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How often do you clean your guns?

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After each trip to the range? Certain number of rounds shot? Certain length of time?

 

I recently bought some Tetra products to clean and lubricate but after some research decided to pick up a mil comm kit. Used gun for first time this past weekend, put out 250 rounds. Have not had a chance to sit down and clean it yet but plan on doing so this week. Is it vital to clean immediately after the range, or is it ok if it sits for a few days?

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After each trip to the range? Certain number of rounds shot? Certain length of time?

 

I recently bought some Tetra products to clean and lubricate but after some research decided to pick up a mil comm kit. Used gun for first time this past weekend, put out 250 rounds. Have not had a chance to sit down and clean it yet but plan on doing so this week. Is it vital to clean immediately after the range, or is it ok if it sits for a few days?

 

 

Depends on the gun.  

 

For my competition Glock, I just clean the bore 1 or 2x a month and put a few drops of oil on the rails.  

 

For my 1911s and others, I just make sure they're nice and lubed and they usually run pretty well.  

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It depends.  Anything I would grab in a defensive situation gets cleaned, inspected, and lubricated after each range session though I don't do much to barrels beyond running a boresnake followed by wet and dry patches.  Rental and demo guns are treated the same since they're generating revenue and I don't want them choking due to neglect.  Anything built for precision is also cleaned after every outing though not inspected like the defensive guns beyond a cursory glance as I'm cleaning.  Anything that doesn't fit into those categories gets cleaned whenever I feel like it. 

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Don't really have a schedule. Every few thousand rounds I will wipe down my guns and look for broken/worn parts. Usually I just give it a quick once over with and old toothbrush and T shirt, run a bore snake through the barrel, lube it up, and put it back together. Takes about 10 minutes total.

 

I'll do a preventative maintenance check prior to a class and a quick cleaning after, depending on round count.

 

If I have been shooting in the rain, I make sure to dry everything pretty well and lube generously.

 

Once a year my guns get detail cleaned and springs/parts changed as needed based on the previous years's range schedule.

 

Work guns are carried often and shot little. They get a visual inspection and lubed once a month.

 

Here are a few more threads here on the topic:

 

http://www.njgunforums.com/forum/index.php/topic/52632-gun-cleaning/?fromsearch=1

 

http://www.njgunforums.com/forum/index.php/topic/30184-how-often-do-you-clean-your-guns-and-do-you-enjoy-doing-it/?fromsearch=1

 

http://www.njgunforums.com/forum/index.php/topic/15386-how-often-to-cleanlube/?fromsearch=1

 

http://www.njgunforums.com/forum/index.php/topic/9440-how-often-do-you-clean-your-handgun/?fromsearch=1

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I went 4.5 years w/o cleaning my G19 just to see how long I could run it...when the slide started to stick a little and needed slight assistance from my thumb I knew it was time lol. But my other guns usually after a few trips to the range. 

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I used to not clean them that frequently until I had a failure to extract/eject. Now after each range session (or a day later if I can't get to it that day). Cleaning them after each use is easier than having to clean a few at once. Once a year I will do a complete breakdown, clean, and lube of all of them. I find the revolvers are more of a pain than the semi-auto's.

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I personally break down each firearm and clean it after each range session(or the day or 2 after if im busy), regardless of round count. Wife put like 8 thru the savage 111 bolt and i still cleaned it.

Apparently im just ocd about it.... i thought that was normal.

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I personally break down each firearm and clean it after each range session(or the day or 2 after if im busy), regardless of round count. Wife put like 8 thru the savage 111 bolt and i still cleaned it.

Apparently im just ocd about it.... i thought that was normal.

Same here. I was taught as a kid it's just what you do. The benefit is that all of my guns still look and run like the day I bought them.

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When I first started shooting I cleaned them after each range trip - what a waste of time.  Now I clean them when dirty.  That means a loose polymer gun like a glock maybe every 2,000 rounds.  A tight gun like a 1911 gets cleaned more often as it is more prone to issues due to the tighter tolerances.  I know of one Grand Master shooter who never cleans his guns.  I was shocked when he told me this.  He is sponsored so he just shoots them till he has an issue and has the sponsor give him a new one.  Must be nice.

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I personally break down each firearm and clean it after each range session(or the day or 2 after if im busy), regardless of round count. Wife put like 8 thru the savage 111 bolt and i still cleaned it.

Apparently im just ocd about it.... i thought that was normal.

 

^^^I do the same - after each range day of use - My 1911 strips down easy enough, my Beretta is a bit tougher but not hard, and my Glock is dead easy - the Glock takes the least amount of cleaning and lubrication, my all steel guns even if they aren't used I give them a wipedown and cleaning once a year just to be sure no corrosion forms, my revolver also cleans up super easy

 

Rifles and Shotgun get cleaned after use as well, its just my habit that I don't want to put away a dirty gun that I haven't disassembled and inspected - even if I was taking one out the next weekend I'd probably clean it after use anyway - doesn't take me too long at all and gives me some tinker time on my workbench.

 

My 50cents opin...

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So its no big deal if i end up 4-5 days after range use before i get around to cleaning?

 

Unless you're shooting corrosive ammo (which you won't since it's 9mm, not some crazy military surplus caliber leftover from the cold war era) you're fine.

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I'm in the "as little as possible" camp on this one.  I enjoy shooting, but I view cleaning guns as a chore, which I tend to put off as long as possible.  I tend to do it in binges, so that once I have the cleaning stuff out, I'll clean a few guns at a time. 

 

I'm laughing to myself, because I had "clean AR" on my to do list for over a week recently  before I finally got around to it.  And I don't think I've ever cleaned my AK.  

 

Had my shotguns all apart a few weeks ago after my two day class at Sig Sauer, and I could not get them back together.  I just could not get  the trigger group to fit back in.  Wasted loads of time on it.  What in the world did people do before  You Tube?

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Had my shotguns all apart a few weeks ago after my two day class at Sig Sauer, and I could not get them back together.  I just could not get  the trigger group to fit back in.  Wasted loads of time on it.  What in the world did people do before  You Tube?

 

LMAO I thought the same thing - especially when putting my trigger group back in my Mossberg after I disassembled and cleaned according to a few youtube videos lol

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Yup gotta love YouTube. I almost always clean all of my guns after every range trip. With the exception of one of my mossberg 500's, it only gets cleaned after its been in the rain that's it. But it's not a gun I would use for home or self defence

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Immediately after each range session. I enjoy breaking down the weapon and cleaning it.

Therapeutic isn't it?

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

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I love the smell of CLP and Bore Cleaner so every chance I get, I'll use it as an excuse.

You ought to try G96.... Goes good on a peanut butter sandwich.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

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