Maintenance and care?

[npbrownf]

I was wondering if the is a good site to visit on general maintenance and care of weapons? To make sure they will operate to full capacity.

 

[Jay]

Welcome to INGO......

Firearm maintenance is very subjective. If you ask 10 different folks, you'll likely get 8 or more different answers. I'm an old fart, and my attitude towards cleaning firearms doesn't readily lend itself to change. I shoot it, then I go home and clean it. There are no dirty guns in my safes. It's worked for me for over 40 years.... Others will tell you that they've "NEVER cleaned that old gun, and it works just fine". Well, that's terrific and I'm glad it works for 'em. If you ask specific questions, I'm sure you'll get answers. How often, and how you clean.... IF you clean will be entirely up to you.

 

[treeman22]

I clean it after every time I shoot it, unless it's a .22. I only clean my .22 every 500 rounds. Keeps things functioning like they should, and prevents hard-to-get-rid-of powder residue buildup.

 

[Expat]

I am in the Jay camp. If I shoot it, it gets cleaned when I get home. Heck if I handle it or especially if someone else handles it, the exterior gets a good oily wipe down.

There are some good videos on YouTube on field stripping most gun models.

 

[OEF5]

IMO it also depends on what you shoot. For my AR and shotguns they get cleaned after shooting or being out in the field even if I don't shoot.

For the Glock, eh not so much. I just went through three days of some real good shooting from Thursday to Saturday, with about 600 rounds through it. It got cleaned after that. But it had not been cleaned prior to that, those 600 rounds put the weapon at about 1500 rounds through it. My normal deal after shooting is to just clean the powder resedue off of the end of the frame, slide and barrel so I don't get it all over my clothes. I've had 0 problems with this weapon.

If I owned a 1911 it would get a good cleaning after every range trip, kept with a very light coat of oil on it and such. I would also see exactly how much I could get a way with on one of those. What I mean is, does it function 100% with just a light cleaning and lube, or does it need to be a 100% detail job on the cleaning.

 

[U.S. Patriot]

I always clean my guns after a trip to the range. My carry gun gets cleaned more often. To remove any and fuzz and such. My AK is the only gun I do not clean. My .22's do not get detailed either. Just the barrel and action. My pistols get field striped and cleaned throughly.

 

[Ziggy01]

I too clean all my guns except my .22s after every trip to the woods. I clean my carry gun once a week do to dust lent etc.

 

[Cat-Herder]

IMO

If I owned a 1911 it would get a good cleaning after every range trip, kept with a very light coat of oil on it and such. I would also see exactly how much I could get a way with on one of those. What I mean is, does it function 100% with just a light cleaning and lube, or does it need to be a 100% detail job on the cleaning.

I keep mine nice and filthy and it runs just fine. I don't exactly torture-test my carry guns, but I'm not nice to them either. When I'm breaking one in for carry, it won't get cleaned for at least 1000 rounds. I need to know what, if anything, makes it stop working. After that, I clean where neccessary, usually the bore, the bolt-face and the mag well get a little love.

My range guns get cleaned after every trip except the 22's. They seem to be more reliable when they're dirty.

 

[npbrownf]

Thanks for all the advice!

 

[rwstahlh]

I also clean mine every time I shoot, even the 22's

 

[JohnP82]

I am pretty picky. I have to clean mine after every range trip. I do not put dirty guns in my safe! I actually enjoy cleaning my guns though.

 

[Yoder]

I always wipe down my guns after each outing. Usually a silicone rag or a light coat of a gun oil. Run a bore snake through a couple of passes even if I didn't fire a round.

 

[oneshotonekill]

I go through 2 silicone rags a year, I'm ocd on the cleaning. I get it from my grandfather, if you shoot it, its dirty, clean it. Plus I kind of enjoy it. Everyones differnt though.

 

[6skylark9]

i tend to clean mine after shooting. except for my single shot 12ga.

 

[NIFT]

Glocks, Tupperware guns that they are, require special maintenance.
See below for an extensive explanation.

Glock 21 Torture Test - Theprepared.com

 

[Yeah]

I shoot mostly rifles and don't clean them at all unless accuracy falls off.

Will clean a shotgun to keep plastic fouling down.

Don't really shoot much handgun.

 

[Kagnew]

I always wipe down my guns after each outing. Usually a silicone rag or a light coat of a gun oil. Run a bore snake through a couple of passes even if I didn't fire a round.

That's pretty much what I do, too. Run the bore-snake through them after each firing (which is usually 50 rounds) and a complete disassembly and cleaning every 200 rounds.

 

[JoshuaW]

Clean after shooting, once every other week for my carry gun, if I havent shot it (rare, I try to shoot once a week). Sometimes I will ignore cleaning for a few days, or even a few range sessions, depending on the gun. My bolt action .22 is a good example. Its a simple gun, and I can run several hundred rounds and not even think about cleaning it.

 

[Ter]

After a day of shooting I clean mine as soon as I get home. Firearms setting in the safe that don't get used that often get a good wipe down once a month.

 

[slars1327]

You should always check the manufacturers site ( if avail) and if it has a military equivalent check the milatary manual. Just remember never drop your gun cleanung cloth/rag if you do get a new one too much junk adheres when u drop it and can ruin a finish on a weapon.