Cleaning a 1911?

I clean any gun I own after every time I shoot. I never know if it's going to be just a week, a month, or a couple months before I get to go shooting again, and I'd rather have them clean during the down time.

I'll periodically pull my carry gun and go through it, clean the lint out of the barrel, and add some lube to it as well.

Larry Vickers had a great quote that said, "if you treat your guns like you treat your lawn mower, buy a Glock"

He also related the 1911 to being a connoisseurs' gun and that it required special attention. While i'm not sure about the former, I do believe the latter is true. I saw a guy buy a brand new 1911, that was bone dry, and then proceed to go out and fire about 500 rounds through it and was getting numerous failures to feed and eject. After that the guys at the shop cleaned it a little bit for him and added a good amount of lube, and then he had no problems.

It's my opinion that if you're not going to take the time to learn about all the different pieces of a 1911, and how they wear, and what to watch out for, that you probably shouldn't use it defensively.

And don't say every time it's shot.

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If it is a weapon that your life may depend on, you should take it apart, inspect, maintain as needed, clean, and lubricate the weapon every time it is fired.

If it is a toy, for competition or just grins and giggles, do what you want, and treat it with the respect you believe your weapons deserve.

But if you were one of my recruits when I was on the Drill field, that question would never have crossed your mind.

Don't forget to maintain your all your fighting weapons even if you don't shoot them too. Get on a schedule, and keep to it.

It only takes watching a Marine die or get seriously wounded once because of NOT cleaning his weapon(s) properly to make the point.

I always took pride in being a rather fast learner. Most folks who don't, are mainly looking for an excuse to not clean their weapons appropriately.

Go figure.

Fred

PS Please don't come up with the Myth of "over cleaning" a weapon damages it! The only way cleaning a weapon does any damage is if it is done improperly. Learn how to do it properly. It doesn't have to be white glove, but it should be clean and functional.

F

My Polymer Kimber, with well over 10k rounds through it, doesn't seem to mind that I could probably count the number of times I've cleaned it on one hand. The Kimber I had to bead blast to clean didn't seem to care how dirty it was. Matter of fact, since I had to blast it, I would imagine it wanted to stay dirty.

An oiled gun is a happy gun. But mine don't seem to care about being dirty or looking good. I dont know what y'alls guns are thinking, but mine are tools, and they know their place. I require them to go bang every time I pull the trigger, and despite my stainless 1911s looking like they're parkerized internally, the one pistol that's hung up on my was my Glock while shooting weak hand.

And IMO unless you take your engine out to clean it with every oil change, its apples to oranges. And dont assume I dont know anything about cars, I built a Fairmont out of junkyard parts that could do 140mph.

I won't carry a gun unless the last thing I did was clean and inspect it.

I won't carry a gun that I just cleaned and haven't fired again to verify its proper functioning. Dry firing is no substitute for a proper function check.

So all my carry guns are technically dirty.

I will usually wipe off the external powder residue after each range session, and drip CLP on the rails to keep 'em wet. I normally only strip 'em down and clean them when I detect a change in their operation, e.g. the trigger pull starts to feel spongy or somesuch.

I have never understood this logic, although I have heard others do the same. I am much more concerned about fouling in the extractor and firing pin channel than I am verifying the function of a gun I just shot.

Larry Vickers had a great quote that said, "if you treat your guns like you treat your lawn mower, buy a Glock"

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Bingo.
I clean mine after every range trip. Even my Glocks. I'm also the kind of guy that likes to keep rust off my tools and my truck clean when possible.

I don't buy into the whole "guns are like tools" thing that gets thrown around here either, and I'll tell you why. A gun is a heck of a lot more important than your power saw or claw hammer. Your gun stops working when you want it to because you neglected it, you can end up dead. Your power saw stops working because you neglected it, you can't cut that piece of plywood. Big difference.
A gun is in an entirely different category than "tools" IMHO, and while I do take care of my tools, the importance of taking care of my gun is in another league of importance altogether.

I am much more concerned about fouling in the extractor and firing pin channel than I am verifying the function of a gun I just shot.

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Do you consider it likely that firing seven rounds will foul the extractor hook or firing pin channel?

No. At the same time, I don't think it's LIKELY I will need to use my gun in a defensive situation, but I still carry one.

about every 200 rounds I clean it. That is because I can only afford to shoot 100 at a time.

I too clean my weapons after each use; but I don't over do it~! Often
times, a lightly used weapon can be broken down and swabbed or bore
snaked, when using plated bullets. Then take a clean cloth rag and hit
the frame, slide, and magazine. Be sure too re-lube the weapons in
question, and you should be good too go~!

I clean my rifle every time I shoot it and that goes for my pistol as well. If I'm transporting either of them, I clean them before I leave. I also make sure my carry piece is in pristine condition.

As much as they cost I clean mine every time it is shot and once a month when it is in the safe. You should clean them ASAP really , prevents dirt from being caked on.

I use to dread cleaning my guns. It always takes me 10 times longer than what other people say their time cleaning is. I put it off for 500 or even more rounds. My guns were filthy when it was time to clean them. So in a attempt to cut cleaning time I started cleaning every 200 rounds. It still takes me longer than what others say, but somewhere in the proccess I started to not mind it so much. I bought accessories to try to clean better. Somewhere it actualy became kind of fun. Then I thought why wear out your 1911's before there time? Now I clean them after every range time which is about 100-150 rounds. If that gun is not clean when I go to the range I only take one that is. I really, really love my 1911's, and want them to last forever, so now I clean them every range trip. They really do like to be lubed on a regular basis and all factory ammo that I have been shooting is dirty/filthy.

must clean guns, all guns need cleaning and lubrication. Wish a drill sergeant could answer this question for you. Then afterwords, the whole platoon would tell you their answer.
normally with fists ifyou were lucky. lock in a sock if you was unlucky. and most people are unlucky in the army.

Seriously, a dirty, uncleaned gun is like using a drug store condom thats a year past expiration date. it can be used, but you really wanna trust it?

At the same time, I have seen MANY rifles, particularly in training units, that are loose, sloppy, and jiggly because they are stripped and cleaned more than they are fired. There is such a thing as overcleaning that can cause unnecessary wear and tear.

Hell, I clean my 1911's every 1000 rounds or so, whether it needs it or not !

If my "serious gun" can't go 1000 rds without cleaning, then it doesn't stay my "serious gun" very long.

Ideally, after cleaning a gun used for defense, I like to put one magazine thru it, just to make sure everything was put back together correctly and to blow out any excess oil.

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I clean after every range trip, be it 10 rounds or 1000. Last time the gun was so dirty that the extractor was indistinguishable, but it still functioned every time. I don't worry so much about the grime making it not function, I worry much more about it damaging the gun permanently.

At the same time, I have seen MANY rifles, particularly in training units, that are loose, sloppy, and jiggly because they are stripped and cleaned more than they are fired. There is such a thing as overcleaning that can cause unnecessary wear and tear.

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Only when it is done improperly.

Yup, you will see that most often in training units. Take a guess about one of the things they are training those troops to do properly? Yup, take down, clean, inspect, maintain lubricate and maintain their weapons properly.

Hell, I clean my 1911's every 1000 rounds or so, whether it needs it or not !

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Have a name for folks who carry a weapon for a living who do that, amateur.

If my "serious gun" can't go 1000 rds without cleaning, then it doesn't stay my "serious gun" very long.

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It ain’t about what the weapon can do, it’s about what you are not doing. I have shot a 1000 round endurance match, but I break down, clean, inspect, maintain, lubricate and reassemble my weapons everytime I shoot them, and regularly if I don't shoot them.

My weapons have a reputation of "ALWAYS WORKING". Folks often comment on it.

Ideally, after cleaning a gun used for defense, I like to put one magazine thru it, just to make sure everything was put back together correctly and to blow out any excess oil.

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Never seen a man die or get hurt because of a clean and maintained weapon. I have seen men die and get hurt because of dirty and unmaintained weapons.

I would Suggest you get good enough reassembling your weapon so you don’t have to live fire to test it. Be good enough that you know it will work when you need it. That is what professionals do.

The only folks who should have to test fire weapons, are those that have had others work on them, or new weapons that are not proven. I will not carry a weapon for fighting that someone else has worked on until I shoot it too or if new until I put it through my own baptism of fire. That takes usually a minimum of 1300 rounds, if it works perfectly. It can be a lot more rounds if the new weapon does have issues. On one of my fighting weapons, if I did the work, it doesn't need to be test fired, I know it works.

Go figure.

Fred

if you dont want to clean your gun, buy a glock

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I think you meant to say if you don't want to clean your gun, buy a H&K

Seriously, just holding a freshly cleaned and lubed pistol makes me feel so good! Why wouldn't you want to clean them after every range session? Okay okay, I admit I've been lazy about it sometimes...but I still enjoy cleaning my handguns.