Clean AR after it sits?

[Fatman]

Quick and basic question.

If you have an AR-15 that had been cleaned/oiled and then not used - just sat in a safe- for say a month or two or three, would you feel the need to re-oil it before shooting it, or would that be a waste of time?

Thank you kindly.

 

[lovethosesooners]

Not in the least necessary - Im VERY picky about cleaning my guns and wouldn't think of doing that-it's already clean.

However, I always push a few patches through the barrel before shooting to remove the oil that's still in the barrel from the last cleaning.

 

[SpentCasing]

Clean? No.
Lube? Yup.

ARs like to run oiled so Id lightly coat BCG

Any good modern oil will evaporate from sitting but reappear when re-heated. So I put a small blast on bolt and carrier. Probably unnecessary but gives me peace of mind.

 

[rcmodel]

Oil runs off vertical surfaces and pools in the bottom somewhere.

If I had an AR that set in a gun cabinet for months on end?
I would at least brush the oil back up where it came from if I had time to do it.

And I would take a gander through the bore while I had it open to see if there are any spiders or mud dauber wasps living in the barrel.

Maybe even run a dry patch through it to get the excess storage oil out.
Although it won't hurt an AR if you don't.

rc

 

[adobewalls]

The ONLY time I have ever seen an AR platform have problems was when a friend put up his AR-10 dirty (in the closet) and then did not take it out for a year.

The result was the humidity and carbon on the bolt worked together to freeze the bolt from rotating. All it took to cure was a little ed's red into the bolt carrier, and to sit a few minutes. Once loosened, we cleaned and oiled the bolt and carrier and he was good to go.

 

[Art Eatman]

Never hurts to check for dust-bunnies and dirt-daubers.

In a low humidity area, the need for checking for rust is less than in a high humidity area. (One reason I like my desert. )

I'd check lube points before shooting a semi-auto, though.

 

[Robert]

I clean my AR every 1000 rounds or so, or at the end of the season. I lube it a little everytime before I shoot.

 

[briansmithwins]

I grew up in New Mexico. If you didn't wipe the sand and dust out of your bore you got a scratched bore. I'm still in the habit of running a patch down the bore before I go shooting.

BSW

 

[nyresq]

If it sat for a couple months in the safe I run a boresnake through it and might put a couple drops of oil on the BCG if it looks and feels dry, but thats about it.

 

[mljdeckard]

I know competition shooters who have shot thousands of rounds through ARs and never cleaned them. Slather some lube in the BCG.

 

[Snowdog]

I use grease (tw25) and don't have any problems with it going where it shouldn't. Perhaps my PSA middy is overly forgiving, but I'm having great luck with grease. No malfunction yet after 600-plus rounds of xm193 and about a couple hundred xm855. I do try to keep it clean though.

I am really warming up to the AR, a platform I used to avoid. I'll even say that my preconceptions were in fact misconceptions . My PSA has thus far proven both decently accurate and reliable. I can't complain, so I guess I won't.

 

[Dr.Rob]

Run a patch down the bore to get out excess oil before shooting.

 

[jsimmons]

I cut the fingers off leather work gloves and put them over the barrels when they're sitting in the safe. Keeps the dust/critters out.

To the OP, you should always check the action and visually inspect the weapon before trying to use it, especially if it's been in the safe a while.

 

[eddielewis]

I cut the fingers off leather work gloves and put them over the barrels when they're sitting in the safe. Keeps the dust/critters out.

To the OP, you should always check the action and visually inspect the weapon before trying to use it, especially if it's been in the safe a while.

Great idea!

 

[B!ngo]

I think the consensus answer is:
Clean the barrel (with a patch or two) but don't lube it;
Lube the rest of the gun (particularly the BCG) but don't clean it.
You could of course clean everything in a time consuming breakdown process but it isn't necessary. You left it in a clean and covered position when you set it down last time, no?
And now we know that excessive cleaning with adequate energy will ultimately leave you with a Type-1 Higgs bosun particle. Very fleeting...
B

 

[briansmithwins]

The leather finger tip thing is interesting, but I'd use fabric instead. Leather can do bad things to steel as it holds moisture and contains chemicals itself.

BSW