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To clean or not to clean

2K views 18 replies 14 participants last post by  jim brady 
#1 ·
This has probably been brought up here before, perhaps my search words weren't right as I didn't find the thread. The questions are cleaning frequency and oiling. It appears that in my circle of fellow shooters, I am the only one that cleans after each range session . . . every time. Others say not to clean until x rounds have been fired, or even don't clean until there are accuracy problems. Additionally, I oil fairly heavily, I understand that the gun can get dirtier quicker as a result.

While the answers to the following questions may draw a myriad of answers, I would appreciate your input so that I can draw my own conclusion.

Q1. Is it harmful, or can unnecessary wear be caused by cleaning too often.
Q2. Is heavy oiling harmful, or can unnecessary wear be caused by over oiling?

Thanks in advance for your input.
Tom
 
#2 ·
Depends on the weapon. The AR-15, if left to dirt an grime can cause a malfunction or even damage the gun. To what extent, google has some to references. Heavy oil can actually cause some semi-autos to malfunction or behave erratic. I like to get the best I can get out of the barrel and want my weapons to last so I take care of them and clean after every use. The barrel is oiled. Before I leave for the next session, I run a hopes#9 patch thru the barrel followed by a dry patch. Any dirt left in a gun is friction. Will it harm, depends where and how much and how often. Will degrade, yes over time. If the gun is also for your self defense, why mess around and take the chance?
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If you get a routine down, cleaning can be quick an easy.
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My hand guns are cleaned using the following method:
After firing, outside before I get in the car, the gun is broke down. The hand piece is sprayed with the foaming clp and placed in a plastic bag, same for the inside of the barrel. When I get home, the air compressor blows all the stuff off (garage with rag around gun as the misting will go everywhere and wear a filter mask). I wipe it down the best I can then repeat the process. Since I keep my guns clean, that usually means I am done with the hand piece The barrel and adjunct pieces usually wipe off pretty easy. I then take hopes copper cleaner and do the barrel followed by hopes#9. When finished I use oil in the barrel for storage.
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Lately I have been experimenting with frog lube on the slide and barrel components on just one gun. If it holds up, I will add one more gun to it and so on.
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#3 ·
I have never heard "Not to clean" a gun after it has been fired. In fact, I clean mine every three months even if I haven't fired them. At this point in my collecting this is performed on a rotation. I try and clean two or more (if time permits) each week and after three months I've managed to work my way through the lot and start the process over again. I find this not only brings me comfort knowing all is well but also brings a familiarity with how they operate and break down.

As for over-oiling?? Some of the more experienced could answer that better than I, however I wouldn't think it would "damage" your gun(s) but it certainly could influence their performance. If I was going to store one for some reason a long while I'd soak it down and then give it a good cleaning before a trip to the range.

I'll be interested to hear how others answer these questions.
 
#4 ·
I agree they need to be cleaned after each range visit. The exception would be 22lr barrels and I trust the rimfire folks that insist it is best not to clean the barrel until accuracy drops off. I don't know what oil you are using. If you are using anything like MPro, Ballistol, SBGO, Gunzilla, etc, it takes a very small amount. Check out youtube on any of these products.
 
#6 ·
Sorry, but this bought back memories. Also, good example of "to much" can be vastly different depending on the person.
Example: Back when I was a teenager a friend got a used single shot shotgun for cutting down a stand of brushes for a neighbor's parents. His father told him that weekend they would clean it real good on Sat and go practice on Sun.
My friend got through with brushes and decided to do cleaning by himself so they could go Sat.
He took gun completely apart, used steel wool and Comet to clean the gun and used a stick to push the steel wool up/down inside the barrel. Granted that puppy was clean as it could be, not even any bluing in seams or on screws.
I saw the shotgun that evening and thought "WOW!" looks cool, we were young! His father just kept looking saying "What happened!" and "Why!".
Kinda cool though I went over that Sat and watched/assisted while his uncle showed us how to re-blue the shotgun. Also, he taught us how to redo the wood. Steel wool is not wood friendly. Granted I really liked the refinish on wood and did my bolt action 410.

Oil, yea can be over done. Same friend thought alittle was good more was better. You could see it drip if held it at angle for awhile. Course back then shotgun shells "paper", not good.
 
#7 ·
If I take an AR out and shoot it 10 times, I bring it back and wipe it down but I won't necessarily take it down and scrub the bore each time. if I take it out and shoot 100 rounds, yes, it gets a full on cleaning.
just and example, my hunting rifle gets fired for sighting in prior to the season, then I clean it very good and then shoot it once or twice more to foul the bore because I don't want the first shot at an animal to be out of a freshly cleaned and oiled bore.
then after each hunting outing, weather I fired or not, I will not do much other than run a lightly oiled patch down the bore during hunting season.
Then after the last hunt, it gets a through cleaning.

pistols and revolvers almost always get cleaned every time or every other time I use them. I always wipe them down though regardless
 
#8 ·
Been shooting, and cleaning guns for almost 50 years. I clean them when I notice they are dirty, or if the accuracy starts to drop off. Take your favorite rifle to the range. Clean it, and oil it, then shoot it one time. Notice where your bullet hits the target. Let it cool down, and take another shot. Repeat 1o times without cleaning. Then tell me which shots were most accurate.
 
#9 ·
I clean mine after each range session. During the hunting season I just lightly wipe them down before they put back in the safe. As db coop said I keep my barrel on my deer rifle dry during the season. On my semi autos , I don't try to keep oiling to a mimiun. just a enough to keep things working.
 
#13 ·
I refuse to put a fired, un-cleaned gun back in the safe. They all get cleaned before going to bed, wether that's 10 rounds or 1,000 rounds and 4 times a year if they haven't been shot.

My carry weapon I keep lightly oiled and spotless, except for the bore. I fire 5 rounds through it before it goes back to the holster. dbcooper said it before me, a spotless bore does effect accuracy.
 
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#15 ·
This really implies for accurate shooting. Sure when I take my glock or ak-47 out i clean it afterwards. But when shooting long distances ( 1 mile +) with the 338 Lapua I keep the copper and powder fouling consistent. I only clean the powder fouling when I have the rifle in dusty conditions. Copper gets cleaned out when accuracy falls off around 600 rounds with my rifle. A consistent copper and powder fouling WILL give you best accuracy. When the first shot counts, cleaning will create too many variables to ensure a first round hit at long distances.
 
#17 ·
When I was shooting in formal competion ( hand gun), I always cleaned the barrel and slide of my 22 before each daily match . The barrel is cleaned VERY LIGHTLY with only one or two swipes with the a brush and the slide was simply wiped down and fresh oil reaplyed.
When having practice , I would not clean the pistols until I started to feel the pistol was getting "sluggish " . Its hard to explane but if you shoot enough you can feel if your handguns need cleaning.
Normally I would clean my target pistols at around 1,500 rounds practice and then it gets a full teardown.
As for my AR18 , the barrel gets a light cleaning But the gas system gets a good scrubbing every time it goes out to the range.

Been doing this for most of my life and it works just fine for me.
 
#19 ·
I am also of the 'mine never go back dirty' school. The only exception was when I used to big game hunt, I'd check my scope zero before the hunt, and not clean the bore until after my return from hunting. Other than that, everything - including .22s - get a good scrubbing before I put them away.

Been a long time, but as I recall when shooting competition for the Military, we used M-14s, M-16A1s and Remington 513-Ts, and I don't think we used brass brushes on those .22 513-T bores. Competrition M-14s were never broken down for cleaning like the rack grade '14s, but the '16s were all 'rack-grade' and were cleaned as ususual. I don't remember ever taking the 514-Ts apart for cleaning. We just swabbed the bores with solvent, a few clean patches and a lightly oiled patch, then lightly oiled the working and exposed surfaces.
 
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