maintenances depends on what you mean. I've ran 1911's so dirty that the solid carbon buildup gets so heavy it ejects and hits me hard enough to hurt.
I've ran a 9mm AR so dirty that it shot 3' to the left from the flash hider building up.
In the case of the pistol, hand fitting, periodic spring checks and extractor tension (with a scale) were done.
In the case of the 9mm AR, soaking the barrel end in gasoline for a few days was necessary.
But this was every few hundred to thousand round. I've noticed that even the low maintenance models have issues at that range.
I've had more real "jams" in revolvers than auto's. Crimp jump. Cylinder gap seize. It happens.
A Glock will get mad eventually. An AK probably will to. Okay, maybe not an AK.
A Ford 6.0 Diesel engine requires far less maintenance on paper than a GM 350 SB V8. Ask anyone who's owned that 6.0 how that worked out?
I put about 20 minutes into my "finicky guns" (870, SAA, 1911, AR10/9) every few years.
Yea I put about 3 minutes into my G26 and P11 every few years.
It isn't much overall.
Now that said, you are right. After owning a Marlin, I would NOT want a Winchester. I used to love the Winchester's lines. but once I got used to the hump on the bottom of the Marlin the Winchester lost its appeal. Once I had to fix a Winchester 1894 and saw how much less logical it was than the marlin, I decided that hump was a feature. and learned to love it. Now I love Marlin lines, and the Winchester is missing something.
Maintenance had no real part in what I like. Most firearms run fine even if you ignore whats needed. What happens is early wear. But for most people that a non-issue.
An in-spec 1911 will run fine dry and dirty. It will last 100,000 round dry and dirty. It may malfunction from time to time, but who would know? Get it tuned and cared for and it will last 800,000 round and malfunctions about 30 times in that period.
Most "High volume shooters" I know run 50-100 round over an hour, a few times a year.
If that is a problem, your gun is junk. Most will do fine. At the rate an average shooter operates you never have to clean, oil or cool any firearm that runs smokeless powder.
I've ran a 9mm AR so dirty that it shot 3' to the left from the flash hider building up.
In the case of the pistol, hand fitting, periodic spring checks and extractor tension (with a scale) were done.
In the case of the 9mm AR, soaking the barrel end in gasoline for a few days was necessary.
But this was every few hundred to thousand round. I've noticed that even the low maintenance models have issues at that range.
I've had more real "jams" in revolvers than auto's. Crimp jump. Cylinder gap seize. It happens.
A Glock will get mad eventually. An AK probably will to. Okay, maybe not an AK.
A Ford 6.0 Diesel engine requires far less maintenance on paper than a GM 350 SB V8. Ask anyone who's owned that 6.0 how that worked out?
I put about 20 minutes into my "finicky guns" (870, SAA, 1911, AR10/9) every few years.
Yea I put about 3 minutes into my G26 and P11 every few years.
It isn't much overall.
Now that said, you are right. After owning a Marlin, I would NOT want a Winchester. I used to love the Winchester's lines. but once I got used to the hump on the bottom of the Marlin the Winchester lost its appeal. Once I had to fix a Winchester 1894 and saw how much less logical it was than the marlin, I decided that hump was a feature. and learned to love it. Now I love Marlin lines, and the Winchester is missing something.
Maintenance had no real part in what I like. Most firearms run fine even if you ignore whats needed. What happens is early wear. But for most people that a non-issue.
An in-spec 1911 will run fine dry and dirty. It will last 100,000 round dry and dirty. It may malfunction from time to time, but who would know? Get it tuned and cared for and it will last 800,000 round and malfunctions about 30 times in that period.
Most "High volume shooters" I know run 50-100 round over an hour, a few times a year.
If that is a problem, your gun is junk. Most will do fine. At the rate an average shooter operates you never have to clean, oil or cool any firearm that runs smokeless powder.
