Gun cleaning frequency

[derrickgoins]

Boresnake after about 500 rounds (or after range session for less frequently shot guns that will sit for a while) and wipe off with silicone cloth. G96 oil to the required spots.

 

[Bassat]

I am down to 2 house guns, 2 carry guns, and a .22LR plinker. The plinker mostly gets cleaned after every shoot, mostly. If less than 100 rounds, sometimes I pass. My house guns gets cleaned after every shoot, even if it was only a few rounds. They also get a once-over clean and lube about every 6 months, whether or not they've been fired. My carry guns get cleaned after every shoot, and a once-over clean and lube about every 30 days.
Of note: except for my .22LR plinker, any of my guns may be called on for the primary intended task at any moment. Because of that, I clean after every shoot, paying particular attention to carbon build-up in 3 areas: 1.) breech face, 2.) rear/breech end of barrel, 3.) under extractor. I am old(er) and blind in my right eye, so I use a magnifying glass for those areas. That build-up may cause a failure to return to battery, or a failure to extract, at the most inopportune time.
Do you guys/girls who DO NOT clean after every shoot include your self/personal defense guns in that regimen? I can't imagine walking out of the house with a carry gun that isn't 100% ready for duty. Or perhaps I am a bit paranoid.

 

[700 LTR 223]

When shooting for accuracy I have never had a gun not shoot better after a good bore cleaning. Recently took my Springfield 1911 , Smith 586 and Smith 41 to the range after a good cleaning and each shot exceptionally well for me.

With that said I don't do a thorough cleaning for every gun after every range visit. On all guns I do wipe down very well especially in the humid warmer months. On my 223s I run an oily patch down the bore after EVERY range session. Had corrosion in one 223 Rem 700 , thought it was a fluke and then in a 223 Super 14 TC. And this wasn't shooting cheap surplus ammo.

 

[bwframe]

...Do you guys/girls who DO NOT clean after every shoot include your self/personal defense guns in that regimen? I can't imagine walking out of the house with a carry gun that isn't 100% ready for duty. Or perhaps I am a bit paranoid.

You are maybe paranoid, my friend? Not really, there are plenty of folks that follow your regiment.

I will contend that "100% ready for duty" would include some test firing to assure reliability.

I go the opposite way, I am much more confident with a pistol on my side that HAS NOT been disassembled/reassembled, without any test firing. Taking apart a working gun, then putting it back together can create problems that go without notice?

I've been to plenty of seld defense classes where known working pistols weren't able to get through the first mag without malfunction problems. Not saying it was the cleaning regiment exclusively, but all factors combined.

Back when I was shooting USPSA regularly, the running joke for a known good pistol malfunctioning was "I know better, but I cleaned it before the match."

 

[gregkl]

Bassat, I'm of the thinking that bw mentioned. I don't clean my carry gun very often, though I put quite a few rounds through it during my range visits. I am due though to clean it since it's probably been several hundred rounds since the last time I cleaned it.

I have had my carry gun for quite some time and when I first got it, I ran my own sort of "torture test" where I shot it without cleaning for a long time and yet still didn't have any malfunctions. I finally got tired of getting "crap" on my shirts, holster, drawer at home, etc., so I cleaned it.

I will clean it just before my next range trip so it isn't put into carry mode clean. And since it will be shot right after I clean it, it will in essence be dirty when it goes back on my hip.

 

[DadSmith]

I am down to 2 house guns, 2 carry guns, and a .22LR plinker. The plinker mostly gets cleaned after every shoot, mostly. If less than 100 rounds, sometimes I pass. My house guns gets cleaned after every shoot, even if it was only a few rounds. They also get a once-over clean and lube about every 6 months, whether or not they've been fired. My carry guns get cleaned after every shoot, and a once-over clean and lube about every 30 days.
Of note: except for my .22LR plinker, any of my guns may be called on for the primary intended task at any moment. Because of that, I clean after every shoot, paying particular attention to carbon build-up in 3 areas: 1.) breech face, 2.) rear/breech end of barrel, 3.) under extractor. I am old(er) and blind in my right eye, so I use a magnifying glass for those areas. That build-up may cause a failure to return to battery, or a failure to extract, at the most inopportune time.
Do you guys/girls who DO NOT clean after every shoot include your self/personal defense guns in that regimen? I can't imagine walking out of the house with a carry gun that isn't 100% ready for duty. Or perhaps I am a bit paranoid.

When I shoot my edc say 200+ rounds in a session it gets cleaned, and lubricated.
I haven't shot my carry gun like that in months. My edc gets caked with sawdust, and sawdust absorbs lubricant. I just brush off the dust about once a month maybe sooner depending on how bad it is, and lubricate it.

My 10/22 gets cleaned when groups start to open up. I also clean the barrel after I change brands while testing velocity and accuracy.
It gets lubricant as needed.

AR type rifles get cleaned similar to what I do with the 10/22. I do wipe off the bcg and lube them as needed.

I only have one bolt action and that's a Ruger Precision 308. It gets cleaned if I notice a drop in accuracy. Lubricated as needed.

 

[Bassat]

This is exactly why I joined this forum: to learn stuff! Thanks to the above 3 posts, I learned a good lesson in this thread. My obsession with cleaning after every shoot was firmly ingrained by US Army Drill Sergeants. I've carried that with me for almost 50 years, and it is wrong! The logic making sure the gun fires WHEN I NEED IT TO FIRE would be way better served by cleaning BEFORE a trip to the range. Sometimes I put a lot of rounds through in one day, but not often. My last range trip included my Keltec P32. I cleaned it when I got home. Making sure it stays reliable would be better accomplished by cleaning it, then putting my obligatory 32 rounds [(7+1)x4 mags] through it. And 32 rounds will (should?) never make for a 'dirty' gun. I can't believe I've never thought of this before.

 

[movevio1]

Pull a bore snake and wipe down exposed metal every time

 

[DadSmith]

This is exactly why I joined this forum: to learn stuff! Thanks to the above 3 posts, I learned a good lesson in this thread. My obsession with cleaning after every shoot was firmly ingrained by US Army Drill Sergeants. I've carried that with me for almost 50 years, and it is wrong! The logic making sure the gun fires WHEN I NEED IT TO FIRE would be way better served by cleaning BEFORE a trip to the range. Sometimes I put a lot of rounds through in one day, but not often. My last range trip included my Keltec P32. I cleaned it when I got home. Making sure it stays reliable would be better accomplished by cleaning it, then putting my obligatory 32 rounds [(7+1)x4 mags] through it. And 32 rounds will (should?) never make for a 'dirty' gun. I can't believe I've never thought of this before.

If a edc can't handle at least 1k rounds without one failure in doesn't make the cut for my edc.
I do allow for a break in period of 400rds before I start counting if the manufacturer says it needs one.
Then it has to run at least 1k rds after cleaning, and lubricating without any failures. I do lube as needed in my tests, running a firearm without lubricant is foolish.
I've went over 2k with many of my edc without a failure using fmj, coated Hardcast, and a variety of HP.
I will not trust a firearm that cannot handle this simple test.

 

[MikeDVB]

I field strip, clean, and lubricate after every shoot. That way I know it’s good to go the next time I want to go shooting.

Very rarely do I ever have to use anything abrasive. It’s amazing how well most modern cleaners work if you give them the time to do so.

 

[MuayThaiJJ]

I used to clean after heavy sessions. Now I only clean if I need to open up the guns for some reason

 

[thompal]

Serious competition bullseye shooters, which I am not anymore, will usually fire a first shot as a throwaway before firing a group because the first shot through a cleaned and oiled barrel would likely be a flyer that spoils the group. More of a problem with rifles, but it was still a common practice among bullseye pistol competitions.

Would a fouling shot be needed if you ran a dry patch through the bore first? I thought the inaccuracy in a first shot was from residual lube in the bore.

 

[Donovan48]

I agree that excess lube in the barrel is the cause of first shot flyers. Running a dry patch or bore snake through the barrel prior to a first shot would probably negate the need for a fouling shot.

 

[gregkl]

I have said several times that I don't clean my firearms that often. But I may be changing my tune. I used to keep my guns meticulously clean; keeping them looking basically brand new.

Then I kind of swung the other way; shooting many range sessions without cleaning. I wanted to have a firearm that looks like it was used. This way I know that I am actually out shooting it vs it sitting in a safe coming out 1X per year. But now that I have a gun that looks like someone uses it, do I need it to be dirty too?

I'm getting more into .22 shooting and I find that the guns get much dirtier faster and they start to have malfunctions due to the dirt.

Last weekend I cleaned my TX22C because it was failing to extract a round left in the chamber after I finished a drill. A good cleaning cleared that up.

While I was at it, I decided to take a look at my M&P since I hadn't cleaned it in who knows when. It was pretty nasty inside.

So I am going to clean the .22's every other range session or maybe after every range session and will clean the M&P every other range session.

It's easier to do a quick clean on a firearm that's not so gunked up. Plus, I think it may reduce wear some if I don't have all that crap in there.

I'll still do a full detail strip only once or twice a year.

 

[Mr. Blenderson]

I used to do every other range trip, but I don't get many chances to go these days so I switched to after every trip.