Clean After Every Shoot?

[misterarman]

Really enjoy cleaning a gun if I have time to do it properly. Which isn't every time.
Also depends how many rounds go down the pipe.

 

[PaulB47]

I have found something that works for me. It is lazy but good (enough).

First it depends on your gun's condition. Let's assume you did not put 1000 rounds through on a dusty dirty day. I do clean the bore every time I shoot. This way you avoid rust in your barrel, which is a bad thing.

Right after I am done shooting (ideally at the range) I pull a dry boresnake through a couple times. This is to get the carbon out before it hardens up (notice how easy it is to clean the necks of your brass if you don't let it set long). I don't put solvent on the boresnake because it would be a mess and the brush wouldn't last long.

At home I get my Otis kit and pull a patch of Hoppes #9 through. Maybe twice, just want to get the barrel wet. I stick the wet patch (still attached to the rod) in a small ziplock bag. Then I walk away.

Next day if I think of it, I get the patch out, put some more #9 on although it is still wet, and pull it through. Put it in the bag again and walk away.

Next day, repeat. When the patch is getting seriously grungy I might spring for a new patch. Some times I pull a dry one through and then pull a brush through, but not always (I do not use wet brushes, which seems extravagant to me). After that I find an old grungy patch, put more #9 on it, and pull it through (first patch after a brush is a mess anyway). Then I get a clean patch with more #9 and pull it through. Then walk away.

How do I know when it is clean? I do not bother checking with a clean dry patch. Instead, each time I use the Otis "rod" I wipe it down with a paper towel. If the wipedown shows anything but the color of clean #9, I just keep going. I tend to leave the barrel wet in the safe and each time I shoot I pull a dry patch through first (I had a bad experience with leaving a barrel dry over a long period).

It might take a week or two to clean the gun, but it wasn't going anywhere anyhow. Total amount of time spent is small. Oh, I wipe down the outside with CLP before putting it in the safe.

 

[Hdshot]

It's simple. Metal that is taken care of lasts longer than metal that is not. The jarhead in me makes me clean it every time.

 

[jluck]

I have found something that works for me. It is lazy but good (enough).

First it depends on your gun's condition. Let's assume you did not put 1000 rounds through on a dusty dirty day. I do clean the bore every time I shoot. This way you avoid rust in your barrel, which is a bad thing.

Right after I am done shooting (ideally at the range) I pull a dry boresnake through a couple times. This is to get the carbon out before it hardens up (notice how easy it is to clean the necks of your brass if you don't let it set long). I don't put solvent on the boresnake because it would be a mess and the brush wouldn't last long.

At home I get my Otis kit and pull a patch of Hoppes #9 through. Maybe twice, just want to get the barrel wet. I stick the wet patch (still attached to the rod) in a small ziplock bag. Then I walk away.

Next day if I think of it, I get the patch out, put some more #9 on although it is still wet, and pull it through. Put it in the bag again and walk away.

Next day, repeat. When the patch is getting seriously grungy I might spring for a new patch. Some times I pull a dry one through and then pull a brush through, but not always (I do not use wet brushes, which seems extravagant to me). After that I find an old grungy patch, put more #9 on it, and pull it through (first patch after a brush is a mess anyway). Then I get a clean patch with more #9 and pull it through. Then walk away.

How do I know when it is clean? I do not bother checking with a clean dry patch. Instead, each time I use the Otis "rod" I wipe it down with a paper towel. If the wipedown shows anything but the color of clean #9, I just keep going. I tend to leave the barrel wet in the safe and each time I shoot I pull a dry patch through first (I had a bad experience with leaving a barrel dry over a long period).

It might take a week or two to clean the gun, but it wasn't going anywhere anyhow. Total amount of time spent is small. Oh, I wipe down the outside with CLP before putting it in the safe.

I'll bet leaving that corrosive solvent in your bore is doing a hell of a lot more damage than leaving some normal fouling.

 

[coop44]

if it's a glock you never have to clean it, even after you drive over it with your tank.

 

[coop44]

The jarhead in me makes me clean it every time.

I'll be good, but I could go so far with that statement

 

[Hdshot]

Go for it.

 

[kilimanjaro]

Guns are worth too much money to throw away by not keeping them clean.

 

[ChiefStealth]

Yep! Clean after every shoot. Clean each gun about once a month if I don't shoot them. I'm not really picky about how clean I get them. Not going for perfectly clean. Brush good. Wipe with shop towels. A couple of wet patches.. a couple of dry patches. Silicon cloth on all metal surfaces. Lube sparingly. Go shoot again next week.

 

[jluck]

I typed so much and deleted it... I think this works much better...

I couldn't find a bull crap Smilie.

 

[thorborg]

I tend to agree with jluck. You aren't likely to change who you are once your big enough to own a gun. you either polish your shoes regularly or you don't. Talking about it wont change nothing.

 

[jluck]

Whuuuut? You mean you don't wash your car every time you drive it? I do.