how to clean action

[FishGuy]

How do you clean the action of your semi-auto .22? I don't really wanna disassemble a brand new action to clean it...but see no other way to clean it well.
brake cleaner?? soak it in mineral spirits?

[Juker]

There are those who rarely clean their guns, and those who go to great lengths to remove every speck. Learning how to disassemble and clean all of your firearms will serve you well in the long run. Not only will they fire better, but you'll learn quite a bit about how they operate. And when something is amiss, you'll be able to spot it more quickly.

Lots of different gun cleaning agents out there, available at any sporting goods store or Walmart. At a minimum you'll want some gun cleaning solvent, a rod to run a cleaning patch down the barrel, and some gun oil. You can get a starter gun cleaning kit for $10 or so, and build on it as needed. I use a lot of pipe cleaners and hard cotton swabs. Just about everyone here has a different cleaning technique, but most agree that lubing your guns with Silver Bullet Gun Oil after the cleaning is the way to go.

[FishGuy]

Right, I know about the barrel. But the action (or whatever its called) which has the hammer, hammer spring, sear, etc, etc...I have cleaned my old marlin's action pretty well (or so I thought), then I took it all apart and realized it was not that clean.
I'm guessing some kind or aersol cleaner and a pintbrush may work? I'm probably WAY overthinking this...
regardless, Thanks

[Juker]

The best rule is probably "whatever works". I've got a few spray cleaners I use in such places. And don't forget that oiling is just as important as cleaning - use SBGO and you'll be amazed how much smoother your gun functions, and how much less crap sticks in there after you're done shootin'.

[old semperfi]

i first remove the stock and or grips,then using carb clean i spray liberly into action.i then use air hose to blow out any forign material.the next step for me is to use a good spray lube and soak action.final step is to use again air hose and blow as much lube out as possible,this may have to be done a second time to remove excess.i then reassemble firearm.i have used this method for over forty years with no adverse effect. old semperfi

[6x6pinz]

I clean the barrel with Hoppes #9 and patches followed by a very light coat of oil. The trigger groups I clean with WD 40 (spray and allow to soak while cleaning barrel) and hi pressure air. Makes everything look like it was just assembled at the factory. A small amount of CLP on the pivot points and back to the range.

[todd51]

I pretty much follow "old semperfi's" methods with the air hose. I find old tooth brushes to be very helpful. Also have a small paint brush with the bristles clipped short. I use CLP most of the time as my cleaner, lube and protectorant. Have started using SBGO on some new guns to see how I lke it but the CLP has served me well. I don't let my guns get very dirty before they are cleaned. Usually cleaned after each use.

[LDBennett]

If you start with a totally clean gun (like you might get it new or after a total disassembly down to the last part) another total disassembly will probably never be required in your lifetime. But you have to keep it clean along the way.

Gunk that comes from the blowing open of the action and the dumping of firing remains in to the action are most easily cleaned when the gun was recently fired. When you let them build up over several range sessions they pack in and sometimes nothing short of totally disassembling the gun will remove them.

I clean my semi-auto guns after every shooting session. I field strip them so that I can get to the action (frame innards). I simply use Hoppes #9 as a solvent with a brush and use high pressure air from my air compressor to blow out the solvent and the firing residue. If you do this after every shooting session the residues of firing comes out easily. Clean the action out once a year and you may have to totally disassemble it to get it really clean.

After the cleaning with Hoppes and the air pressure treatment I then use a pin oiler to put Hoppes gun oil onto all the pivot surfaces inside the frame and on the sear/hammer interface. I also oil the slide/bolt sliding surfaces on both the frame and the slide/bolt itself. I then wipe the gun down with a silicon rag that is finally wrapped around the gun for storage.

I have over ten semi-auto pistol and several semi-auto rifles (all 22LR) that I have used this approach on for over 25 years. It works for me and none of my guns show any signs of gunk built up in the actions.

Using cleaners that remove the last bit of oil on the surface (like brake clean, Simple Green, or one of the water based gun cleaners like MPro-7) can make the guns susceptible to corrosion. If you insist on one of those cleaners then completely coat the cleaned gun in Break Free CLP then blow and wipe off the excess. While Hoppes #9 is not a real corrosion preventer it is better than completely bare metal.



LDBennett

[montveil]

Remove stock, spray action with carb cleaner, dry, chase any stubborn patches with a sharpened plastic tooth brush handle or like implement, NEVER STEEL, chase with carb cleaner then I "oil" the action with DRY TEFLON SPRAY.
Fast, clean and Teflon does not pick up crap

[CHW2021]

All the above are good practice, you do have to remove the powder residue and gunk.
What you also must do is to remove lead from the bore and chamber, when you clean the bore use a solvent; there are many. Hoppes is not bad, there are better ones out there; personally, I like Butches bore shine....just my preference.I have found that a copper solvent will remove leading from the bore and chamber area easily and help your accuracy. Based on your shooting it probably will not be necessary to strip lead/copper from the bore every time (I do not) but it is something to be aware of as the lead buildup can hurt accuracy and promote feeding problems.

[FishGuy]

Thank you all very much!
I see there are lots of ways to skin a cat. I will try a few different methods and find out what works for me.
Thanks again all

[Orin]

I like to partially immerse actions & use a parts brush to swab out all the gunk. Gun cleaners are a bit expensive for such volume so I experimented a bit with solvents. (Being a custom painter, I keep a number of solvents in-shop.) Finally settled on xylene. Has no affect upon plastic parts or finishes yet breaks down greases well. Best parts brushes so far have been a couple different "bottle cleaner" type gun brushes and a 1/2" chip brush (cheap natural paint brush) I cut down to 3/4". After flushing I wipe & re-oil. Spray cleaners are OK but messy, wasteful & tend to spray all over - often in my face. If you use them protect your eyes & hold the parts well away. Auto carb cleaning spray is OK & cheap at Walmart.

[BETH]

i clean it with brake cleaner spray it down

[JLA]

What? youre suppsed to clean them? Shoot and all this time I been just shooting them til they quit and them throwing them away and buying a new one.

[BETH]

Figures