"thorough" gun cleaning question

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DR505 said:
I have seen Glocks rendered inoperable from too much lubrication and poor cleaning technique; the firing pin channel was so clogged with gunk the weapon would have light primer strikes and not fire consistently or at all.
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Sometimes a cleaning practice may create a problem, too.

In one of my Glock recerts there was an armorer from another agency who gave an example of how the head of a cotton swab, used to clean out the FP channel, had come off inside the channel and not been noticed. Naturally, the FP couldn't reach the primer of a chambered round when the slide was reassembled.

The morals of the story were to use better quality cotton swabs (you can order some made to use on guns, FWIW) ... and make sure you pay attention when cleaning the gun, and inspect it after cleaning and reassembly. ;)
 
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It is possible to just be silly about it. I sat in on a concealed carry class someone else was teaching, he said he fills the slide and frame assemblies of his Glock with shaving gel, and wipes until nothing comes out. Yikes. I heard another guy say that he will put the big parts in a silverware basket and run them through the dishwasher. More yikes.

This is a life-saving tool. It stands to reason that it should be kept clean and well-cared for. But the flip-side is, if it needs to be surgically clean to run well, do you really want to trust your life to it? I think there is a lot of influence from military guys who have this perception of competence and knowledge because of it. But the military actually pretty bad with gun maintenance. They want them clean for administrative reasons more than actually being concerned with how they function.

For the "keep them wet" thing, I have a couple of howevers. I run ARs sloppy wet. Keep a magazine in it and the dust cover shut. Modern polymer-frame automatic pistols, (Glock-type,) I run very dry. I put a tiny amount of lube on my pinky and scrape it onto the frame rail pieces. I live in the desert, and I don't really need to worry about rust. If I was in a more coastal area, I would worry about rust a lot more, and use more lube, more often.
 
Well I'm not a huge fan of YouTube there are some interesting instructional videos Often by the manufacturer themselves just go to YouTube search and look up your particular gun and look for a link to the manufacturer. I found great video from Smith & Wesson about my M&P Shield EZ guy went over the do's and the don't mess with
 
mljdeckard said:
It is possible to just be silly about it. ...
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No kidding ... especially the examples you quoted. A gun is a tool made (mostly, usually) from steel and has moving parts. You treat it like any other steel tool with moving parts and you and your tool will be just fine. It doesn't need anything fancy dancy.
 
If you do decide to wade in and start unscrewing screws and popping side plates off, BEFORE you start invest in good gunsmithing screwdrivers.

As was earlier stated, more guns are damaged by well-intentioned owners using the wrong tools for the job than just about anything else.

Buggered screw slots are just the beginning, as standard screwdriver blades are wedge-shaped towards the tip while gunsmithing screwdrivers are hollow ground so the blade sides are parallel.

7EE88CEF-164A-4E60-A65B-E8DA844F4FE8.jpeg

This puts torque against the entire wall of the screw slot, not just the top. This keeps the top of the screws from getting damaged and lets the whole screw take the torque. Stiff screws can also break the thin edges off the top of the screw if the torque is in the wrong area.

80F46B59-81D4-4691-B586-29BEA7DDBF87.jpeg

Only after you’ve invested in a set (Like the Brownell set below) should you progress to removing screws and disassembling guns.

F5E2BEA9-C14E-40D8-9282-DE0CC92A65A6.jpeg

Just a friendly word of advice from someone who learned the hard way ;)

Stay safe.
 
I follow different procedures depending on what the gun is. If it's a used revolver, especially an older one, I take everything out of the frame for cleaning and inspection. (They're all S&W, and I have the Kuhnhausen manual for them, so I've gotten very familiar with the process.) I really wish I'd taken pictures of some of what I discovered. The most common problem is that somebody's sprayed WD-40 in there and it's turned to glue. I have a '49 M&P snubnose K-Frame .38 that took a couple of days to straighten out because of that. Had to soak and scrub all those little parts. The second most common is some mild surface rust rash that needs attended to on every individual part. With a new revolver, I don't bother taking the side plate off unless I want to change a spring or something.

Semi-autos I usually just field-strip and lube after an outing. Only exception to that is 1911s, which I will take down to the frame every couple of years or so (that's what I shoot the most, so it's good to get in there and get any filth out of the trigger channels and clean the surfaces of the thumb safety and three-prong spring and grip safety and such.) Again, I have the shop manual for those so I don't get stuck somewhere.
 
Riomouse911 said:
If you do decide to wade in and start unscrewing screws and popping side plates off, BEFORE you start invest in good gunsmithing screwdrivers.

As was earlier stated, more guns are damaged by well-intentioned owners using the wrong tools for the job than just about anything else.

Buggered screw slots are just the beginning, as standard screwdriver blades are wedge-shaped towards the tip while gunsmithing screwdrivers are hollow ground so the blade sides are parallel.
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Good post! Learned that one the hard way after having to order new sideplate screws. I sometimes still have to get new ones after a former owner has tortured them, but at least I don't do it myself anymore.
 
In the Corps in my day we never went beyond field stripping and cleaning. We had to do that after every time the weapon was fired (non combat situation).If the gun had problems after that it was handed over to armorers so did a detail cleaning. My LGS has a smithing operation. They do detail cleaning of a handgun and parts check for $55. I do that after 3,000 rounds no matter how smooth the gun runs. 3,000 rounds for me is about 2 years.
 
fastbolt said:
Sometimes a cleaning practice may create a problem, too.

In one of my Glock recerts there was an armorer from another agency who gave an example of how the head of a cotton swab, used to clean out the FP channel, had come off inside the channel and not been noticed. Naturally, the FP couldn't reach the primer of a chambered round when the slide was reassembled.

The morals of the story were to use better quality cotton swabs (you can order some made to use on guns, FWIW) ... and make sure you pay attention when cleaning the gun, and inspect it after cleaning and reassembly. ;)
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Oooo-rah:)

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Type-III-U...e=STRK:MEBIDX:IT&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649
 
Pat Riot said:
It literally depends on the gun and your level of confidence.

As for me, I have no problem tearing any of my semiauto pistols all the way down for a detailed cleaning and I do this every few hundred rounds.
On my DA revolvers I do not do this. I with remove the cylinders and disassemble them and detail clean that area about once a year but in regards to the inner workings I will remove the side plate and spray the works down with Hornady One Shot, allow it to dry and reassemble.
On my SA revolvers I do normal cleaning and about once a year I tear them all the way down for a detailed cleaning.

If you want to learn how to fully disassemble and reassemble a particular firearm there are lots of resources online for that, but one warning. Do not just watch one YouTube video or take instructions from someone on a forum without looking at several different procedures or instructions. There are a lot of boneheads with video capabilities out there.
MidwayUSA, Brownells, American Gunsmithing Institute have videos and resources for this. Also, go to the Gun Parts Corp website, find your gun and pay the couple of bucks to buy a schematic of your particular gun so you can see how it is put together.
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That sounds like good advice. Especially the observation regarding boneheads.
 
Cliff6 said:
How often should a gun be completely cleaned?
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Rarely. Which is to say almost never. Pretty close to never but not all the way.

To put things in perspective, I own nearly 200 guns. I shoot nearly every day. Last year, I "cleaned" two or three guns and one suppressor. One was a high round count .22 pistol that has been a suppressor host for five years. The other was a flintlock that had been fired. Unless your guns are stored in an area that is not climate controlled, there is no need to break down and clean them every time you shoot. That said, I just found my old Single Six in a holster, that had been in my truck for close to a year. No rust. No issues.
 
The comments about having the right tools for the job are apt.

Here's an example that people don't often think about. Punches

If you're going to use a punch to disassemble a pistol you need to be sure of some things.

1. The ends need to be rounded/chamfered. Nothing good is going to come from pushing a punch with sharp corners through a frame. Punches are very hard and even a steel frame is soft in comparison. Aluminum or plastic are obviously much softer than that. I bought a really nice punch awhile back for pushing out stubborn pins. It came with an end that was perfectly flat which meant that the edges were sharp. I rounded things off before using it.
2. The punch needs to fit the hole. Too big is REALLY bad, but significantly too small isn't great either because it makes it much easier for the punch get out of alignment with the hole--increasing the chances that it will deform the sides of the hole.
3. If the punch tapers, you need to be sure that the taper starts far enough up the shaft that it won't be a factor when pushing the pins all the way out. You don't want to be jamming the taper into the hole--that's the same as using a pin that's too big.
4. If you need to tap the pin out of the hole, be very sure to get things aligned properly before you get to work with the hammer and don't get in a huge hurry. Make sure things stay aligned through the entire process.
 
Cliff6 said:
Not sure this is where to post this, but here is my question.

The manuals for all my pistols show how to disassemble for cleaning. That's good, BUT, there are still a lot of moving parts that are not cleaned in this process. How often should a gun be completely cleaned? Any recommendations on what to use? ....or am I just being OCD and I should just use small brushes, Q-tips or whatever without any further disassembly?

Thanks
Cliff
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Do what the manual says and unless you have knowledge of how to take the gun completely apart don't do it. I use wooden Q-tips that I get from Amazon. I buy them by the thousands. I also use patches to get the larger areas.

Make sure you have a good toothbrush and some cleaning fluid. My favorite is MPro-7 but others will suggest their favorite.
 
JTQ said:
I don't know what level of disassembly you're asking about, but I generally don't go further than a field strip when I clean my pistols.
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Me either. You can dig in the nooks and crannies with Q-tips and paper towels wrapped around a pair of tweezers for most of the harder to reach things with just a field strip.
Some people take pride in how grimy their guns can get and still function, but I think that's silly, personally. They will eventually get to the point where they won't run, even Glocks. Easiest way to prevent that from happening when you might likely need the weapon to protect yourself or a loved one is to clean it now and then. It's not a surgical instrument, it doesn't have to be sterile. This was what was leftover from me cleaning a Glock that a person brought in the shop because it kept failing to work at the range.
Filthy Rotten Glock.JPG
Luckily it failed at the range, not when some goblin was attacking him or his family.

For a detail strip on most guns, the more times you pop pins in and out of a frame, the more wear you have on both items, and the looser they become. Generally, that is not to your advantage.
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This is very true!
 
I field strip my pistols and revolvers, remove grips, and zap 'em in an ultrasonic filled with a solution of "Ed's Red" minus the acetone and lanolin. So basically just even parts Dexron ATF, mineral spirits, K1 kerosene. I don't let it get above 110-115 degrees and always do it outside. AMAZING how much crud settles out in the cleaner! Drip dry then blow "dry" with air compressor. Bores still need brush/patch cleaning but come pretty clean after the ultrasonic bath. I wipe all down all parts and lube high wear spots with tetra grease or tetra lube. A very fine sheen of ATF seems to remain on moving parts I can't reach. I figure it helps w wear. Guns don't seem to gunk up fast so all good. Never used this on "plastic" guns(I like old school metal) so can't say yay or nay on that. Never has damaged finish or paints on anything including sights. I'm lazy but when I clean I want it CLEAN! Always frustrated me how "dirty" my just cleaned pistols still were. No more. Ultrasonic put me at peace. : P
 
JohnKSa said:
Here's an example that people don't often think about. Punches
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Good Lord, the right punch at the right time will feel like a gift from God. They make impossible jobs easy. Which reminds me, I need to replace one I broke recently.


mljdeckard said:
It is possible to just be silly about it. I sat in on a concealed carry class someone else was teaching, he said he fills the slide and frame assemblies of his Glock with shaving gel, and wipes until nothing comes out. Yikes. I heard another guy say that he will put the big parts in a silverware basket and run them through the dishwasher. More yikes.
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People do weird stuff. I just watched a conversation about holsters. Dude buys a brand new Bianchi holster and I couldn't believe some of the suggestions. Mind you, he was not asking for solutions to a problem. What he got was just run-of-the-mill crap people seem to do to a brand new holster. Boiling it in water for an hour. Drenching it in saddle soap or some weird concoction. All kinds of weird stuff.
 
I like a small toothbrush or nylon brush for areas that are kind of hard to get at, inside the action or really wherever. Toothpicks are good for anywhere you think you might see a clump or chunk of something, usually can be removed with a toothpick. I've started to use the blue shop towels with a little pice held over the flat end instead of a q-tip. It is a little narrower and seems not to leave fuzz and bits of material.
 
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