Is a clean gun truly a happy gun?

[2cool]

Old Army habit is to clean the weapon every time after each use. OTOH, range rentals are cleaned once a month, no oftener; and shoot and shoot.
Does it really make that much of a difference in reliable shooting if less than 50 rounds have been put through it?

 

[Thax]

If its my gun its always cleaned after use . I like that I am inspecting my firearms to insure safety constantly , any firearm that uses corrosive ammunition needs to be cleaned asap. It gives me peace of mind.

 

[DirkDiggler]

Originally Posted By: 2cool
Old Army habit is to clean the weapon every time after each use. OTOH, range rentals are cleaned once a month, no oftener; and shoot and shoot.
Does it really make that much of a difference in reliable shooting if less than 50 rounds have been put through it?


if it is a gun you want to rely upon to save your life, yes. If it is only a safe queen, don't sweat it. I have had many range guns jam on me so my mantra is always my daily carry gets cleaned each time. no matter what.

 

[tommygunn]

If you spent a ton of money on a gun would you really wanna treat it like range rentals are?

I clean regularly, its not hard and it should stay swank for a long time with just a little cleanup. But if I shoot one round no, I'm not stripping the entire thing down.

 

[spasm3]

Cleaning will not hurt it, just don't over oil it. I bought some oil at the gun show, "Best Gun Oil" by Maxco lubricants in Asheboro N.C. This seems to last a long time and stays better than breakfree. I can't seen to find it on the internet, it is a synthetic oil . Its very light in color and not as thin as the breakfree.

 

[Pablo]

I clean every time I shoot - knowing sometimes this is overkill. A gun can live with some dirt. But I think guns function best clean and properly lubed.

 

[Mixologist]

The rule of thumb that you'll find most if not all long range shooters (1000-2800yrds) adamantly adhere to, is to clean ONLY when accuracy drops off.

 

[supton]

But those long range guns are firing just a few rounds, before copper fouling shows up, aren't they? Kinda different from low pressure FMJ or hard cast lead I'd think. Also, I suspect they are far more easily damaged from improperly cleaning--well, it's just as hard, it's just that the average person would really have to bugger up a bore before they see inaccuracy w/in 100yards.

I'd think that as long as the sliding parts are lubricated and clean, and working properly, and the barrel clean of fouling, then all is well. For myself, a gun that has to be cleaned often is annoying. If it can't go a couple of range sessions w/o cleaning then I have to doubt its reliability. That said, it should be easy to check a gun: I mean, if the slide is stiff, it is not cycling well, the cylinder doesn't spin freely, and you can't look down the bore--then half the time between cleanings.

 

[Mixologist]

Originally Posted By: supton
But those long range guns are firing just a few rounds, before copper fouling shows up, aren't they? Also, I suspect they are far more easily damaged from improperly cleaning--well, it's just as hard, it's just that the average person would really have to bugger up a bore before they see inaccuracy w/in 100yards.


Most cleanings happen in the 500-800 round count range. It's not so much that they are easily damaged as they don't respond well to the way people would say, clean an AK/AR. At 1000+yrds each gun develops and shows you a specific personality that will dictate how and when you clean it. I agree with everything else you said and have to mention that the only non-annoying gun that has to be cleaned each time is a black-poweder gun.

 

[Tempest]

I used to work at range a long time ago. The rentals usually didn't get cleaned until they started not to work. It's amazing how much crud from lead reloads you can cram into a gun and still have it work.

They had a GenI Glock (that's all there were back then) with over 100K on it. A Ruger P85 with over 60K.

I try and clean right after shooting but it doesn't always happen. If you can't do a full cleaning, try and run patch with oil on it to help prevent any corrosion of the bore.

 

[hatt]

I'll wipe down a blued gun after shoothing. Wouldn't even think about cleaning my Glocks or ARs after 50 rounds. I've got better things to do than needlessly clean guns for no reason.

 

[Nyquist]

I clean mine after every trip to the range which usually consists of about 100-200 rounds of .45ACP. It's a nice way to finish clearing your head after a long day. Plus the slide racks so smoothly with M-Pro 7.

 

[Shannow]

Was mucking around some years ago with not cleaning the .22s, and found that in my climate, the powder residue was damp after a few days.

i.e. don't clean for a few days after shooting, then push a dry patch through it, and it was damp.

 

[mechtech2]

I can't think of a reason to NOT clean and lube my guns after shooting them.

 

[SS1970chrysler]

All mine are cleaned and lubed almost immediately after returning home from use.

 

[dnewton3]

Like everything else in the world, the answer is:
"It depends ..."


I clean my .22 guns after every shooting; .22 is often a dirty shooting round. Same goes for reloads; often not as clean burning.

Other guns may or may not get an immediate cleaning. If I shoot a Glock on Friday, knowing that I'm going to shoot it again on Sunday, I'll not bother until I'm ready to put it away for a while.

Some weapons are very sensitive to cleanings; others are not.

If I'm really going for long-gun accuracy, or breaking in a barrel, I'll clean the bbl every few shots. When I'm just plinking, I'll shoot perhaps hundreds upon hundreds of rounds all at once w/o a cleaning.

As I said; it depends.

It's no different than the whole "what's the best oil" topic; there is no "best" choice unless you well define the surrounding conditions.

I will note, regardless how clean the gun is to make it happy, that over/under lubricating a gun can really tick it off!

 

[andrewg]

Don't be silly....firearms never need cleaning. It's all a conspiracy by the solvent and gun lube companies.

 

[BISCUT]

I'm a guy who in my heart knows a clean weapon is a happy and functioning weapon. Cut my teeth in MA as LE with Sig 229. Loved it, liked to be clean and never gave me an issue.

Went to NY and here it's Glock land. Took me years to go from my beautiful SIG to Glock and be happy. Once I had a few thousand rounds under the trigger of the Glock I began to appreciate it. As a new Instructor and Armorer I quickly saw how many of our guys never cleaned their Glocks for years on end. We now mandate cleaning after every training.

Have to give a lot of credit to Glock, it is a combat pistol that will function [censored] well when totally filthy...snow, wet, dirt, etc...

Became a H&K Armorer, Sig Armorer, and Glock Armorer. More I underatand more I see a lot of functioning when under adverse conditions has to do with the tolerances built into the pistol. Just my observations.

 

[Colt45ws]

I have not cleaned my USP in a couple thousand. Not really any build up anywhere. Just the normal coating that occurs after one magazine.
The Mosin gets cleaned everytime due to the corrosive ammunition.

 

[dnewton3]

Originally Posted By: BISCUT
I'm a guy who in my heart knows a clean weapon is a happy and functioning weapon. Cut my teeth in MA as LE with Sig 229. Loved it, liked to be clean and never gave me an issue.

Went to NY and here it's Glock land. Took me years to go from my beautiful SIG to Glock and be happy. Once I had a few thousand rounds under the trigger of the Glock I began to appreciate it. As a new Instructor and Armorer I quickly saw how many of our guys never cleaned their Glocks for years on end. We now mandate cleaning after every training.

Have to give a lot of credit to Glock, it is a combat pistol that will function [censored] well when totally filthy...snow, wet, dirt, etc...

Became a H&K Armorer, Sig Armorer, and Glock Armorer. More I underatand more I see a lot of functioning when under adverse conditions has to do with the tolerances built into the pistol. Just my observations.


As a fellow Glock shooter and armorer, I could not agree more. I had a P226 before I transitioned to a Glock 17, as departmental issue.

The Glock simply functions regardless of how dirty it gets. I've seen some FILTHY Glocks just keep on shootin'. The Glock is not the most accurate weapon to hold in your hand, but it's well more than accurate enough to get the job done. Combine that with it's robust design, and you begin to understand why it has become the world's favorite handgun. It is a combat weapon; it is not a shelf queen or a Gold-cup tack driver. And it fulfills it's job with aplomb.

All that said, I clean mine before they get put away for any significant length of time. And we are required at our department to clean them after every shoot (even though it's certianly not a neccessity for functionality).