Shoot it and leave it.....

I've always wiped down the exterior metal of my guns after handling them.

Before getting a bore scope I generally didn't clean the bores until accuracy started to degrade. After getting a bore scope I pretty much push a dry patch through the bore followed by a lightly oiled one on centerfires, and just the dry patch on rimfires (because the rimfires have the wax coating from the bullets). The view of a dirty barrel through a bore scope -- especially a rimfire with all the flakes of partially-burned powder -- just makes me squirm if I put the gun away for an indefinite period without having pushed that junk out of the barrel. :)

Typical rimfire barrel after a few rounds fired:
d7Ia3b5.jpg


They get a more thorough cleaning whenever I feel like it -- sometimes at longer intervals, sometimes at shorter -- but that's always before I've shot them enough for accuracy to degrade.
 
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I do a light cleaning after every shoot. I just feel better when i put up a clean firearm. I don't necessarily have to clean it; I want to. Perhaps it has to do with my being more of a collector than a shooter and i want my vintage and valuable firearms to be well babied.
 
I will say that I meticulously clean my carry piece after every practice session and wipe it down every time I take it off.

My rationale is that if I am involved in any sort of incident and DON'T discharge, I want it to be abundantly clear to any investigators that my weapon hasn't been fired recently.
 
I used to be religious about cleaning a gun even if it only fired a few rounds. The older I get and the more guns I acquire, the less I care, and the more I think it doesn’t really matter. And as others have said, some guns shoot better dirty. The exception is that I try to keep my carry guns spotless, even though I know they’ll function just fine otherwise (Glocks), it just feels like bad mojo not too.
 
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I've a buddy who always cleans his guns, and then won't shoot them because they're clean.
He also cleans his sneakers, and uses Armor All on his tractor tires...
Moon
 
I usually clean everything up shortly after hunting season. Prior to that, I sight in everything I plan to use and it either gets shot or sits in the safe waiting to be. That way I know right where it is shooting and don't have to worry about a fouling round hitting off where I am aiming.

Usually even that isn't much, but it can be up to several inches with a couple of my rifles. This is the difference of the first round clean bore (low) and the following two rounds at 250yds...
index.php
 
7mmsavage said:
I (years ago) used to be a fanatic about cleaning mine, I think it was even fun, part of the shooting experience. Now life has gotten busy, time to get to the range is limited and there’s usually lots to do when i get home. I hand load almost everything, so there’s no more worrying about corrosive ammo in the old milsurps. I don’t see rust or any other issues with any of my guns, and they clean up fine when the time comes.

Couple years ago I attended an outdoor show and Jerry Miculek was a guest speaker. He said he’d clean his after 5-10k rounds then do a thorough cleaning when they’re “really”dirty. By his standards mine will probably never be dirty again.
Click to expand...
Kind of hard to argue with a guy that shoots that many rounds and that well.
 
If you are shooting ammo that is or could be corrosives, best clean immediately after shooting.
If you go hunting on a clean barrel I would not worry too much. I dont think too many people fail to fill their tags bc that first shot came out of a clean barrel.
 
41 Mag said:
I usually clean everything up shortly after hunting season. Prior to that, I sight in everything I plan to use and it either gets shot or sits in the safe waiting to be. That way I know right where it is shooting and don't have to worry about a fouling round hitting off where I am aiming.

Usually even that isn't much, but it can be up to several inches with a couple of my rifles. This is the difference of the first round clean bore (low) and the following two rounds at 250yds...
index.php
Click to expand...
That is a three shot moa group. Whats the issue again?
 
When you only shoot 25 rounds ... and don't feel the need for a total Clean Job ... this is where a Bore Snake shows it's worth . Spray a rag with favorite CLP and wipe down the exterior ... Spray some CLP on the snake and pull it through barrel ... a couple times . I'm OCD-Anal and like to pull a snug-snake through revolver chambers ... I shoot 38 spcl in my 357 magnum and we don't want no "ring around the chamber" !
The gun is clean enough not to rust untill you do enough shooting that requires the rod and brush ...
the CLP will help barrel fouling stay soft and a CLP wipe down will make gun look good and you will feel good about protecting your gun !

Note... get bore snakes that have brass brushes in them ... I believe they clean better, Need a snug fit ... wrap brush area with #0000 Steel Wool !
Gary
 
Since I can never say when I will go shoot again, if I don't do a good cleaning at minimum I will run an oiled patch through the bore after shooting just to keep rust at bay. The action gets attention so its ready to go, and the metal gets an oiled cloth wipedown before it is stowed away.

My routine wont make an E-6 smile, but the guns I have don’t seem the worse for wear.

YMMV.

Stay safe.
 
gwpercle said:
When you only shoot 25 rounds ... and don't feel the need for a total Clean Job ... this is where a Bore Snake shows it's worth . Spray a rag with favorite CLP and wipe down the exterior ... Spray some CLP on the snake and pull it through barrel ... a couple times . I'm OCD-Anal and like to pull a snug-snake through revolver chambers ... I shoot 38 spcl in my 357 magnum and we don't want no "ring around the chamber" !
The gun is clean enough not to rust untill you do enough shooting that requires the rod and brush ...
the CLP will help barrel fouling stay soft and a CLP wipe down will make gun look good and you will feel good about protecting your gun !

Note... get bore snakes that have brass brushes in them ... I believe they clean better, Need a snug fit ... wrap brush area with #0000 Steel Wool !
Gary
Click to expand...
I wrap mine with all-copper chore boy.

IMG_3677.jpeg

Stay safe.
 
For me it varies:

TGT guns, cleaned when I start to see accuracy degrade, usually around 100rds.

My 3Gun AR15, once or twice per season and that's about 1500 rds. IDPA pistol.. sometimes.. maybe.. annually?

Hunting rifles, a couple times a year, I'll usually go about 40-60rds or so between cleanings. My normal procedure is to practice during the summer & early fall. I'll then give them a good cleaning, and then step out back to verify my zero's with the loads I'll hunt with. I won't clean them again until post season OR IF they get wet. IF they get wet, I'll clean, then back out to foul them again.

I don't hunt or shoot a match with a clean barrel.

Defensive stuff is different, they get cleaned after each and every use.
 
I clean my carry guns once a year, just before my HR218 requal to be sure of no malfunctions during the course of fire.

My .22 Buckmark gets cleaned when it starts to fail to fire.

Blued guns get a wipedown with Eezox if they’ve been handled.

Not cleaned by the book, but the process seems to work for me.
 
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