I used to take forever cleaning guns and cleaned them every time I shot, but maybe that's because dad was always stingy on the AC and didn't run a dehumidified, so I saw rust happening. I have a pretty steady temperature control for my guns and it never reaches over 45% humidity, so that and with kids and general busyness, in the last couple years I've gotten pretty lax and just give it a wipedown with CLP. I find myself more willing to shoot because I don't have to endure the cleaning and really I haven't noticed any difference.

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Originally posted by RogueJSK:

quote:

Originally posted by FN in MT:
Unless it's a duty or carry gun, less is generally better than more.

Even if it's a duty or carry gun, it's doesn't have to constantly be "white glove inspection" clean. Swab the bore and wipe it out after shooting. Wipe down the outside regularly. Relube regularly. Only deep clean when it needs it.

This is pretty much how I view cleaning my Glock. Wipe the outside and internals quickly with a dry cleaning patch, clean the bore, lube...good to go. My P226 I tend to be more anal with, but still shouldn't be 90 minutes...

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Originally posted by Strambo:
A reasonable approach that you could still bet your life on..

Would be a pass or two with a bore snake, wipe it down plus a half dozen Q-tips, re-lube. 5 minutes max.

Or for a true minimalist; just re-lube after every session and clean every thousand or 2 rounds.

I'm career infantry, so I grew up with the clean it white glove inspection perfect mentality...but it is a waste of time and could even result in premature wear depending on how far you take it (*cough, Marines...I've seen M16A4 receivers looking like most of the anodizing was stripped from what I assume is over-cleaning.)

.

Yes that’s my approach also!

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Originally posted by Skins2881:
My wife is the same way, she won't stop till the patch comes out clean.

I use these gloves.

Ordered them and should arrive today. Need to go shooting so I can test them out.

I am the exact opposite of the original poster. I shoot a lot (2-3 times weekly) and clean guns about once every month or two.
I have owned and regularly carried a very reliable Ruger LCPII as my daily pocket carry. I have shot perhaps 1000 round out of it ( a pretty good number for a small pocket gun) and it has been field stripped and cleaned twice.

As anal retentive as I am, I used to be cleaning compulsive too, but I've learned to outgrow it. Now after a regular range day, my Glocks get a simple wipe down and are put away. After maybe 3 or 4 of these outings, I'll pull the slides off and do a decent cleaning/oiling.

If you shoot a lot of lead bullets or a lot of copper-plated bullets, you might want to take a peek down the barrel with a bore light or flashlight reflecting off of a clean patch at the breech. Look closely at the lands and grooves, where they meet. If you can see copper color or the transition is not sharp, clean vigorously! Copper cleaners will remove copper and you'll know when you've cleaned it enough when your patch comes out with no green!

A lot of you guys are still using Hoppes ?

[QUOTE]Originally posted by YooperSigs:
I clean after every shoot. No so much a cleaning as inspection of the gun.
Swab bore with Hoppes.

Hoppes has been cleaning guns since 1903. Fairly impressive history of use.

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Originally posted by YooperSigs:
Hoppes has been cleaning guns since 1903. Fairly impressive history of use.

I wouldn't want the used guns from guys here. The minimal care will keep them shooting for years, but won't make them things to be proud of. Yes, I have a quart or so of old Hoppes. The one I'm still using has the Benzene on the ingredients label. I don't care if it does kill me. Its time anyway.

But anything is probably better than nothing.

One day long ago, well before my dad died, we went hunting. I guess it was at least 50 or so years ago. The weather guesser, always wrong, said light showers ending before noon. Dad had pride, so we went rabbit hunting. I had my then new Remington 870. I smeared a good coat of gun oil on it before leaving the car. It was early still and the rain had picked up well past what the idiot on the TV had said we'd get. So off we went because rabbits tend to sit in the rain.

Even they had more sense than dad. So as the morning wore on, the rain picked up even more, into a downpour. About noon, we took shelter in a semi-collapsed barn. It was an old thing. But digging our sandwiches out of our hunting coats, I took a glance at my prized and then new shotgun. It had the prettiest red coating, and I was upset.

But over on the side of the barn that had fallen in was an old Ferd tractor. It looked well placed in the ruins of the barn. But it had a dipstick I could get to. I pulled it out and it had what looked like road tar on the end. So I made a rag out of my undershirt tail and smeared the oily junk on it. Then back over to where dad was sitting, amused at my antics. The stuff removed all the red from the barrel and action.

Dad lost his amusement at that point, and condescended to ask for the oily rag when I was done. The same magic worked on his M12. I had better sense than to gloat out loud. So we went home later and used real gun oil.

Over the years makers have gotten rich labeling rejected chemicals as gun oil. CLP probably is the only stuff that had to pass any testing. I think RemOil is just kerosene it goes away so fast. But I use it anyway. The best I've found is CLP Collectors. It kind of turns into candle wax in short order, but it does stay around for a long time after that.

This thread has mostly been answered by folks who use their guns as tools. Certainly not by anyone with a collectors piece or a gun they take a bunch of pride in. That needs another thread. All kinds of good stuff like using a shaving brush to get the oil into all the engraving cuts, etc. Paying particular attention to barrel frame junctures in revolvers, etc.

Almost all never cleaned guns need at least an annual inspection. My buddy Joe takes a couple of days a year to clean all his. He's what we call a condition collector. All are nearly perfect when he gets them, and he wants them to remain that way. He has no idea if his widow or offspring will honor that, but he doesn't care.

And we've only been discussing metal. Yeah, if you're going to buy stainless to neglect it, go ahead and buy soulless plastic. If you've hunted in briar patches or steep rocky hills, you've got dents and scratches. To me, part of cleaning includes care for the old dead tree. It was why I bought the gun in the first place. At least one of the reasons. Old car wax, any cannuba wax, even floor wax is better than nothing. So far this thread has only touched on other than metal cleaning.

If you buy a new gun, or one that is new to you, it needs at least an initial strip down and inspection. Just like you did when you were young and had a new girlfriend (or not). I've found spider nests, or egg balls inside. Before you even shoot them. You can even dissolve the bacon grease that seems to have been used in the past.

I even noticed green blood oozing out of a brand new S&W a while back. At least get that kind of stuff out and replace it with the stuff it'll be seeing in the future.

quote:

On that note, I really (really) need to wear gloves when I clean with all the Hoppes, etc. Please provide recommendations with a link or two.

Get you some Ballistol or if you don’t like its aroma (licorice/wet dog) Bore Tech Eliminator followed by any gun oil, and quit using harsh solvents for cleaning.

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Essentials of firearms cleaning

1] Empty chamber
2] Make sure it is empty
3] Check it again

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I've used brake cleaner, followed that up with Hoppes, then very sparingly-applied oil. Compressed air after the cleaner would be grail, methinks.

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Originally posted by Woodman:
Compressed air after the cleaner would be grail, methinks.

Using compressed air or any aerosol will result in a significantly lower temperature. And then condensation. Not sure you want that on a gun you considered clean and want to put away. To me that sounds like a formula for rust.

I can relate to OP, I like things clean but putting twice the time in for cleaning than shooting was getting old. I recently bought ultrasonic cleaner and now have cut my cleaning time in half at least and it does a lot better job than my OCD habits anyway.