I realize that these may be some newbie questions, but I have not ever seen these asked before!


Last night I stopped at my farrier's (horseshoer) house to show him my conceal carry rig (SuperTuck and P6). Well, one thing led to another and we ended up doing some shooting (he has a new Ruger .308 that I just had to try)!

Here's the questions (I fired about 16-17 rounds through my P6 - which was was sparkling clean before):

1) Does a complete cleaning need to be done after even a few rounds?

2) How long (what kind of timeframe) after even shooting a few rounds does the cleaning need to be done?

3) And finally if a weapon is just carried (without being fired), how often does it need cleaning from just being carried (you know, dust and lint and all)?

I know that there have been numerous threads about lubrication and maintenance, but I haven't seen this discussed.


Thanks!

Bill

1. Personal preference, really. I typically clean every gun after shooting, even if its only a few dozen rounds. Your P6 should be fine if you don't clean it, but I don't like to keep my parts dirty. Plus, I enjoy cleaning them.

2. I would not want my pistols to sit in a dirty condition long enough for the lube to dry up, which could be a very long time. I don't exactly how long that would be, since my pistols never get that far along. Even if they did dry out, dirt wouldn't be the worst thing that could happen, it would be the metal-on-metal contact. I read many stories about weapons which go very long periods (years) without cleaning before they begin to see failures.

3. For a carry gun which doesn't see use between cleanings, a good rule of thumb is to clean once a month. Your carry gun is subjected to everything you are during the course of the day.

Read this thread and you should have a good idea...

Flork's Lubrication Thread

quote:

Originally posted by billpocz:

1) Does a complete cleaning need to be done after even a few rounds?
Bill

I can't speak for everyone..but I do. I make it a habit with all my firearms...especially my EDC XD9sc. I need to be able to depend on my firearm. I have low tolerance and a serious case of OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder) if there's even a chance it will fail at a critical moment due to being dirty....I might as well be carrying a paperweight to throw.

quote:

Originally posted by billpocz:
2) How long (what kind of timeframe) after even shooting a few rounds does the cleaning need to be done?
Bill

I clean ASAP. No exceptions especially if it's my EDC.

quote:

Originally posted by billpocz:
3) And finally if a weapon is just carried (without being fired), how often does it need cleaning from just being carried (you know, dust and lint and all)?

Thanks!
Bill

For me - every Sunday morning if the gun hasn't been fired. It usually doesn't take as long due to it's NOT gummed up w/spent gun powder.

Again how clean you keep your gun(s) or anything else is a matter of personal choice. I have a LONG history of auto detailing, and that OCD attention to detail mentality has carried over in everything MECHANICAL I own.

my .02¢_

I like to clean my pistols after every time I shoot them. I may not do as much cleaning if I only shot a few rounds compared to shooting several hundred in a single outing. You probably could get by not cleaning yours after so few rounds but I wouldn't do it.

As to cleaning a carry pistols, I clean and lube mine very lightly every month if it isn't shot. It is good to remove the lint and anything else that may work its way into the gun and re-lubrication/cleaning prevents corrosion. A pistol carried close to the body and not at least wiped down will have salt from the body on the metal.

I do a very light wipe down of my carry pistols each week. I use a patch with gun oil followed by a clean dry cloth to remove any excess.

I have also used Fitz gun and knife wax on the out side of a carry pistol. It keeps the gun feeling dry and doesn't mess up your clothing. I use the Fitz gun and knife wax often on the P6 I carry. This is the liquid verion. The P6 is a nice carry piece.

I really appreciate the info!

I thought that I was just too finicky by wanting to do a cleaning job after EACH time!

BTW, I did do a complete cleaning of my P6 (although I did wait until this morning).

Bill

I clean my guns only when I want them to work the next time I shoot them.

Old timers had a saying, "Don't let the sun set on a dirty gun." That was really important, though, only back in the days of blackpowder and corrosive primers.

In fact, of course, if the gun is clean and properly lubricated when it's fired a few times with modern ammunition, the overwhelming likelihood is that it will function okay the next time without cleaning. There are, however, a couple of considerations.

Shooting the gun will in most cases remove whatever rust preventative is in the barrel. That will obviously make the bore more susceptible to rust. Where I live that's not a major issue, but it happens even here.

Some firing residues become more difficult to remove and will have a greater effect on the gun's operation if they are left on the gun for long periods. I've told the story here about seeing several M16 rifles in Vietnam becoming so "frozen" up with residues that they couldn't be disassembled by hand when they were left for a couple of weeks without cleaning after a range session. I service my department's P220s, and most of the time they are not completely clean when I receive them. Some of the residues are more difficult to remove than if the gun is cleaned promptly after use.

Probably the most important reason to clean a gun after it's fired is the inspection aspect of the process. A gun is more likely to break when it's fired and a thorough cleaning and inspection will detect problems before they become worse or before the gun is really, really needed.

The amount of cleaning a carry gun requires depends upon the specific circumstances. When my weapon was a S&W revolver with old style bluing carried in Washington, DC, heat, I wiped it with an oily cloth daily. Now my carry guns get dusted off every couple of weeks and cleaned every few months. I lube my carry pistols with TW-25B and know from personal experiments that it will do the job for many months after it's applied.

Keep your carry gun in top shape, your life may depend on it so it's a priority....clean it regularly, even if you don't shoot it!

quote:

I clean my guns only when I want them to work the next time I shoot them.

If there was a SIG Forum Hall of Fame, or collection of famous and notable SIG Forum quotes, this would have to be in the top ten.

Add me to the "Clean it after one round or 100" group.

"Sigmund, when would you ever fire ONE round?"

Well, there was the time I shot a rabid raccoon on duty (I'm a reserve LEO). I got off at 0330 and the 229R got cleaned before I hit the sack.

And there was the time I fired my own 870 on the range and watched the mag spring and other parts fly downrange because the end cap wasn't tight.....

I'll add one more point. Since you are field stripping it to clean, always perform a function check before putting her back on duty.

I do competition IPSC with my P226 Blackwater Tac. I also use my W. Germany P226 as back-up. I only clean mine after every 1000 rdns. More than that, the gun starts to act up. However, I always go to a competition with both guns cleaned. Most competition, I shoot about 300 to 400 rnds and sometime I will shoot two competitons a day without cleaning between shoots. Most competitors I shoot with do the same no matter what gun they use.

I'll go a little while on my range guns between cleanings, never more than 500 rounds. My EDC, however, never gets shot without cleaning. I simply will not carry a dirty gun.

Maybe this is just me being paranoid, but I see carrying a clean gun as a further protection against being wrongfully accused of discharging the weapon. Suppose someone reports shots fired, the police show up, and you're there with a dirty weapon. I feel it would be much easier and faster to clear up any confusion if your gun is spick and span clean.

Can't cite any examples of this in real life, but it makes me feel better, and it doesn't hurt to have a well maintained EDC.

quote:

Originally posted by sigfreund:
I clean my guns only when I want them to work the next time I shoot them.

sigfreund, the wisdom of your posts is almost like you were saying, "Grasshopper, take this pea from my hand..."

Thanks for the insight!

Bill