Wheel Gun Cleaning

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Takem406

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Not much of a revolver guy, not that I'm not a fan, but I haven't bought one yet or shot one much.

Well the father inlaw lent me an older Redhawk 44 to use as bear mace while bowhunting. He asked if I'd clean and oil it for him.

I guess what all needs oil on these? They are pretty bomb proof as is right? Do I need to take the grips off and lube anything in the trigger mechanism? Or just a light coat of oil over the finish for weather proofing?

Thanks
 
Just like oiling any other gun ( or any other object for that matter)... put a small drip of oil anywhere 2 moving parts touch.
 
A little work with a toothbrush under the extractor star, both the underside of the star and the recess in the cylinder face, best without letting the star down between each part being cleaned, will help keep it from getting sticky cycling. Unburnt powder and crud can accumulate there, exacerbated by trying to unload slowly and keep the brass from falling on the ground.


put a small drip of oil anywhere 2 moving parts touch.
Click to expand...

^^ This to a degree, then I move the part a bunch of times to distrubute the oil, then wipe off any that doesnt stay inside. Move it again, wipe again. and again.
 
A good coat of CLP over the whole gun. Don't be shy, give it a bath. If you're worried about the grips and your personal CLP, take them off.

Let it sit for 15-20 minutes.

Brushy brushy on the following: forcing cone, cylinder face, extractor star (and behind it.) Wipe off the crud you've knocked loose. Old t-shirts are excellent revolver cleaning tools.

If you've got a .44 bore-snake, run that through the barrel 'til you're satisfied and once or twice between each cylinder. If not, brass brush, jag and patch just like you would for a semi-auto, plus jag and patch once or twice in each cylinder.

Wipe the excess oil from the gun.

Enjoy the warm glow of a shiny revolver. =D
 
All good advice thus far, so I won't repeat anything. I'll add, however, that I prefer Barricade over CLP on blued guns as a rust preventative/lubricant. Just a personal preference from having used CLP in the Army. I'm likely in the minority.

Also I read somewhere, I believe it was manual or article about M1 rifles, that said: "Anything that slides gets grease. Anything that rotates gets oil." Most parts on a revolver rotate.

PS: I hear that Sweet's 7.62 is good at breaking down powder residue (as on the face of the cylinder), but don't leave it on too long; it's also good at breaking down metal.
 
Here's a video on youtube that may help https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4nduABddijw

If you search on youtube for revolver cleaning you'll get a dozen more:) . Unless your gun was soaked and water got under the stocks, I'd leave them on. No need to clean under them for normal use. As already mentioned don't take the sideplate off unless you know what your doing.
 
I watched this one from Hickok45 this morning, he makes it seem fairly straightforward and simple:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kiWNZgtu2uw

Anybody take exception to anything in this?
Click to expand...

There's lots of "roads leading to Rome" but what he did there is just fine. I prefer the cheaper Ed's Red mixture that I make up myself (recipe to be found in many places via a google search) for general cleaning. But the tools and methods I use for my regular cleaning pretty much mimics what Hickok is doing in the video.

Once every couple of years on my general revolvers and once a year or about 5K worth(whichever comes first) on my match revolvers I'll pull off the grips and hose down the insides of the action through the various openings with Ed's Red. If I were using Ballistol I'd hose it down twice. Once with brake cleaner then a second good flushing with Ballistol and set it so it can drain out all the excess. Or a light shot of compressed air will clear out the excess. Wipe it down and re-install the grips and it's good for the same time or amount again.

I like Hickok's pragmatic approach to the cleaning. He's a shooter so the guns are going to get dirty. So he cleans and oils well enough to ensure correct functioning but doesn't get all OCD over the little things such as a few light powder stains around the front of the cylinder and around the forcing cone.
 
The only thing ide hang about hickhock45s cleaning is I would personally pull the grips off before I sprayed it down....

I don't know how balistoil is, but if you are using a more agressive cleaner, it can damage the grips over time.

Also, it's best to avoid getting oil on wood, as it can soak in after a while and soften ans discolor the wood.
 
The chambers in my PITBULL get filthy, its all stainless steel, so I'm assuming it's OK to spray it with non-chlorinated carb cleaner?
 
I see a lot of folks suggest Brakleen, carb cleaner, or some automotive product when I've always just used Hoppes or Gun Scrubber & Ballistol for clean/lubing. What's the diff? From my scant research the auto supplies are infinitely cheaper than Birchwood Casey aerosols... but are they safe on all firearm finishes???

See these two products and tell me the best value, plz:

http://www.midwayusa.com/product/17...pf_ci_google&gclid=CMn4lq-K_8cCFYaCfgodNFoHsw

http://www.napaonline.com/Catalog/C...r-19-oz-CRC-Brakleen/_/R-CRC091314_0006414713
 
i mean, break clean is pretty aggressive stuff....im sure it would work, but ive never found the need to use anything super harsh.....CLP should get your firearms as clean as they need to be.....hell, a lot of the time i clean my guns with Transmission fluid, and that works just fine
 
Just a warning for those who might not know and are considering using a Brake cleaner or carb cleaner. Don't breath the fumes. Use in a WELL ventilated area! The stuff is toxic.

Also the chemicals will rinse away all residual oil on your guns and can promote rust on those types of surfaces that are prone to rusting. You will have to relube the entiire gun just to add a normal amount of surface oil to the steel.
 
For all my guns I remove the grips and put it in a sonic cleaner. 15 mins later it's clean everywhere. A quick wipe down and done.
 
Its interssting, perhaps more puzzling, at how many are hesistant to take a revolver apart. In todays youtube world, it shouldnt be much of an issue. It wasnt very hard even in the pre-youtube world.
 
Murphys Law said:
Just a warning for those who might not know and are considering using a Brake cleaner or carb cleaner. Don't breath the fumes. Use in a WELL ventilated area! The stuff is toxic.

Also the chemicals will rinse away all residual oil on your guns and can promote rust on those types of surfaces that are prone to rusting. You will have to relube the entiire gun just to add a normal amount of surface oil to the steel.
Click to expand...
So would I be correct in guessing that Gun Scrubber, bore solvents, etc. are a "mild & gentle" version of the cheap automotive supplies? Still don't see the point of all that when Hoppes or CLP will work, albeit more slowly. The only application I see for non-traditional cleaners would be the stripping of cosmoline w/ kerosene on a fresh Russian mil-surp gun. Even then, you would need to be careful.
 
"It wasn't very hard even in the pre-youtube world."
Not very hard for some. For others the Youtube videos might as well be images of the gods at play on the slopes of Olympus doing things we mere mortals will never, can never do. Loading gate spring, Ruger single action, get it wrong and you will not be forgiven. Seems so simple in the Ruger video so it was a surprise to see so many pages written on forums like this one filled with tales of woe and frustration and the raw horror, the horror, of a locked up gun.
For these poor wretches better to spray and pray or re-baptize the piece in a Moose Milk bath. What's never apart never has to be put back together.
 
I supposed you are correct. Some people are more inclined towards gadgets than others. I've done OK with gadgets, engines, cabins, but things like paperwork drive me up the wall, and cooking,....I survive, but its not a pretty sight, me making food, at least to those that it seems to come easily and naturally to.

This is a fair representation of my culinary skills.
 

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MartinS said:
"It wasn't very hard even in the pre-youtube world."
Not very hard for some. For others the Youtube videos might as well be images of the gods at play on the slopes of Olympus doing things we mere mortals will never, can never do. Loading gate spring, Ruger single action, get it wrong and you will not be forgiven. Seems so simple in the Ruger video so it was a surprise to see so many pages written on forums like this one filled with tales of woe and frustration and the raw horror, the horror, of a locked up gun.
For these poor wretches better to spray and pray or re-baptize the piece in a Moose Milk bath. What's never apart never has to be put back together.
Click to expand...
LOL, awesome reply!
 
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