray bottle with water and ammonia in it. Soak it. Let it drip dry coat it in Rim oil and drop it back in your safe.

The only time my AK's get the real scrubbing is about once a year. Any other time than that they just get some ammonia and water for the corrosive salts. Then some Remoil out of the spray can to coat it.

 

[zstephens13]

You clean your AK-47?

Huh...

 

[chris in va]

I had a Saiga.

Take the cover off, field strip. Put some synthetic motor oil on a q-tip, lube the rails and any wear points. Done.

Don't over-think an AK rifle. It's not a precision instrument. Mine had about 2000 rounds through it, oiled maybe...5 times?

This might put things in perspective for you. AK-74, but pretty much the same gun as yours.

 

[AK103K]

I clean my AK's just like I clean anything else. It gets cleaned, and it gets cleaned every time its shot, 1 round or a 1000.


A couple of wet patches of solvent down the bore to get the loose stuff out, followed alternately by wet brushing and dry patching until the patches come out relatively clean. Clean the bolt carrier group and lube. Clean and then dry patch the gas tube.

AK or not, how can you not clean your gun?

 

[Gunnerboy]

An AR comes with a 22 page manuel on cleaning parts clearing jams etc , the AK comes with a page saying clean once it no longer cycles. your definately over looking it just swab the barrel and call her good unless its corrosive then hoppes 9 works great

 

[aka108]

Remove the action cover. Remove the recoil spring. Remove the bolt carrier/gas piston and the bolt. Remove the gas tube. Clean the barrel from the chamber end. Wet a patch with Hoppes and run it thru the bore. Then use the bore brush, about 10 in and out with it, then a few more patches with Hoppes and then some dry patches. Don't work yourself to death trying to get a white patch out pure white after it goes down the bore. Won't happen. Then, with a 12 guage shotgun bore brush, wrap a large patch saturated with Hoppes up and down through it. The run a dry patch thru. Wipe the bolt carrier and bolt with Hoppes and dry it. Wipe out the internals of the action and breech area. Put a little oil on the bolt. Reassemble the rifle, wipe the exterior off with a little oil and you are done. (This assumes you are using non-corrosive ammo).

 

[zoom6zoom]

run oiled brush from the muzzle then use patch

Oil isn't a cleaner. And always clean from the chamber end when possible.

 

[nathan]

Always keep them clean as what they taught in the Army.

 

[briansmithwins]

I clean all guns after every time I shoot:

the AK gets cleaned twice as I shoot corrosive ammo thru it. Even with corrosive ammo, I don't clean the bore all that much. I just run a wet ( with soapy water) brush thru the bore twice from chamber to muzzle (I use a pull thru) and let that set while I clean the rest of the rifle. After that, I run two patches down the bore to dry it and then run the brush, wet with oil, down the bore.

Bore gets a dry patch down it before shooting.

BSW

 

[bejay]

I rarely clean any of my rifles after shooting they may get oiled and a wipedown of the exterior to prevent any rust forming.
just not really needed unless your using corrosive ammo rare to find that ammo now in most calibers or blackpowder or you get it wet.
it is possible to do damage from the cleaning rod if you dont use a guide so i wouldnt over do it, but its your choice. would keep the bolt and moving parts of the action oiled but it probably doesnt need cleaned very often either.

 

[JohnnyK]

I use frog lube... the non petroleum cleaner/lube made by a navy seal... it goes into the metal which makes cleaning super easy... when I clean my AKs or anything else... the black crud comes off with no scrubbing at all... also non toxic, food grade material... much safer than oil based products...

 

[Cecil Sharps]

cleaning an ak

strap it to your bumper and drive thru a carwash. dry and lightly oil.

 

[USAF_Vet]

Definetly over thinking things. I took my M-44 out (granted, not an AK, but the same principle applies to cleaning any Ivan rifle) yesterday. Shot a bunch of corrosive 54r. Took it home, ran some windex soaked patches down the barrel with a but of spit for good measure. That was to disolve and remove the corrosive salts. Then a CLP soaked bore brush that has cotton material interwoven in the fibers for a half dozen trips down the barrel. then a more windex soaked patches until they came out clean. A spritz of Rem oil and a final dry patch down the barrel and done. Bolt was cleaned with a windex soaked paper towel, CLP scrubbed, oiled and dried.

Even all that was probably more than is really necessary, but the bore on my M-44 looks like it's chromed (and Mosins, AFAIK, never got chromed barrels).

 

[dprice3844444]

if your using cheap corrosive ammo,it needs to be cleaned everytime it's fired.if not,no worries.use a synthetic grease on the rails.

 

[mortablunt]

strap it to your bumper and drive thru a carwash. dry and lightly oil.

And that's giving it royal treatment.
____

You might be overthinking this one a little bit. An AK with non-corrosive ammunition is the easiest thing in the world to clean after your plate. I've even hear stories that Afghans clean their AK's by taking a complex bunch of knotted together bootlaces, dipping them in motor oil, opening the action, and pulling the the whole bunch out through the action. If you're using corrosive ammo, then something like Windex is in order to get rid of the corrosive detritrorum. For a thorough cleaning, remove the dust cover. strip it, take a cloth, dip in the motor oil, and rub it on the parts. Put some cleaning solution one the cleaning rod and run it through the barrel multiple times. It you're feeling super picky, then you can try to blast out bits of dust with a can of compressed air. Motor oil works as lube. Dry off excess oil with a cloth unless you're going to immediately go shoot it, because excess oil resting in the metal parts can rust it. The last step is to put it back together. and maybe pull on the charging handle a few times to check it.

 

[briansmithwins]

because excess oil resting in the metal parts can rust it.

Really? Care to explain how?

BSW

 

[mortablunt]

^ Never seen it myself., but I always assumed that was why it was a bad idea to not take care of excess lubrication. I've been told that it's not good for a firearm's longevity if excessive amounts of oil are applied.

 

[spartand003]

I'm not going to lie, I've never cleaned mine....

 

[Sam1911]

Leaving extra oil won't hurt a thing, except stain the carpet in your gun safe when it leaks out.

I shoot corrosive ammo in my AKs. When I get home I strip them down and dump boiling water over or through the bits to wash out the corrosive salts. Then I clean with Hoppes and lube as usual with Auto Trans Fluid. (Like I usually use on all my guns.)

No mystery. No reason to let them get rusty. If it wasn't for the corrosive stuff (which you can just about watch create rust blossoms in your gas system if you don't get on it), I'd probably clean much more rarely.