Do you guys clean after one mag through?

[tominboise]

Do you clean your semi auto handgun after running only one mag through? Or just wipe it down?

 

[Ethan Verity]

I never go to the range to fire a single magazine... but if I did, I would still clean it. Even if I had only fired a single shot that day, I would clean it before putting it away. The exception to that is if I plan to shoot the gun again in the near future.

 

[The_Quartermaster]

For just ten rounds? I wipe it down. I'd only clean if it's going to be sold or traded since that's the case.

 

[.38 Special]

I probably would, though like @Ethan Verity, it's never come up for me.

I'd also be the first to admit that, at least with modern guns and modern ammo, it simply won't matter either way.

 

[Rexster]

E. Clean as needed, as thoroughly as is necessary. I can get some carry guns thoroughly dirty, without firing them. This was especially true during my police patrol career, but remains true with field guns and street carry guns. It is more true of guns that are lubed with oils and/or grease that tends to accumulate dust, which eventually makes mud. A gun carried into both hot and cold environments, especially when the humidity is high, will experience condensation, inside and out. This condensation can cause lint and dust to stick to the weapon.

A gun carried in an ankle holster requires its own special level of attention.

A gun worn close to a heavily-perspiring body requires its own special level of attention. Salt is the enemy of most metals.

Have fur-people, at home? Yep, another special level of attention is needed.

I will tend to run a bore snake through the barrel, after every range or plinking session, no matter how few rounds fired, if I do not plan to break the weapon down, further, for cleaning, in the immediate future.

Breaking the weapon down, for lubrication, is done, as necessary. This is independent of cleaning.

 

[Rexster]

I’ll add that I am not obsessive about a clean weapon. Especially with my Glocks, I will sometimes let them get quite dirty, before I clean them. The SIGs, that I used from 2004 to 2015, were also quite tolerant of dirt/dust, though “classic” SIGs do like to be lubed “wetter” than Glocks, so, I had to pay attention to that, as wet lube accumulates more dust/lint.

 

[jar]

Clean after a single round.

 

[CoalCrackerAl]

I wipe down and will run a oil dampened patch though the bore. Just to get some of the burnt powder residue out. When it's time for a good cleaning then ill do a tare down and clean well.

 

[gwpercle]

I clean after every range trip or hunting trip ... it doesn't matter if I fire 1 or 1000 rounds .
Most gun problems come from two things 1.) Dirt - build up , 2.) Lube - a lack of .

You would not believe how many firearms I have " Fixed " by simply cleaning years of built up grime , gunpowder residue and hardened oil ...out of the wokings and then properly lubricated the guns action .
I can't believe some are so lazy they will not clean a gun untill it starts malfunctioning ... then they post ... " What Could Be Wrong " ... it needs cleaning !
Gary

 

[mcb]

I have not cleaned a gun all year, been shooting at least hree times a month. The last gun I clean had been caught is a rain storm last fall, so I cleaned it to ensure it was dry.

 

[JTQ]

Under most circumstances, I probably would clean after only one mag of ammo through the gun. On the other hand, I could probably go through a couple thousand rounds between cleaning and not be too concerned.

Cleaning and lubrication are two different things. For me, lubrication is the more important of the two. You can fire an awful lot of rounds through a dirty gun as long as it is lubricated properly.

 

[WrongHanded]

Yes. Here's why: The gun could probably do with a little more lube and a little less lint anyway. And it doesn't take much time to lightly clean, and inspect a pistol.

But something else to consider, is that a cleaned gun is an "unfired" gun, at a crime scene. So if you do happen to find yourself mixed up in something, but your gun has no gun powder residue coating the inside of the barrel and chamber, it's a pretty reasonable assumption that it was NOT shot at the scene. That's not really a big deal, but still noteworthy.

All I do is a field strip. Quickly brush and boresnake the dirt off/out, dab some oil to lubricate, and brush sensitive exterior parts such as steel sights with an oily brush. Takes me a couple minutes on most pistols.

[Edit to add bold text]

 

[Old Dog]

Nope. Not usually. Only one magazine? As a rule, I use pretty clean ammo, so I've quit being obsessive. (Sorry, Gunny Wilkins)

But I might inspect it (without field-stripping), take a q-tip to the ramp and clean any lint from nooks and crannies, put of drop of oil on the slide rails and give it a quick wipe-down with a microfiber cloth.

 

[Ignition Override]

Internal cleaning , only after about 50-100 rds.

A friend who retired from the Navy Reserve, on the Navy Rifle Team (after years flying the P3) also told me that Internal cleaning after each session is Not…actually….necessary.

He didn’t specifically state whether he meant inside competition rifles.

But what would he know ? Tongue-in-cheek…

 

[mgmorden]

No. My auto handguns get a cleaning about every 600-800 rounds. I've noticed that most uncleaned guns will start to have issues around the 1000 round mark, so I just try to stay ahead of that.

 

[JTQ]

I've got to believe this is a typo, but in the event it's not, perhaps some clarification is in order.

But something else to consider, is that a cleaned gun is an "unfired" gun, at a crime scene. So if you do happen to find yourself mixed up in something, but your gun has no gun powder residue coating the inside of the barrel and chamber, it's a pretty reasonable assumption that it was shot at the scene. That's not really a big deal, but still noteworthy.

If that were the case, it would be noteworthy.

 

[CDW4ME]

Yes, I'd clean a pistol even if I just shot a magazine through it; I don't like the idea of carrying with a dirty chamber, breech face, even if its just a little.
When it comes to cleaning, a pistol is like my rear end, it gets cleaned even if I only used it a little.

 

[The_Quartermaster]

But something else to consider, is that a cleaned gun is an "unfired" gun, at a crime scene. So if you do happen to find yourself mixed up in something, but your gun has no gun powder residue coating the inside of the barrel and chamber, it's a pretty reasonable assumption that it was shot at the scene. That's not really a big deal, but still noteworthy.

You are making a what if risk mitigation. It still won't save you if coming back from the range and making a stop at a gas station and something occurs.

Do as you want with your guns, I know I will with mine.

 

[Mizar]

No.

I hope this helps.

Best regards,
Mizar

 

[WrongHanded]

<edit>

I've got to believe this is a typo, but in the event it's not, perhaps some clarification is in order.

If that were the case, it would be noteworthy.

What kind of clarification would you like?

 

[JTQ]

What kind of clarification would you like?

You said...

...your gun has no gun powder residue coating the inside of the barrel and chamber, it's a pretty reasonable assumption that it was shot at the scene. That's not really a big deal, but still noteworthy.

As I said above, I suspect this is a typo, but by your response, perhaps not.

If there is "no gun powder residue" it would seem unlikely that the gun "was shot".

 

[5-SHOTS]

In the first years of this passion I cleaned the pistols after every time I returned from the range, exposing myself to not exactly healthy substances such as aviation gasoline. In recent years I have decided to shoot with the same pistol for three or four consecutive range trips and briefly clean with cloths and lubricate the pistol after each range trip to finally clean the pistol deeply only after the third or fourth consecutive range trip. So I put that pistol to rest and take another one with which I do the same thing. In short, I fire a few hundred rounds with the same pistol before deeply clean it and take another one.

 

[JTQ]

... I cleaned the pistols after every time I returned from the range, exposing myself to not exactly healthy substances such as aviation gasoline.

Yeah, I'm a big fan of non-toxic, or at least less-toxic products, and tend to prefer CLP's as they do all three things well enough for my uses. The more you use a CLP, the better it works.

One example of a CLP use https://slip2000.com/blogs/news/after-6000-rounds-i-cleaned-my-gun-with-a-paper-towel

 

[BushMaster-15]

Depends on a few factors which gun it is and how soon I'll be re-firing it .

Take one of MY CCW pistols as an example , NO . As I instruct generally #2 sometimes 3 days a week ,I'd be cleaning all the time ,so I Don't .
I do clean and lube every Sunday and IF I'm lucky enough to find additional shooting time ,YES I'll clean after either using our training range or MY Range .
FYI : One pistol I carry for CCW remains cleaned at ALL times and it varies from week to week , as I switch pistols to instruct or train with .
Walther ,Canik and H&K . On rare occasion I'll break out the Commander ,Griffon or Springfield 1911Target but as a general rule use 9mm for instructing CCW permits .

 

[Alllen Bundy]

I carry my pistol for self defense. I want to eliminate any chance of a malfunction if I can. A little bit of gunpowder residue on the breechface increases friction against the shell case as it is moving into position to enter the firing chamber (I've actually measured this) and increases the chance of a return to battery malfunction.

Wronghanded brought up a good point that a clean gun can eliminate you as a suspect at a crime scene.

At the very least, I will clean off the breechface, and lube the barrel and wipe off the excess. Every so often I do a complete disassembly, cleaning, lubing, and reassembly.