Am I the only one who hates cleaning guns, HELP

Status
Not open for further replies.
I disassemble, Hoppes down the barrel until patches come out clean, use WaterDisplacement-40 as a solvent, scrub with toothbrush, blow off with 150psi of air pressure, spray down with RemOil, brush with small paintbrush, blow off with air again, reassemble, wipe, done.

I can do all that at the rate of 15 minutes per gun, or make the process last for an hour...guns come out pretty much the same either way. Letting the stack of guns that need cleaning build up to 6 or 7 does make it hard to find the initiative to "start", but once started it's not so bad.
 
Theres two kind of men: The kind who hate cleaning; and the ones who find it relaxing;)(the girley ones)
 
I learned many years ago in ROTC that the drudgery of gun cleaning is inversely proportional to the amount of alcohol consumed at the same time.

Some good music helps too, preferably Warren Zevon.

Put the ammuntion away first.
 
Since I moved away from oils and greases to Remington DriLube (teflon based) on my pistols, cleaning has gotten a lot easier. I sprayed all the sliding surfaces and also did a light coat of all the internals. Oil and grease capture all kinds of crud and turn it into a sludge that's hard to remove. With the drilube, I just take a rag, wipe it down gently and it comes right off. Then I give it a light spray again. I was nervous shooting my brand new CZ75 with zero oil or grease, and just this stuff, but it seems to be working just fine. Also it doesn't spill out the sides, attract dust or ruin clothes when you CCW.
 
Is your Glock 19 on that list of guns you hate to clean?
Click to expand...

NO.

I think because of the coating on the metal, all the burned powder comes off very easily. Also, that gun is so simple to detail strip, and I can give it a COMPLETE clean in less time than regular clean of, say, Ruger Mark III or Beretta 92FS.

Honestly, after that little ordeal last night, I began to wonder is I have too many guns for the time I spend at the range. Recently I shoot once a month or so, and it's 2, 3 guns max at a time.
 
Cleaning guns is a pain. Malfunctions are even more of a pain.

Every malfunction I saw with an M-16 while I was in the Army was caused by the weapon being dirty.
 
I don't hate it until I'm halfway through the first gun...

But I've minimized the time spent cleaning. Everything that can and will collect carbon gets a thin coat of CLP to stop carbon from building BEFORE it gets fired. Barrel gets hit with brake-cleaner then gets a wire brush with a Hoppes soaked patch wrapped around the brush pushed through it after shooting.

Then just hit everything else with a toothbrush and CLP, wipe dry, and then relube.
 
Everything that can and will collect carbon gets a thin coat of CLP to stop carbon from building BEFORE it gets fired.
Click to expand...

Strangely enough it's been my experience that Breakfree CLP seems to make things even more "sludgie" (if that's a word) where other products seemed to make the job easier.
 
To me, cleaning a gun is just like washing a car: it isn't something I relish doing, but it is strangely satisfying and that's what ultimately compels me to get on with it.

I suppose there's a certain amount of pride that goes into caring for your prized possessions, which would explain the satisfaction.
 
Try to make it fun rather than drudgery. Go to the garage/patio/back deck/ whatever. Turn on some tunes. Fire up a cigar. Grab a beer. Exclude the wife and kids for a few hours--mentally and physically. It works for me.

As for getting things clean: I use Hoppes #9 for cleaning, Rem Oil for lubricating, a bore brush appropriate for caliber, an old tooth brush, an old cotton t-shirt for a rag and a heck of a lot of cloth patches (made from another old t-shirt). Things get pretty clean, and time consumed probably averages 20 minutes per.
 
I love cleaning guns with some good tunes in the background. The only trick I have is to have a good collection of Hoppe's boresnakes. Those things make cleaning a snap.
 
Hey, you have to clean up after you eat a great meal, don't you? Well, just consider the cleaning session as the after-glow of a great range session.

I'll clean 3 to 5 guns in the evening after a good shoot while watching TV so there's really no "down-time". I got to watch my program and got the cleaning out of the way. Win-win.
 
I used to hate shooting blanks during the field exercises so much, that I would give em all away. Point my M16 toward the enemy while saying BANG... BANG BANG... BANG BANG BANG... :eek:

MY cleanup and rifle turn in time was cut down considerably. :D

But now, I generally spend a good 30 to 45 minutes per weapon. Run the solvent, let it set a couple minutes, swap repeat.

Rifles aren't so bad, but pistols after a few hundred rounds bites.

Ya gotta do what ya gotta do...
 
I forgot to mention:

A trick I was taught in Basic Training is to soak the weapon down with Break Free when you get done firing. By the time you get back home, it has loosened up a lot of the carbon making it come off pretty easily.
 
Hey, you have to clean up after you eat a great meal, don't you?
Click to expand...
No, you tip the waiter to do it for ya. :p

Can't say I care for cleaning. Materials be too expensive for me to drown the things in CLP (which I'd prefer). So it's sparing on the cleaner and heavy on the elbow grease.
 
Theres two kind of men: The kind who hate cleaning; and the ones who find it relaxing(the girley ones)
Click to expand...

Count me in the "Girley" camp. Most of the shooting I do is hunting and so on a typical day I may only fire between 5 and 20 shots - enough to require cleaning but not enough to make the rifle filthy. After a long day on the feet it is great to slump into the lounge chair with some tunes in the background and give the gun some TLC. I find it an enjoyable ritual. Endlessly cleaning my service rifle was another story though.
 
latex exam gloves
Click to expand...

These are better than no gloves, of course, but nitrile gloves are far more resistant to solvents than latex. Around the same price, available powdered or unpowdered, and non-allergenic (for those sensitive to latex.)

I find that dexterity isn't compromised with thin nitrile gloves, and wearing them lets me clean with impunity. No dry, cracked fingers afterward. And no slow poisoning from skin absorption. ;)
 
You can get them from quite a few industrial supply houses, like Grainger. However, sometimes Grainger doesn't like to sell to individuals.

Gempler's, however, has no such annoying compunctions -

http://www.gemplers.com/shop/nitrile-gloves

These are available in a variety of thicknesses, as you can see. The thinner ones offer more dexterity, but don't last as long. The heavier ones are for janitorial work, paint mixing, etc. (I don't recommend the heavy ones for gun cleaning, unless you like feeling clumsy...)
 
You have several choices that will help you save time and energy:

Teach your (wife, children, boy/girlfriend) to clean your guns.

Pay someone to clean them.

Spray them with WD40 and wipe the excess off and keep doing this until they quit functioning and give them a real good cleaning then.

Shoot them everyday and clean them only once a week.

Or, you can be AR and clean them every time you shoot them, wipe them down every time you touch them and wake up in the middle of the night worrying about having missid something the last time you cleaned them.

I'm not saying but one of the above is the way I clean my rifles, pistols and shotguns.
 
Here's how I go about the business of gun cleaning:

Mental Preparation:
I know that when I shoot my weapon I am going to clean it - it's that simple - I clean my weapon every single time I use it. Before I even get all my things together to hit up the range I have placed my cleaning items out on the table for my return. I make it a routine associated with range activity. This has helped make it easier for me to clean my rig and helped make it part of my weekend routine.

Relaxation:
It is important to make cleaning your weapon a time of relaxation and focus - use this time to listen to your favorite music as previously stated by some members on this thread as well as use this time to go over how you shot that day and what you might do differently next time when shooting. I keep something to write on nearby if I think of something range related that I would like to try next time out.

Path to Enlightenment:
Know that by cleaning your weapon after every shoot will help you keep it cleaner than those other "jokers" out there. Yes - they are still dirty but not as dirty, huh? It could be worse, right? No use getting fired up over things you can't control - combustion is a messy thing but it beats playing golf.

Equipment:
I use a foaming bore cleaner - whatever is on sell, Synthetic-Safe Gun Scrubber, Copper Brushes, Old T-Shirts, Rem-Oil, a toothbrush, and WD-40 for a nice and shiny protective coat. Whatever is at my disposal to clean that weapon will be called upon in a time of need. I use my weapon fairly regularly so storage isn't as much of an issue for me. I am at the range at least every other weekend.

Final Thoughts:
The best I can recommend is making the cleaning of your weapons part of the enjoyment of using your weapons - mentally I don't think it can hurt. If you embark on cleaning activities with an open heart and push your need to restore them back to that "fresh off the line look" I think that you will become one with your custodial duties and embrace the very peaceful and fun nature of cleansing your weapon after a day's shoot. All in all take pride in having and maintaining a clean weapon.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

E
  • Locked
Gun Cleaning: Field vs Detail Stripping
2
Replies
43
Views
5K
moooose102
M
B
  • Locked
Am I the only person who cleans his guns?
2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Replies
175
Views
7K
JRH6856
JRH6856
X
  • Locked
gun cleaning please help... lol
Replies
6
Views
576
AKElroy
A
QuietMike
  • Locked
Should I be using a Copper remover?
Replies
15
Views
2K
ATLDave
A
A
  • Locked
Finally !!! I have a gun !!! I have a gun !!! And few questions too :)
Replies
22
Views
1K
hexidismal
hexidismal
Back
Top