Am I the only one who hates cleaning guns, HELP

[hankdatank1362]

I love cleaning guns. Not just my guns. My friends' guns too. My dad's guns (he lets his pistols get nasty, but his rifles are always fricking spotless)

Love the smell. Love the feel or a freshly cleaned action or a slicked up slide gliding on the frame rails. Love making dirty things clean.

Like it even more on stainless guns. You get to see a gun go from black (dirty) to "white" (clean)!

 

[Mr.1973]

I kind of enjoy it. It's like a back rub for a lady who just did me a favor.

We think the same. And clean our guns similarly the same......

And whatever you do THR....if you have plastic, composite, rubber parts on your gun, DO NOT USE.... Gun Scubber or Bore Cleaner by these guys:

http://www.birchwoodcasey.com/

IT WILL EAT IT! Some composites it doesn't, but it has ruined some of my non-metal parts (don't know about wood, only my AK has wood parts). It does Gets the crap off the metal pretty well, although.

On a second note,

I absolutely love their Sheath (*Barricade*, they changed the name) rust protection though. I use it, and find it protects extremely well.

 

[Dr.Who]

Has anybody tried that ultra-sonic cleaner and the water soluable solvent that they brought out the first of the year for guns?

I've used a cleaner like that for Fuel Injectors, however that was before I had guns. It looks like all you need to do is field strip, and remove wood grips and your ready to shake the parts clean.....

Once out of the bath, re-oil and patch the bore and your done.....

 

[juk]

I like to clean guns. I find it almost as enjoyable as actually shooting them. ALMOST! I've even gone so far as to take my buddies duck guns home and clean them. They supposedly only clean them once a year and that is after duck season. It showed too. I got tired of their auto loaders jamming and took it upon myself to fix it. I also clean every gun after a day at the range. It just makes me feel better knowing that it is done and ready for the next outing.

 

[dmazur]

My wife also hates the smell of Hoppes. confused

Plastic boxes are available that fit on the end of the barrel and catch the patch as you force it out. This works for "clean from the breach" rifles only. Garand and lever-action owners have to clean their rifles in the shop...

This greatly reduces the amount of VOC's that are released into the house. You just take the plastic box out and dump it in the garbage.

I think I got mine from Sinclair.

 

[Lurp]

I really enjoy cleaning my guns and find it quite peaceful. I buy quality tools and enjoy keeping them in good condition. It's a very satisfying experience and a give and take realtionship, treat your tools right and they'll treat you right

 

[Sackett]

Mmm...Hoppes

I too enjoy the Zen of gun cleaning. SWMBO has barred Hoppes from the house (I can't imagine why; it smells so refreshing!). So, I retire to the workshop, tune in KRTY and light up a big Macanudo or Avo. Then the stripping begins...

The whole thing adds a nice mental patina to a day spent at the range

What's more American than fondling firearms and smoking a stogie?

 

[Dark_Harvest]

I love cleaning my guns... but i also love doing dishes by hand... i never use my dishwasher, just doesn't give that same sense of satisfaction...

 

[Sackett]

Dishes by hand? Let's be reasonable.

 

[762 shooter]

One man's clean is another man's dirty.

Make sure that the big chunks of powder,dirt, or whatever are removed.

If you are shooting cast, lead can build up so watch for that.

Patches don't have to be spotless.

Light oil.

If the gun fails to cycle the next time at the range and it's because you didn't clean it enough, clean it better next time.

I use FP-10 lube,(I don't know if it is still made). The clove/cinammon aroma of the FP-10 emboldened by the earthy Hoppes 9 bouquet is truly smelilicious.

Cleaning is OK. Not like shooting or reloading but OK.

 

[davidjblythe]

I normally clean each rifle or pistol when I get back from the range, although I will let the AR-15 go 2 to 3 sessions before cleaning it because of the time involved.

I use Hopps #9, then RemOil or breakfree to finish.

 

[cpttango30]

Dude I am right with you on that one. I can't stand cleaning guns. Where I have to clean them is HOT and HUMID. Cramped I used to like cleaning guns when I was a kid and restrected from handeling them now that I have free raine over my safe the thought of cleaning my guns ranks right up there with having my leg torn off by a shark burned to death and having my teeth pulled with no novacaine. I do just what I need to get buy and thats it. I guess 8 years of forced gun cleaning was enough for me.

I will say that I never use a bore snake. Can't stand them things more than cleaning itself. WORTHLESS if you ask me.

 

[jakemccoy]

I just cleaned 5 guns
1911, Ruger .22, Beretta 92fs, Kahr PM9, and Sig P220.
My hands are sore. My head hurts form the cleaning stinking stuff.
I wasted crap load of q-tips, paper towels, nylon brushes, bronze brushes...

AND THE STUPID THINGS ARE STILL DIRTY!!!

I mean, You can't get ALL the powder and stuff out without detail strip and at least an hour per gun.

Do I even need to clean them that much? How do you do it? What do you use? Is there a way to clean a gun, such that it will function as clean, and can be stored for 6 - 12 months, and do it all in 10 minutes???

Is your Glock 19 on that list of guns you hate to clean?

 

[gunNoob]

Any DIYs for cleaning an AK? I'm a noob

 

[Floppy_D]

1. Secure ammo.
2. Verify no ammo is present.
3. Break out cleaning kit (rods and rags, break free, TW25 and RemOil), cold beer and dirty guns.
4. Secure from evolution when rags are dirty, beer is gone, and guns are clean.

As to the AK, read this.

 

[Captal_de_Buch]

It's not that I don't like cleaning guns.

It's just that sometimes I feel I have more important things to do, like petting the cats or loading ammo for the next "gun dirtying" session.

I guess you could say I have priority problems or that I sometimes get the gun dirtying horse behind the gun cleaning cart.

 

[gunNoob]

As to the AK, read this.

Thanks!

 

[kevindsingleton]

I clean my pistols in an ultrasonic cleaner, usually with kerosene, but sometimes with a purpose-made product in a Ziploc bag in hot water. Some pistols need a few bouts with the shaker, because the frame won't completely submerge, or the barrel is too long, but I just turn it on, and let it run. Afterwards, a quick rinse under really hot running water, followed by a fast dry (helped along with a heat gun on low, if necessary), and, then, re-oiling and reassembly.

I find it gives me a chance to inspect all the critical parts, and it doesn't take very long, per gun.

Now, the long guns are a different story. I approach each of them as a project, and I may spend hours getting a single rifle truly clean. It's a labor of love, and worth everything that it takes.

 

[moooose102]

i dont mid it either. it is part of shooting. for pistols, i usually strip them down, wipe everything down with a cloth w/ gun scrubber on it. get out the cleaning rod, run a couple of saturated patches w/ hoppes on it, then run the brush through it several time (of course, with hoppes copper solvent) and let the barrel sit for a few hours (the exception to this is the little 380 auto, those barrel's get to soak in a small container filled with solvent) . i repeat the brush treatment at least 2 more times. then down the barrel with patches until it is clean. rifles get pretty much the same treatment, except they get to soak longer, usually, overnight. i do not quit until all traces of copper is out of the barrels, no matter how long it takes. last thing is wipe them down with oil, inside and out. most of the time is in soaking, so there are lots of other things i do in the meantime. there is nothing that is more reassuring to me than knowing my guns are clean and ready to go, if i should ever need, or want to use them.

 

[CYANIDEGENOCIDE]

buy a can of teflon white lithium grease. If you depress the button only a little the grease will splatter out and leave a heavy film. I plate with grease the inside of the slide, the outside of the barrel and fill the fire control group. reassemble, cycle, and dry fire the grease will thicken from runny to well sorta like bearing grease, and it catches all the powder and tiny copper shavings. When its time to clean hose it all out with brake cleaner then reapply the grease. all thats left is the barrel and using the nasty birchwood casey foaming barrel cleaner just fill it up let it sit for say 20 minutes until all the blue runs out and viola you are done. btw do this ouside on a piece of plywood and wear rubber gloves. these chemicals soak into your blood stream and cause nervous system damage. the grease is great for long term storage too

 

[ZeSpectre]

Meditation on cleaning guns

Let me start off by saying that I'm a "neat freak". Don't take my word for it, ask Tinygnat219 or Titan6 However I am also very sensitive to chemicals and it takes very little odor to leave me feeling slightly ill

So for me every gun cleaning session includes GOOD VENTILATION and latex exam gloves ($10 for 100 at Staples).

Next are the chemicals I commonly use (all selected for their good performance and low odor).
-Gunzilla cleaner: weird stuff, smells like veggie oil, cleans up powder crud very well and also the plastic "snot" out of shotguns.
-WeaponShield CLP: A very good Clean/Lube/Protect that I've been happy with for a while now.
-WeaponShield "LithiLube" grease: A nice light lithium grease for slides and such.
-Outers Foaming Bore Cleaner: Easy to use, low odor, cleaner that is great for removing copper fouling (which, admittedly the other stuff sucks at).

The first thing I do is field strip and put cleaner down the barrel (Gunzilla usually or Outers if I see a need to remove copper). Then I set the barrel aside to "soak" while I do the rest of the cleaning.

Next comes some time with a Gunzilla soaked cotton patch or two and a few (or sometimes many) q-tips. First I go over all of the "load bearing" surfaces (the places that rub, spin, slide, etc.) then I give everything else I can get to a wipedown. Yes I know that there are nooks and crannies that still have crud hidden away but I've learned over time to accept that it really doesn't matter.

By now the barrel has usually "soaked" for about 15-20 minutes so I do a focused cleaning of the barrel and the chamber area.

Then it's relube and reassemble, do a quick external wipedown with some Weaponshield on a cloth to protect the surfaces and remove excess lube/oil and I'm done.

At 1,000 to 1,5000 rounds I'll do a more detailed and complete scrubdown of the firearms (sooner if the gun is acting up) but so far this has kept me malfunction free on all of my firearms.

 

[Auburn1992]

Cleaning used to take me a really long time. Up to two hours just for my Baby Eagle!

I eventually got the hang of it and now can do it around 20-30 max.

.22lrs will take me literally around 5 min. I just run a boresnake through it, wip down the inside and outside, and I am done.

For centerfire rifles it'll take me around 20min depending on how good I want to do.

The main solvent I use is RemOil for the inside and exterior. I will also use Hoppes 9 Lubrication for the moving parts. For the bore I use a mix of RemOil and Remington Bore Cleaner (as directed).

Can anyone tell me if there are better products than these that will work better?

 

[Floppy_D]

I use what you do, but if I'm shooting cast, I prefer Shooter's Choice Lead Remover (that stuff rocks) and for copper fouling, I like Sweet's 7.62.

 

[ch1966]

After shooting 64 rounds of Berdan primed milsurp through my Garand, I was obsessed with getting it "clean." I spent 2 hrs soaking and scrubbing. Actually cleaning it twice, first with ammonia then with conventional cleaners/lubes. The satisfaction that came with finishing the job was just as great as the satisfaction I had after shooting her at the range. I know my rifle is ready. It's a good feeling.
I believe any firearm worth it's weight should last more than a lifetime, but proper cleaning is required. It's the difference between passing on a gem or a stone when my time on this earth is done.

Hey, first post here!!! I guess the cleaning thread touched a nerve!

 

[Green Lantern]

It really depends, I usually don't mind doing it but sometimes I do put it off a bit (unless it's a carry gun I'm gonna be carrying...)

I just gave my Dad's MAK-90 a good cleaning. Still have the cut on my finger where I slipped doing something...

Oy vey...the gas tube latch was VERY VERY stubborn, so I went to get MY SKS to get the punch out of the tool kit in the buttstock to help me. And somehow the kit got stuck in the buttstock, so I had to work on the SKS before I could finish cleaning the AK!!!

By the way, the gas piston on the MAK had some spots of MAJOR crap buildup on there that wouldn't come off. I hear that it's not smart to aggressively scrub those things and risk changing the dimensions...any ideas?

(BTW, I currently use the OTIS system)