How often do you clean your guns?

How often do you clean your firearms?

  • At least after every time I shoot them if not more.

    Votes: 73 41.2%

  • Usually after I shoot them but not always

    Votes: 60 33.9%

  • When I feel like it

    Votes: 30 16.9%

  • What is this "C-L-E-A-N-I-N-G" you speak of?

    Votes: 14 7.9%
  • Total voters
    177
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M

Machete

Member
Joined
Nov 1, 2006
Messages
136
Location
PA
I'm just wondering. I clean my guns every time I get home from shooting them. My dad on the other hand hasn't cleaned his since Reagan was president. I've actually felt bad for his guns and cleaned them for him.
 
I clean my guns every time I get home from shooting them.
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I used to do that. Training was the reason. Dads and Army DI's have a strong influence on one - even after many, many years.

Then one day I woke up and thought to myself - self - if I were in the Army being shot at in an environment that eats guns then the DI's would be right. Clean them suckers every chance you get. Then I thought, DAD, career military - same training.

Well I ain'ta bein' shot at and my guns reside in a safe in a state where the humidity rarely cracks 50%. I've never seen rust on a single one of my guns except a Sig P220 (which are susceptible to it anywhere) and a bit of CLP fixed that.

So NOW! I just clean 'em when the urge hits me or I've got nothing better to do. What that boils down to is my guns will usually get cleaned after 2 or 3 range sessions though I did let my Saiga rifle go almost a year without cleaning once (no ill effects noted) and still haven't cleaned the gas plug on my Garand and I've had it well over 2 years now and it's still goin' strong.
 
I'd like to clean them after every trip to the range, but it usually ends up being every other trip.
 
When I feel like it, which isn't very often. I'll wipe them down after every range session, but as for a real cleaning? The ole' Mini hasn't seen solvent since, I can't remember when and I honestly don't ever remember cleaning my H&R Hornet, I may want to do that someday. But my AR and my carry gun get cleaned far more often than the rest of the collection.

RH
 
Favorites only get wiped down and returned to the safe after shooting. They get taken down for a real cleaning only when they have an issue, usually that's the cure for for the problem and I get a feel for how robust they really are. Safe Queens generally get cleaned after shooting before I put them up again.

A gun that doesn't go 1000+ rounds pretty quickly becomes a safe queen.

My carry guns get cleaned after every firing session.

--wally.
 
The only guns I clean religiously are the one's I use for personal/home defense -- my CCW handguns and my house guns (Glock 17 and REM 870). The others get cleaned occasionally, sometimes, when I feel like it, or not at all...
 
CCW Gun: After every range session, or once a month
HD Gun (suppressed USP 45): Once a month or every 1,000 rounds
Competition gun: Once a week
Walther P-22: When it stops working like it should
Other guns that I shoot rarely: After each range session since I don't know when I may next fire it
 
I'll clean 'em after each range trip, and if they've sat unused then I'll go over them and reapply oil, grease, etc once every two weeks. I keep the bores dry though after they've been cleaned and prefer to have them ready to go as opposed to long term storage. I might be overdoing it a little though...
 
I clean the bores and wipe them down with an oily rag. I haven't detail stripped my SKS in two years though and no ill effects yet.
 
I'm a nut about it. Not only do I clean them every time.. but I almost always polish the burn rings off of my wheel guns after any range trip also. Sometimes I clean my guns if they've just been sitting for a month without having been fired. Am I overdoing it ? Maybe, but on the other hand my guns do tend to have significantly less failures than some people I know. That's reason enough , but I also figure cleaning them every time gives me greater assurance of the guns retaining as much monetary value as possible.
 
Maybe, but on the other hand my guns do tend to have significantly less failures than some people I know.
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I have never had a failure that I couldn't directly attribute to ammo. As long as a gun is well lubed, and your magazines are clean you should have no problem what so ever.
 
A buddy on The Coast was not in the habit of cleaning after shooting. This wasn't a problem until Katrina's tidal surge got into the safe.:(

He was in Iraq. His Missus called ten days after the storm. I managed to save one out of four. I could have saved two of four if not for the evil combination of shooting residue and sea water.:banghead:
 
Somewhere slightly before this clean thing you speak of. It usually happens when either when the gun stops working or when the gun gets me dirty from touching it.
 
I clean them after every range trip. Not necessarily immediately after, but before they are used again or stored.

The carry guns are always clean.
 
Depends on what gun, if its a 22lr not every time shooting, anything else gets cleaned after shooting.
 
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Every time I use one I clean it before I put it away. Actions are lubed, bores scrubbed, exterior oiled, then I don't touch 'em again until the next shoot. Could be a day, week, month or year(s), if they're oiled up whe I shelve 'em, they're good to go.

I reload and cast, so I get a lot of soot, and besides, guns cost too much to disrespect, so a few minutes every time I use them makes the job easier overall.
 
I've always been a "Gear Snob" and always took care of my gear to the best of my ability. I clean my guns every time I shoot them whether it be 10 rounds or 1000, but as soon as get home I break it down and clean it. My father raised me to take care of firearms and it has grown on me. I noticed last time I went out shooting some clays with my buddy and his pump kept jamming so I asked him the last time he cleaned it and he said "Well never" ....thats the last thing I would want to happen in a sticky situation.
 
I try to clean them immediately after every range trip. Sometimes it takes a few days for me to get to them. They do get cleaned before they are put up or put back in service though. I don't carry a dirty gun.
 
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