gunrange how many shots before you clean?

[shotgunsrfun]

I wanted to know how many shots can you fire from a shotgun and a rifle before you clean it at the gun range? I would think after 100 shots??? of any gun cal? I do not want to fire 200 rounds of rifle or shotgun and have backfire due to not cleaning and sitting at the gun range all day.

 

[Erik M]

Well I only visit public ranges, and 99% of the time my group is there alone. We never field strip weapons there. We wait till we get home no matter how much ammo is fired.

 

[oneounceload]

Shotguns get cleaned at home after sporting clays -no issues.

For rifles, I run a rod and patch after about 20 rounds, especially if I am shooting for group size working a new load up

 

[Werewolf]

and have backfire due to not cleaning and sitting at the gun range all day.

***? Been shooting since about 1968 and never heard that one.

Anyway to answer yur question. Shotguns - my father had an 870 pump shotgun for at least 20 years. He never cleaned it. Came home with his bird limit on dove, duck and geese every year. That was the only firearm he had at home. Funny thing was that he was career military and he taught me to clean any weapon I had every time it got shot or as soon as possible thereafter - situation permitting.

For me...

Depends - for a bolt action rifle about every third or so range run. If the rifle has been in the field, I'll clean it after the excursion.

For a revolver - when ever I feel like it which might be months or years. That months or years is usually when I notice some leading in the forcing cone or the barrel.

For a semi-auto pistol at least once a year maybe more if I get bored.

In short most people way overclean their firearms if they're just hunters and target shooters.

OK - got to run now - the ghost of my Dad and the shades of various DI's I had to deal with in boot camp are starting to appear - and they look PISSED!

 

[dogtown tom]

I believe "backfire" is from muzzleloading days. If a muzzleloader was improperly cleaned or loaded the force of the next shot was directed back through the breech instead of through the muzzle. It should not concern you if you are shooting modern firearms.

It is not uncommon to hear inexperienced shooters worry about a gun "backfiring". One of my new favorite shows, "Pawnstars" had an episode where one of the employees was worrying about one of the guns backfiring on him at thre range.

many .22 rimfire shooters put several thousand rounds downrange without cleaning the barrel. It may actually decrease accuracy to clean to often or too vigorously.

A few hundred will barely get your gun dirty.

 

[modifiedbrowning]

I shot 1K rnds through my Bersa Thunder 9 without any cleaning over the course of a summer. I had one round that failed to feed completely, a tap on the back of the slide and the round chambered and fired. Other than that one round no problems.

 

[f4t9r]

I do most cleaning at home not at the range. I have shot as many as 300-400 rounds and not had any problem. If I take a new gun or finding out what ammo shoots best then I would run a patch after a few rounds.

 

[thorazine]

I wanted to know how many shots can you fire from a shotgun and a rifle before you clean it at the gun range? I would think after 100 shots???

Ummmm never at the range.


I have never felt the need to clean a shotgun regardless of how many rounds were sent down range.

Same goes for rifles -- especially considering I could easily dump one hundred and twenty rounds in a matter of minutes if I really wanted to.

 

[NMGonzo]

500.

Maybe the ramp if I find it not so shiny.

 

[OldMac]

Every time after I shoot corrosive ammo.

 

[TexasRifleman]

I cleaned my Mini-14 in 1987, does that count?

About the only thing I clean AT the range is my hunting rifle. I might run a patch down the bore after 10-15 shots when sighting it in or working up a new load. Other than that, clean 'em later, if at all.

 

[kingpin008]

You people are savages! I detail-strip and scrub down my weapons after each and every shot fired!

Seriously though, guns are machines. They're not delicate. If any gun got so fouled that it created a dangerous condition after firing less than 1K rounds, I'd get rid of it in a heartbeat.

 

[ByAnyMeans]

I never clean a gun until I get home. I am currently looking for a scoped bolt gun to set up as a target shooting rifle and would clean as said probably fifteen to twenty rounds when working up a load for it.

I currently shoot either rimfire or mainly military weapons. 1911, Hipower, Glock, AK, Enfield, Mauser, Mossberg etc. If they need cleaning at the range then their is a problem.

When I was young me and a bunch of friends used to go to a range on Long Island (Calverton) in which we could rent a table at a large pit to shoot self thrown clays. Ten bucks a person all day. He would let me get a bench at the rifle range for another five.

We would shoot for hours and go through 1000 - 1200 rounds a day primarily through my two Winchester 1300s and a Mossberg 500. They were never cleaned at the range and no issues in the years we did this.

 

[danprkr]

When ever I think about it mostly. For a test I ran my 1911 once and tracked the rounds. I got just over 2500 before it quit, and I think that was the last time I cleaned it with a detail strip. Otherwise about once a year on bad weather days when I feel like shooting but not freezing my tail off I'll clean everything in the safe.

My wife HATES that day.

 

[The_Shootist]

I try to clean my revolvers after every range session because most of mine are stainless. A stainless revolver after a range session can look kinda crummy until cleaned, and the residue comes off on everything. Now my G19 gets cleaned every 150 or so rounds.....or so.

 

[wep45]

every 10,000 rounds, whether they need it or not.........got to keep up with these things

 

[Diocoles]

after every use. Regardless of the amount of rounds. When I'm done, I go home and I clean.
I clean every couple of months whether they've been used or not.
I want to be sure they are ready to go when I need them. Not just when I want them.

 

[Larry Ashcraft]

My 17 HMR gets cleaned when the accuracy starts going south, usually around 500 rounds. My rimfires get cleaned when so much crud is in the action that I get misfires because the firing pin won't move. I'm guessing 1000 rounds or so.

I wipe down guns after a range session, maybe run a Bore Snake through the barrel, and I usually wipe out the chambers of shotguns so they don't rust, but that's about it.

Otherwise, just shoot the durn thing.

 

[Guy de Loimbard]

One time I stopped and removed the barrel from an 1860 Army because I got an odd report and thought I had a squib. Never have cleaned anything at the range though, and I've shot 500+ in one sitting through an AR-15 more than once. Cleaning waits until I get home.

 

[content]

Hello friends and neighbors // This somewhat depends on the ammo type.

At the range I blow out action with canned air and wipe down whole firearm with an oiled rag. When breaking in a new rifle I worry more about cleaning the bore.

 

[dgax65]

I used to have a couple of AR-15's and an M1A. Those weapons were designed for the rigors of combat and harsh conditions. I would expect them to be able to function after a full day of shooting. If they couldn't make it through 500+ rounds it would be a cause for concern. The same goes for the 92FS and P226 that I currently have.

I generally treat my weapons the same way I did in the Navy. I always clean a weapon after it is fired. Even if I only fired one round, it is going to get field stripped and cleaned. I also clean my weapons on a somewhat regular basis, even if they haven't been fired. I don't think I would go longer than 6 months without a little preventive maintenance. Its hard to give up that good 'ol Navy way of doing things.

 

[John Wayne]

A pass with a bore snake after each shooting session makes detailed cleaning later on (after another 1,000 rounds or so...) much easier.

My XDM has been about 600 rounds since the last time I cleaned it. I might break down and clean it soon though, it's starting to get my clothes dirty when I carry it

 

[SN13]

I haven't cleaned the bore of my shotgun in over 2,000rds of various bird/buck/slug loads.

The only guns i really clean are my Mosin and Ak74 after shooting corrosive ammo. Other than that, the guns go uncleaned forever.

Oh, i strip and oil my Colt Mustang .380 SAO Pocketlite every couple of months because it gets full of pocket lint

 

[ezypikns]

backfire????????

Oh, that's your CAR, right?

I've never heard that term in relation to a modern firearm.

Back in the days of black powder (even now if you use Goex in amuzzleloader) guns would foul pretty quickly.

With any quality modern smokeless powder you shouldn't have to clean until you get home.

Unless, as some folks have indicated, you're attempting to shoot very accurate groups.

 

[Gungnir]

Oh, i strip and oil my Colt Mustang .380 SAO Pocketlite every couple of months because it gets full of pocket lint

I hear ya, I get that with my daily carry piece too, blow it off, wipe it down and run a oiled patch down the barrel, looks good as new.

Cleaning is done when I feel like it, might be after a session of maybe 200-300 rounds, or after 3 or so months, or when I think something is off, like I'm losing accuracy or after coming in from the hunting trip if the gun is looking grimy. If you're using corrosive or even think you might be using corrosive ammo then I'd recommend immediate cleaning with a mildly alkaline solution (household ammonia works well at 5%-10% do not use stronger it can attack stainless steel barrels), just make sure it's dry before you lube) after you shoot, other than that swing away. Over cleaning has it's own issues, like wear on the barrel, so be aware of that too.

One other point don't ever use an aluminum brush (I tend to prefer phosphor bronze, or nylon), Aluminum is actually bright and shiny and looks nothing like your pots and pans, what makes them look like that is corundum (aluminum oxide) which is used as an abrasive in sandpaper, emery cloth and a paste for polishing gemstones. You want to clean the barrel, not grind it.