How often to clean?
- Thread starter Five-O
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Stormshotty
Member
It really depends. I clean my own pistol lovingly after every trip. It's a Ruger Mark 3 and I suppose it could take quite a few rounds. I just don't feel good without cleaning it.
Five-O
Member
Actually, very little rust problems here. Back in the 50's, in Hawaii, every other car was being held together by rust. It's still a problem there but not as much since car makers have now manufactured cars that hold up better against rust. Reason for the long interval between shooting is because of vacation time by most shooters in the club. Afterwards we'd like to get together every 30 days or so.
I rarely clean my car(s). Having teens around the house is great ("you want money? Wash the car!")
Thanks all for some great responses, varied but informative.
Eddie in San Jose
btw, I'm a newbie and I must say, of all the groups I'm sub'd to, this has to be the best. Lots of smart people here. Well, at least when it comes to guns anyways.
Fumbler
Member
Yes, be gentle.
I use Breakfree CLP and patches or rags and simply wipe it clean then leave a light coat of CLP on it. If you have a lot of build up then you can use CLP or Hoppes and a nylon bristle brush. If the buildup is really bad you can use a brass or bronze brush but be very careful, it will wear the finish if you brush it too hard or too long.
If you have rust on your blued steel then you can gently rub it off with extra fine steel wool and oil, but again be careful.
Avoid using anything abrasive like bore polishing compounds or metal polish.
Tequila Mockingbird
Member
The notion that guns must be cleaned every time you shoot them is an outmoded idea that should have disappeared about the same time that non-corrosive priming was introduced. It makes about as much sense as washing your car every time you drive it.
Badger Arms
Member
Tell that to any SEAL. Hear what their response is.
Guns get dirty. M16-based guns get REALLY dirty. Clean them when you're done. You don't have to go overboard, but cleaning the bolt carrier assembly, bore, and chamber on a semi-auto is a requirement.
For autoloaders, I wipe down the outsied, run a bore brush and then a few altrenating wet and dry patches, ending with a damp one. Then I run a Q-Tip over the breech face and twist it under the extractor a bit. DONE!
SCBradley
Member
I don't like carrying a gun that hasn't been shot since the last time I stripped and cleaned it.
Historian
Member
I will typically put at least 200 rounds through my .40 M&P when I go to the range. I would clean it after ten rounds but espescially after 200. I have too much invested and too much respect for the craftmanship that went into it to put it away dirty. That's true of my AR as well.
Historian
Historian
I guess I am with some of the lazier members here. LOL Used to clean my guns all the time, but I run 200-300 rounds before cleaning my handguns. That's usually about 2 range trips. I do check to see if they are oiled, but if you only shot 10-50 rounds through it, the gun is just warming up. Plus over cleaning will put a little more wear on the gun. Might just be me rationalizing my own cleaning time table for my handguns, but haven't had a broken in gun fail by shooting a hundred rounds through it and expecting it to shoot a hundred more before taking a bath.
Different story with rifles though!
Different story with rifles though!
Col. Plink
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Good rule of thumb, at least it makes sense to me, is clean them before you put them away again. That way, if for some reason you don't fire that particular weapon again for awhile it won't sit around dirty for however long.
Also, shooting a dirty autoloader just wears the action that much more than if it were clean. Unless it's a tremendous PITA, I'll break 'em down and clean the whole action and oil the slide. It also ensures that if something goes afoul while I'm using it I know it's something besides the condition of the weapon.
Autoloaders are finicky little dickens compared to the manual reloaders of the world, keep 'em clean and slick and at least they will rise and fall on their own merit.
Also, shooting a dirty autoloader just wears the action that much more than if it were clean. Unless it's a tremendous PITA, I'll break 'em down and clean the whole action and oil the slide. It also ensures that if something goes afoul while I'm using it I know it's something besides the condition of the weapon.
Autoloaders are finicky little dickens compared to the manual reloaders of the world, keep 'em clean and slick and at least they will rise and fall on their own merit.
Mad Magyar
Member
As J. Goebbels once said in Germany: "If you tell a lie often enough, the masses will accept it as the truth."
Now, if Bubba with his dremel tool is at work; I got it.....
I clean mine when the function starts to suffer. Typically that's about ever 350 to 500 rounds.
This is tolerable if you are not going to have to depend on the gun. Otherwise field strip and clean after every shooting session and at least a wipe down and inspection weekly.
In nearly 40 years or carrying guns in one capacity or another the only time to fully disassemble a firearm is when it's broken. If you do the first thing to do when you get it back together is to test fire it.
This is tolerable if you are not going to have to depend on the gun. Otherwise field strip and clean after every shooting session and at least a wipe down and inspection weekly.
In nearly 40 years or carrying guns in one capacity or another the only time to fully disassemble a firearm is when it's broken. If you do the first thing to do when you get it back together is to test fire it.
Tequila Mockingbird
Member
There are many good reasons why the military stresses cleaning a weapon every time it's fired. It's a good discipline, you gain familiarity with your weapon, and most importantly, since you don't know how many times you're going to fire it the next time you use it, you always want to start out with a clean, well lubricated weapon.
These principles don't really hold true for civilian use, however. Virtually all guns can be fired hundreds of times without cleaning because they're designed to run dirty. I clean my Ruger Mark II maybe once a year, and it's never malfunctioned as a result of not having been cleaned even though I shoot at least a couple of thousand rounds a year through it. I've been doing this since I bought the gun maybe 20 years ago. The bottom line is: if you like a clean gun, by all means clean it after every use. If a dirty gun doesn't bother you, don't feel you need to clean it after each use to make sure it works the next time you shoot it. It will...
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