How should you clean your guns?

[bokchoi]

How do you guys usually clean your guns? I ususally spray MPro7 all over the frame, slide, and barrel, and then brush clean, but even using compressed air, I can never blow out and get out the annoying residue that gets stuck in the tiny nooks and crannies of the frame and slide. I've heard that some people use water to rinse out these parts and then a heater or fan to air-dry, but some say that this will dramatically increase the likelihood of rust, even if you spray the metal with oil right after.

I'd use Gunk-Out or some similar jet-cleaner-degreaser like brake cleaner, but that stuff smells uber-nasty and is expensive, and probably isn't too good for my health either.

Is there any way to get these parts of the gun clean without spending a fortune on some ultrasonic cleaner and gunk-out, or should I just use water and spray gun oil?

 

[cratz2]

Just posted a few days ago, specifically about 1911s:

Well, assuming we're talking 1911s, within a couple hours after shooting, I remove the slide, run the bore snake through the barrel twice using just FP10 then drop a couple drops of FP10 down the barrel and let it stand on end while I quickly clean the rest of the gun - I use a blue shop towl/peper towel thing (available on a roll from an automotive store and I'm sure various other places) that don't leave little pieces of itself all over the gun. I wipe off the inside of the slide and the upper area of the frame. Then I put a little FP10 on the corner of another sheet and get any dark areas off the metal. The gun is basically now clean. I have an old kids 'burp rag' I use after the very initial cleaning that has a general coating of FP10 that I wipe off all the metal, inside and out, then 'dry' it off with another 'burp rag'. I use my little micro dispencer to put FP10 down the slide rails. I go back to the barrel, run the bore snake through it twice more, wipe it with wet rag. I also wipe the bushing and FLGR with the wet rag only. I put a drop on each lug and put the thing back together. I then quickly wipe the entire gun down with the dry rag.

This literally takes twice as long to type and it does to actually do. Should take 3 minutes tops if you're in a hurry. Taking your time may require another 2 minutes. Of course, 99% of the time, I only shoot 100 rounds of S&B ammo and 20 rounds of 200 Gr Gold Dots.

 

[Navy joe]

RTFM ?? (technical term for read the supplied book)

Do what you want to do for cleaning, but function fire it again before you believe in it as a carry pistol. I've never put one back together wrong, but finding out at the wrong time there is a cleaning patch that somehow got wadded up somehwere inside the gun would be unfun.

 

[bokchoi]

Well, I always clean the bore as per the great book of instructions, but I tend to be more anal than their suggestions

I'm probably being too picky in that I want to get every nook and cranny of the gun clean and free of gunk, though I think I'm also spoiled by the fact that the range I used to go to and clean my guns at had a giant air compressor, and they could virtually bathe all their guns in MPro7 and spray off the excess, leaving a very nicely cleaned gun that smelled nice and was almost clean as new.

Does the water-then-oil approach really increase the likelihood of rust, though?

 

[10-Ring]

Spray everything down w/ MPro7, let sit while I work on barrel. Barrel gets swabbed down w/ MPro7, then bore brushed, then patches. If it's still dirty, repeat previously mentioned. Every 1000 rounds, I use some bore paste to work on the build up. Once that's done, I work on the rest of the gun. Wipe down, lube lightly, re-assemble & put away.

 

[Blackhawk]

Guns are lubed with FP-10 and some are treated with MolyFusion, so my cleaning procedure is quite a bit easier than most.

1. Field strip including disassembling recoil spring, guide, barrel, etc.

2. Wipe all parts with a Kleenex until no dark residue is left.

3. Clean barrel with a brush, then dry, then lightly oiled, then dry patch. Repeat if there's dark residue on the last patch.

4. Wipe down parts with a lightly oiled patch.

5. Clean wipe frame and rails, then wipe with lightly oiled patch.

6. Reassemble.

7. Disassemble mags and wipe down parts with lightly oiled patches until the last one remains clean. Reassemble.

8. Load mag with snap caps and hand cycle gun for function check, dry firing on each snap cap.

Note that FP-10 is my favorite lube because (among many other reasons) it migrates to every metal surface. You can put a very small amount on the tip of a barrel, leave it alone for a while, then come back and find the whole barrel has a thin coating of FP-10 on it.

 

[tw1112]

When you guys are spraying down your gun with mpro7(is this the same as breakfree? usage wise?), do you take your grips off? What if they are rubber grips?

 

[gudel]

i use the instruction from kleenbore
seems to work fine, and the lube that came with it seems to satisfy the instruction in my HK manual.

 

[arinvolvo]

Ok, here is my cleaning regimine....

Field strip, and blast all internal parts with RemOil compressed can spray....over the sink...paying special attention to the pin/spring assembly and the trigger linkages...Spray until drippings are clear. (This tends to get expensive considering the amount of RemOil I go through.)

Next, wipe and Air-blast all parts of excess oil..with microfiber cloth and compressed air can (keyboard duster).

Barrel gets scrubbed with Nitro solvent, and then mopped dry with barrel patch...then swabbed with Breakfree CLP.

All, parts are then oiled with break free, and wiped of excess oil...gun is re-assembled.

Outside surfaces are all wiped with a thin coat of CLP for corrosion protection...and I am done.

That is my regimine, and I am happy to say that all guns are corrosion/rust, and excess-wear free.

By the by, all this takes place while sitting on the toilet lid, and working on the top of the wicker laundry hamper basket. Seems to work well.

 

[DMK]

I've never found CLP type cleaners to be strong or thin enough for a really good cleaning. I use the old tried and true Hoppe's #9.

I scrub everything real good with a toothbrush, then let that soak while I brush and patch the barrel. Then I let that soak while I spray the rest of the gun down with Brake Cleaner (or Gunscrubber). I blow that clean with compressed air, then lube everything up with a light coat of CLP on a toothbrush(FP-10 is the flavor of the year for now, maybe Miltec next). That gets wiped down and the excess blown off before I return to the barrel. Barrel gets one more patch of Hoppes, a soaking with Brake cleaner, blow dry, then lube with CLP. A dap of Grease on the rails if it's a semi and finally reassembly.

Now, once in a while I'll do just a quick toothbrush and boresnake job with CLP and compressed air, but I never consider that a real cleaning. Usually, I only do that if I'm going to shoot it again in a week or so.

 

[DMK]

When you guys are spraying down your gun with mpro7(is this the same as breakfree? usage wise?), do you take your grips off? What if they are rubber grips?

CLPs shouldn't hurt grips, they are mainly oil and detergent. However, you definately don't want to soak wood grips with gun oils and slick rubber grips aren't very safe or comfortable.

I usually do remove my grips, mainly to get underneath. I've heard to many horror stories about rust under grips. However that said, it's possible to use even caustic spray on cleaners like Gunscrubber and keep it away from grips if you are extremely careful.

 

[plnkr1234]

Hi Guys,

I've been using Hoppes No. 9 powder solvent to clean powder residue out of the entire innards of my pistols. I use this instead of a degreaser. I then follow with a liberal coating of Break Free. Will the solvent harm my pistols?

Thanks

 

[blades67]

I run a Bore Snake through the magazine well and barrel after shooting, either in the Safety Bay after "Tue. Nite Steel" or at the bench on the Public Range, while the gun's still warm. Once I get home I run a patch with CLP on it through the barrel, then set it aside while I clean the rest of the gun (also with CLP). I put a few drops of CLP on the frame, then use a Nylon double ended brush to scrub the fouling off. I wipe it down with a cotton cloth, then apply a film of CLP to the rails and the disconnector with a Q-tip. I clean the slide in the same manner. Once the other parts have been cleaned I run a bronze bore brush through the barrel several times followed by several pulls with the Bore Snake. Then I make a few passes with my Lewis Lead Remover, followed by another wet patch and a few more pulls with the Bore Snake. Then I reassemble the gun, wipe it down with the cotton cloth one last time, complete a function check and put the gun away.

 

[blades67]

I've been using Hoppes No. 9 powder solvent to clean powder residue out of the entire innards of my pistols. I use this instead of a degreaser. I then follow with a liberal coating of Break Free. Will the solvent harm my pistols?

The Hoppe's won't harm your gun. If you have a Nickle plated gun, the Hoppe's can get under the Nickle and attack the copper base if left on for too long, but if used propperly it shouldn't be a problem.

 

[hansolo]

Gun Cleaning

Anybody ever do this: after a session, do a clean&lube. Then, later that day or evening, decide to go shooting again, but you DON'T because you just cleaned the bugger?

On these rare occasions, I just stay up late and clean&lube again.
I can't go to sleep with a dirty gun....I know...I know...

 

[philupcolt]

I don't clean the inner parts every time, but I do wipe all of the fingerprints, and other crud off of the outside before I put it away. When I do decide to clean the insides, I take off the wood grips, and take the gun apart, if it's a revolver, the cylinder comes off , if it is an auto, the slide and barrel comes off. I clean the barrel like everybody else does, with brushes, solvent , and oil.
I then place the frame, and other parts that need it, in a flat pan, and pour a good grade of paint thinner over everything to soak. I use brushes where I think it is needed. Most of the gunk you want to get out is oil mixed with powder residue, the paint thinner does a good job of breaking this stuff down.
I then take the parts out ,place them on a rag in my hand, and blow them with compressed air. The air takes out the paint thinner along with the crud, and the rag catches it. I then spray the areas I used compressed air on, with WD40 , this displaces any moisture coming out of the compressor. I then oil the friction bearing surfaces to start the process over again.

 

[DMK]

Anybody ever do this: after a session, do a clean&lube. Then, later that day or evening, decide to go shooting again, but you DON'T because you just cleaned the bugger?

LOL, yea. I usually just grab a different gun, preferrable something I haven't shot or cleaned in a while.

 

[sm]

Cleaned guns for a friend. 1911 style and Model 10
Unload,ammo , mags and speedloaders other room.

Otis pull through kit, Otis patches, long wooden Q-tips, pipe cleaners, CRC Brakleen. Kleenbore Formula 3, toothbrushes. RIG grease.

1911: field strip. F3 on patch, pull through, let sit. Dry brush frame ,slide, extractor, feed ramp...you know. Some areas I used a minute amt of F3 on pipe cleaner and q-tip. Back to bbl, tight patches took about 6 passes ( rotate patch before each pass to get a clean area). BBl clean . Toothbrushed using what little F3 used before, Frame , slide...etc all clean, any residue wiped with a cloth. Using the " precison applicator" 2 drops each rail, 1 drop link,assemble gun, RIG grip screws, and area before putting grips back on. Rack slide, 1 drop disconnector, bbl hood. and where bbl meets bushing (end). Rack a few times, RIG exterior. Done.

BTW gun had about 600 rds through it of Mostly FMJ and carry loads. About every 100 rds or when thought of a drop on each slide rail from breech (inside). Custom Target II, similar to mine, has never had a wire brush through it, nylon only once, That's because gun was new and 1k rds put through it out of the box. Series II did have trigger tweaked to a more crisp 4#. Never ever had a faillure of any kind. 4K rds and this is how it has been cared for. IN another 1k may change CP shockbuff and first new recoil spring--maybe.

Model 10: is also CCW pc, 200 + rds of mixed wadcutters, JHP, FMJ. She practiced in the rain and gun became wet and muddy. Nothing like a wet muddy cold young lady needing guns cleaned.

Again F3 through bbl and charge holes grips off, cyl off and liberally used F3 brushing, let sit. ( while getting grips 'de-mud").

Out on th e back deck and CRC Brakleen, let dry. Using q-tip and pipe cleaner with F3 very thin coat inside frame - hammer spring...etc. RIG before putting grips on, put cyl back on. Pull F3 through bbl, which was clean easy enough, left a verry very light coating. One drop in front of hammer, dry fire, and one drop on/where yoke cyl area. RIG externally. Done

Normally the model 10 does not require this, but she did shoot in rain and both she and gun muddy.

Total time , visiting, chewing the fat and all- both guns maybe 30 min. Model 10 is her CCW, she normally goes 150 -200 rds before we really need to clean it. She just brushes under extractor,top strap, q-tip chamber and RIG the outside,loads and carries it.

 

[blades67]

Anybody ever do this: after a session, do a clean & lube. Then, later that day or evening, decide to go shooting again, but you DON'T because you just cleaned the bugger?

Nope. But I have been up late cleaning a gun many times because I did go shooting again.:banghead:

 

[45R]

I use the gun stores Solvent bath around 1000 rounds

 

[kmays]

I have put together a handgun cleaning tutorial page that details how I go about cleaning my pistols.

http://www.geocities.com/kemays/pistolclean.html