Gun cleaning frequency

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  • Vanderbilt

    Plinker
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    Jul 11, 2022
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    These threads always make me realize there are probably a number of gun owners who simply enjoy cleaning their guns more than they enjoy actually shooting them.

    To each their own.
    .....can't say I really enjoy cleaning them but do prefer they work.....guess a lot of this stems from shooting black powder, you HAD to clean them in a timely manner. Even as a pup, 55-60 years ago, Dad always cleaned his guns after using them. Agree, to each his own.
     

    gregkl

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    .....can't say I really enjoy cleaning them but do prefer they work.....guess a lot of this stems from shooting black powder, you HAD to clean them in a timely manner. Even as a pup, 55-60 years ago, Dad always cleaned his guns after using them. Agree, to each his own.
    My dad also had us clean his guns after he used them, lol. I suspect this ritual cleaning came out of his military service like others have posted. It becomes ingrained.
     

    IUKalash429

    Bullet Hose
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    7179q2.jpg
     

    Leo

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    There is no quick and easy answer. It depends on the firearm and ammo..
    A muzzle loader gets cleaned and oiled before it is put away to prevent rust.

    A bolt action or any single shot rifle with a properly lapped barrel that does not collect debris, and shooting quality ammo can go a LOT of shots. A crappy, combat rough, or pitted barrel will collect debris a lot faster. Shooting 3rd world surplus combat ammo can copper up and foul the bore a lot faster.

    A semi auto rifle needs the gas system cleaned more often. A semi auto like an AR that dumps the exhaust debris into the trigger group needs attention there. As above, crappy, dirty and varnished ammo makes it worse.

    A semi auto pistol needs the action and the barrel cleaned a lot more often when shooting lead bullets that depend on bullet lube than it does with jacketed bullets.

    A revolver shooting cast lead bullets needs the bore and cylinder cleaned as it collects deposits. A revolver shooting good quality jacketed bullets with a good clean powder at full pressure, only needs to be cleaned when it makes your fingers dirty.

    No rule can apply to all.
     

    Leo

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    Side note, a Law Officer once told me to carry clean and smelling of Hoppes gun cleaner. He thought if you were accused of shooting and you had not, it was easy to tell if the gun had not been fired. I do not know if that was just his opinion, or common among the LEO community, but it had a point.

    The closest I came to that question was when I had a shot come through my kitchen wall while I was eating dinner. It did not miss my head by much. The responding officer did check my handgun, 6 full ones in the cylinder and a clean shiny bore was recorded as an unfired weapon.
     
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    Upthread cleaning before long term storage was mentioned. Seems cleaning before storage is a no brainer. But how often if left in storage and unfired? Assuming variables like humidity are normal, how often might someone clean a gun that sits in the safe for months or years? As to EDC, or pistols shot semi-frequently, I don't clean after each shoot, but maybe once or twice a year. Lint from being carried tend to be the culprit. Sometimes when ammo is scarce I'll shoot less and clean more simply because I feel like fiddling with the gun but don't want to use too much ammo.
     

    gregkl

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    Side note, a Law Officer once told me to carry clean and smelling of Hoppes gun cleaner. He thought if you were accused of shooting and you had not, it was easy to tell if the gun had not been fired. I do not know if that was just his opinion, or common among the LEO community, but it had a point.
    This is something I need to think about. I put some rounds through my carry gun during my weekly range sessions. But I don't clean it afterwards. And since I am putting 50 or less rounds at a session, I especially don't clean it. Hmm...
     
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    Oct 3, 2008
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    On a hill in Perry C
    Hunting guns get a thorough cleaning after the season, then a quick wipe down and lube before the season. Once the sights get checked other than a wipe down after a hunt they get no cleaning unless out in bad weather.
    Fun guns get cleaned when accuracy falls off or I start to get malfunctions. So far I haven't found one that will malfunction before accuracy goes. Mil surps and other blued guns will get a quick wipe down afterwards. Don't shoot surplus ammo anymore so corrosive primers are no longer a concern.
    EDC gets cleaned after a range session then just a wipe down every few weeks or so.
    Smoke poles get cleaned after every session obviously.

    Upthread cleaning before long term storage was mentioned. Seems cleaning before storage is a no brainer. But how often if left in storage and unfired? Assuming variables like humidity are normal, how often might someone clean a gun that sits in the safe for months or years? As to EDC, or pistols shot semi-frequently, I don't clean after each shoot, but maybe once or twice a year. Lint from being carried tend to be the culprit. Sometimes when ammo is scarce I'll shoot less and clean more simply because I feel like fiddling with the gun but don't want to use too much ammo.
    Can't answer for everybody but for myself, my collector pieces are not cleaned once put into storage. Checked a couple times a year at most then every few years a little preservative is wiped on. Easy peasy if you use a quality product from the start. IIRC some are going on 10 years in storage and are as good as the day they went in.
     
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    hoosiersasquatch

    Marksman
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    My two cents worth, I clean my EDC after three or four times shooting it. It's a Glock and very easy to field strip. Everything else I set aside New Years day to clean. Put in some good movies and start the new year off with freshly cleaned guns. Good time to change the batteries in your smoke detectors too.
     

    zachcz

    CZ is just better.
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    I typically will clean after every time
    I shoot. For the most part it’s just the fact I enjoy taking apart and cleaning them. The older I’ve gotten the more I enjoy it I think. No real rhyme or reason. Not sure there is a right or wrong. To me it’s just another part of ownership that I enjoy.
     

    tomcat13

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    Feb 16, 2010
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    As many have noted on here: "To Each his Own"
    I was taught by Dad the Staff Sergeant, Clean those shot-after each use. Once a Year, wiped down All in the Safe.
    RIP & So Many Thanks-SSGT RMM
     

    Dentoro

    Sharpshooter
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    Nov 16, 2010
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    Unless I shoot old corrosive ammo, I’ll swab and wipe. I usually only clean 1 time a year. But I also take them all out and clean them all and then apply Barricade on the whole gun. Now that being said, I’d be lucky to shoot 100 rounds down the barrel anything that is not 9mm or .22 these days. Even 762x39 is nasty in price now. I just want to cry when I lob a $1.75+ 44-40 or .300 wm down range and miss. A box of .380 is almost $40 damn dollars!
     

    Patched

    Plinker
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    Oct 4, 2021
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    Steve & Caleb at Brownells make some good points in a recent video ( I can't seem to post the video here).

    They talk about wear on the gun from the disassembly process - eg driving out roll pins etc. especially on polymer guns.

    I'll try posting a link again:

     
    Last edited:

    DolomiteDave

    Plinker
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    Nov 11, 2022
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    Carmel
    Over time I have become a clean more frequently kind of person, mostly after every outing over 100 rounds (Through the same gun). My first rifle I never cleaned it ever. Shot the barrel out after 10k ish rounds and only cleaned it when I replaced the barrel. Gas rings where missing, bolt head was busted and didn't have all of the lugs intact either. Im not sure if cleaning would have made a difference but I learned two things, Cleaning lets you inspect everything at a regular interval, and carbon is easier to remove just after shooting than it is years later. I guess a third thing is that AR's can go way beyond what most people think they are capable of, especially if you add lubricant regularly.
     
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