How long do you store your guns before checking them?

[jackp311]

First off, I am in Las Vegas, NV. So, please imagine that you have NO humidity in this situation. My question is: How long does everyone recommend you can leave a gun in a ready state (magazine, one in chamber, etc) before you should disassemble and check / lube it?

Here are my guns and there storage manners.

1) XD9 3" - Stays in the lady's car loaded with one in the chamber. Regularly see 115 degree temps out here in summer.
2) XD40 3" - Stays in my car same way
3) Mossberg 12ga parkerized finish pump - stays with a full tube and nothing in the chamber under my side of the bed in a hard case.
4) Beretta CX4 Storm Carbine in .40SW - Stays with a magazine and one in the chamber - manual safety on - under the lady's side of the bed in a beretta soft case
5) Kel Tec PLR 5.56 Pistol - Stays with a magazine and empty chamber in a second bedroom in the house - in a Kel Tec soft case

I would love to just take them all to the range every week and clean them after. But, time and money for ammo are short.

So, how often should I strip and clean / lube them? What about ammo rotation? How often there?

Thanks to everyone in advance!!!

 

[Thernlund]

I'm in Phoenix. I had a pistol a few years ago that up until that point had been in a ready state for about 10 years. Took it out to the range one day and pulled the trigger. Went bang.

FWIW.

There's also a recent thread around here someplace on ammo rotation. Good info there.


-T.


EDIT: Here it is... http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=385015

 

[Duke Junior]

My rifles in the safe go months without being checked.
My 2 carry guns I inspect carefully perhaps once a month.
Of course I'm blowing lint and dust out on a daily basis with the carry pieces.

 

[SomeKid]

In less humid environments, you can go longer.

I live in a (sadly) very humid spot. If I go more than a month without checking/maintaining I can count on rust forming on pretty much everything, including my AR. I found this out in a not so fun way.

 

[Rmac58]

SO FAR, I exercise all my weapons enough, that is not an issue.

 

[wilson]

I would check the ones in the car daily, just to make sure they are still there for one. Since the others are so close by I would do the same for them. I take mine out all the time and give them a once over. Who knows someone could nab one and you might not even know when.

 

[M2 Carbine]

How long do you store your guns before checking them?

If it's a gun I don't expect to use for a while, I clean and lube it good and may not touch it for a couple years.

 

[The Bushmaster]

At least twice a month. All except the house guns (S&W mod 10's and my CCW) are in the safe...

 

[scrat]

depends on humidity and where you live and how you left them. my guns are heavily oiled. i can go probably 6 months or longer. but then they are just sitting in the safe. I once went 5 years without touching a gun and they were all ok. not one bit of rust. Now a days i try to rotate my guns making sure they all get range time. So they really dont sit there long enough to gather anything.


Hey bushmaster 4000 post excellent

i bet i beat you to 5000

 

[The Bushmaster]

Did I win a prize?

Hummm...Time to slow down. Must be gettin' to be a bucket mouth...Go for it Scrat. I'll let ya...

 

[guntotinguy]

I live in Vegas also,and still make it a habit to check on the 'in safe guns' twice a month...you know all the dust gets thrown around and so on.In the monsoon season when the humidity rises up I check once a week but thats only because of a patterned habit I got into.

 

[possum]

welcome to thr. almost all of my guns see use, and hard use at that, so they are shot cleaned and re lubed at least once a week to every other week. for the one or 2 that i don't shoot much i check them every 3 months or so, they get a fresh layer of g-96 and then back in the case.

i also recomend that you use a form of grease ie, high temp wheel bearing, or wilsion combat or other similar to lube with. the lube will be where you put it 6 months from now, if you shoot 800rds in 2 hourse it will still be where you put it. that is my experience that is why i use grease instead of clp or other oils. grease dosen't migrate and it is alot cleaner to use and apply.

 

[rollback88]

The target pistols get used about once a month or so. The exception to that rule may go out 2-3 times a year. If I haven't done anything with one of them for a couple months, they get a Rem Oil rag wipe down.

Carry gun gets shot once a month - rudimentary cleaning every couple weeks. They sit in their holsters in the safe when not on the belt. I give the outside a good shot of RemOil to counter the leather absorbing it all. I change magazines every few months when I think about it. No reason in particular - just resting the springs, I guess.

--jcd

 

[Sunray]

"...magazine, one in chamber..." That's an accident waiting to happen if there's anybody else in your home. Especially if there are kids. A loaded mag in with an empty chamber isn't. Mag springs do not lose temper from being compressed.
"...Stays in my car..." And if either of you become the victim of a crime, vehicle theft, you've given a loaded firearm to a criminal. Re-think that.

 

[jackp311]

its just me and the lady in the house. When we have kids, all of our storage methods will change.