Would you shoot more if you didn't have to clean your guns?

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usmarine0352_2005

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I hate cleaning my guns. It is one of the reasons I don't shoot a ton (other then price and a place to shoot).



I know that some people love cleaning their guns and even find it cathartic, similar to those who enjoy mowing their lawn.




Who here would shoot a lot more if you didn't have to clean your guns afterwards? (Going with the premise that ammo and a place to shoot are of no consequence.)



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I think I would. I feel like I have to shoot at least a box of ammo to make it worth it since I have to clean them when I get home. I can't stand putting up a dirty gun. At the least I wipe out the actions and run a couple patches through the barrel even on my 22s. But yea if I didnt have to clean so many guns I would take more than 2 to shot at a time.
 
I'd shoot a lot more if I had the money to afford ammo.

Cleaning guns to me isn't a big deal. Takes all of ten minutes each, not a big deal.

Speaking of cleaning .22's - when I had my Ruger MK III, I put close to 10k rounds through it, and only cleaned it two or three times. In general, .22's don't need regular cleaning. In fact, it's thought to do more harm than good by a lot of folks.
 
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kingpin008: "......Speaking of cleaning .22's - when I had my Ruger MK III, I put close to 10k rounds through it, and only cleaned it two or three times. In general, .22's don't need regular cleaning. In fact, it's thought to do more harm than good by a lot of folks."






Why wouldn't you need to clean a .22 as much as other guns?



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I'd shoot a lot more if I had the money to afford ammo.

Cleaning guns to me isn't a big deal. Takes all of ten minutes each, not a big deal.
Click to expand...

This sums it up for me!

Why wouldn't you need to clean a .22 as much as other guns?
Click to expand...

No copper jacketing on the bullet to foul the barrel, just lead. Also some belive that it will harm the throat and crown if you constantly clean a .22 barrel. I personally don't clean a .22 barrel till accuracy falls off. However I do keep the reciever action clean.
 
If I shot more, I would clean my guns less. Guns sitting around for awhile dirty will do far more harm then putting a few more rounds through them between cleanings.

Lets face it, the pitiful amount of shooting most of us do and the celebrated view some of us take to cleaning our guns makes me think some like cleaning more than shooting.
 
Cleaning a gun is of more value than just cleaning it. I use my cleanings as a chance to visually inspect parts. The dirty fluid going about is great as a simple way to spot hairline cracks in the metal and whatnot.

I've actually repaired things before they failed based on issues I spotted on a cleaning (hairline crack forming on an ejector for example, replaced and adjusted the length of the piece to prevent this in the future). Such issues would not be found until a failure otherwise.
 
cleaning is a labor of love for my 1911's. become familiar with all the parts, pieces and fit and finish. i run maybe 300 lead bullets prior to cleaning--basically want to remove all lead from barrel. full strip--higher round count.

my 22's--i use clp for surfaces. not so concerned with barrel. my ar with spikes upper--i zap the crap out of the action.

i have an awc amphibian--i shoot it wet and will strip it down after about 500 rounds.

keep em clean and working. also--easier to sell if you have/want to.:what:
 
No copper jacketing on the bullet to foul the barrel, just lead. Also some belive that it will harm the throat and crown if you constantly clean a .22 barrel. I personally don't clean a .22 barrel till accuracy falls off. However I do keep the reciever action clean.
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Bingo.
 
Would I eat more if I had a dishwasher? :rolleyes:

Is cleaning a gun after use really that bad? (Ruger MK Series excepted)
 
mustang steve:
"Cleaning a gun is of more value than just cleaning it. I use my cleanings as a chance to visually inspect parts. The dirty fluid going about is great as a simple way to spot hairline cracks in the metal and whatnot.

I've actually repaired things before they failed based on issues I spotted on a cleaning (hairline crack forming on an ejector for example, replaced and adjusted the length of the piece to prevent this in the future). Such issues would not be found until a failure otherwise."
Click to expand...



Well, if you don't shoot them, they won't crack.




lol


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I own about 12 firearms that I shoot a lot and I have yet to clean them. They all shoot fine. Until they stop functioning reliably I am going to just let them stay dirty. I own several others that I have shot a lot and they needed cleaned eventually.
 
I wouldn't shoot more but I would shoot certain guns more if it wasn't for having to clean them.
I do not like cleaning guns and most of the time there's several guns in my shop that need cleaning.


Just this afternoon I'm debating on not shooting a Ruger Blackhawk because I cleaned it yesterday and I don't feel like cleaning it again.
 
I don't mind cleaning mine at all. I put some music or a firearms podcast on in the background and clean away. I find it very relaxing.

I told a shooting buddy of mine that, and he asked me if I'd like some quality time with his firearms. I told him I didn't love it THAT much.:)
 
If I still had my cap & ball Navy Colt, my answer would be yes.
Pyrodex is messy, so it wasn't worth taking it out to shoot for less than a few hours.
Now that everything I have is all smokeless?
No change. And I don't mind cleaning my guns, but not my favorite activity either :rolleyes: .
 
No copper jacketing on the bullet to foul the barrel, just lead. Also some belive that it will harm the throat and crown if you constantly clean a .22 barrel. I personally don't clean a .22 barrel till accuracy falls off. However I do keep the reciever action clean.
Click to expand...

Lead fouls as well.

Any gun can have the crown and throat damaged by dinging with rods. The trick is to clean from the breech via disassembly, bore snakes, or otis type cables, or bore guides, or just being very careful.

Semi auto rifles and revolvers are a little more tricky to clean from the breech than a bolt action or an auto pistol, but it's easily done.
 
I'm not a U. S. Marine. I don't have to clean my guns if I don't feel like it.
 
No. I don't clean them after every outing anyway. 50 years ago that was gospel, I have learned the error of my ways. So far so good. I'm retired so cleaning is a pleasant chore. I work on my guns or targets or reloading every day. I keep reminding myself I could still be working.:barf:
 
ARs, 1911s, I do not mine cleaning. SKS with corrosive ammo and me being paranoid about rust is not so much fun. ARs down to 5 or 10 minutes each and no worries. The SKS I have yet to finish under 20 minutes and I still check the next day to be sure nothing is growing!! Maybe with time it will get better....
 
I see I'm not the only who hates cleaning guns. It's the kind of messy job I try to avoid. A definite YES, I would shoot more if I didn't have to clean the gun afterwards. I usually only take one gun to the range, because I don't want to face cleaning more than one at a sitting. To make it worst, I'm OCD about cleaning anything - my house, cars, and of course guns. If I shoot one round or 300, I can't let the sun set on a dirty gun. I have to get in there with a pick and Q-tip and make sure every particle of dirt is gone. Oddly enough, I don't mind lubing, just cleaning.
 
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