How Often Do You Have To Clean a Gun (Really)?

[bwframe]

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[Amishman44]

I, typically, clean a firearm after every range visit...unless I know I'll be going back out in a few days or so, and then I give it a good wipe down and run a nylon brush through the barrel to get most fo the residual junk out of it!
If I know it's going to be a while until I shoot it again, be it a known time or not, I tend to give it a good field-strip cleaning and light oiling!
When I pick up a used firearm, I do tend to take it apart and clean it good before I take it to the range for the first time...even if it's just to get it good and clean before I use it the first time? It's amazing how dirty some of these firearms are...and what a good cleaning (and checking for broken or damaged parts) can do to aid performance!
That, and I do just like a clean firearm to start with...

 

[MCgrease08]

The important thing is to keep it lubed. Clean is overrated.

 

[kcw12]

You can get away with not cleaning one until malfunction or accuracy degrades enough to be ap roblem.
Doing this will decrease overall useable life on firearms.

I tend to clean mine every couple hundred rounds, just because im mostly looking for something to do.

 

[Tombs]

I prefer to keep copper fouling out of any barrels I like.

Galvanic action can be some crazy stuff. Other than that, a squirt of oil here and there, and that's about all any modern firearm needs.
Some older stuff like garands and M1As really should have some stout grease on them.

 

[92FSTech]

I clean after every time I shot, but not because I don't think the gun will work if I don't. For one thing it provides an opportunity to inspect for damage or wear, which is likely to occur while shooting. I recently caught a cracked locking block in my Beretta while I was cleaning it after a range session. The gun was still working fine, as the block was still intact, but it was cracked all the way across. I ordered the new part and installed it, which saved me an unpleasant event the next time I took it out.

Some of my stuff doesn't get shot all that frequently, either. It may go back in the safe for 6 months to a year before it comes out again. I don't like putting it away with a bunch of gunk on it that could hold moisture and cause rust. I get all that crud off and put it away properly lubed with the exterior surfaces wiped down with an oil cloth to help protect it.

For the carry gun, there's also a liability element. I've personally seen investigators take a gun after a critical incident from a guy who never fired, just to verify his story that the gun had not in fact been fired. A clean gun, with no fouling (and maybe a little lint) in the barrel or on the breech face, should quickly be obvious that it's unfired. A dirty one might well raise questions in that situation.

Finally, reliability. This is way down at the bottom of the list, because any quality gun will run dirty, and most will even run dry. But they run even better clean and lubed, so why not clean and lube them? Proper lube reduces wear, and if it even slightly reduces the chances of a malfunction in a tool that you carry to protect your life, why not keep it cleaned and lubed? It only takes a few minutes, and it provides peace of mind.

 

[churchmouse]

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This is true but some folks really like to do this. When you get to a level that you have more invested than you want to admit in a single firearm then yes, keep it clean and slick.

 

[Twangbanger]

The every range visit people are just tinkerers. It's not necessary, unless you're doing some kind of regimen with a long-range rifle. I remember a USPSA magazine article about one of our regulars here, not cleaning his PPQ in a whole season of using it for heavy competition, and I was like, "Wow, I want to be like him when I grow up!"

 

[bwframe]

The every range visit people are just tinkerers. It's not necessary, unless you're doing some kind of regimen with a long-range rifle. I remember a USPSA magazine article about one of our regulars here, not cleaning his PPQ in a whole season of using it for heavy competition, and I was like, "Wow, I want to be like him when I grow up!"

One of the running jokes in USPSA is to clean your pistol before a big match. It always buys you a malfunction of some sort. Sometimes it ruins the whole day.

 

[wtburnette]

I don't clean very often, but do lube normally before every range trip. I also lube the slide stop and mag release on my carry gun so that sweat doesn't rust it shut. That has happened before, so I learned from experience.

 

[jerrob]

OCD ALERT!
After every range trip and sometimes when I'm bored and have nothing else to do. I enjoy the cleaning process and trying out new cleaning products and lubes...............almost therapeutic for me.
At the other end of my grey matter madness, I once bought a Taurus PT-111 (I think), was gonna see how many rounds it'd cycle without cleaning then the OCD kicked back in and I cleaned that gun like I was mad at it.

 

[Ziggidy]

I'm a lazy kind of guy. I clean mine when I have to. I may run a quick snake through after the range, but that is not even routine for me.

I don't use them often (ammo costs) for me to worry too much. I will keep the necessary one lightly lubed and wiped.

 

[Pepi]

Always after a shoot. I enjoy taking the gun apart and cleaning it

 

[ancjr]

I like to keep the fingerprints and dirt wiped off everything. That said, 3 swipes with the bore snake when I feel like it, or a full strip and scrub after any malfunction.

Used to clean my old Mosin M44 with a thorough bath and scrubbing after every range trip out of fear of corrosive ammo.

 

[armalitesheepdog]

I can't relax after a shooting session until I clean and re lube. I am a tinker type with organizational issues. And its just something for a old man to do...

 

[KellyinAvon]

A clean weapon is a happy weapon - Every USAF CATM (Combat Arms Training and Maintenance) Troop I ever met.

 

[1nderbeard]

I used to be OCD about cleaning every time. I'm not that guy at this point. I'm self employed with 3 boys 7 and under. Needless to say I don't have a ton of free time.

During this last winter on a day I had nothing to do I did get out all the rifles I'd shot the previous year and do a quick clean/lube. I just don't shoot enough to necessitate a full breakdown. I shoot maybe a 300-500 rounds a year across all my platforms (pistol, rifle, hunting). Most of my volume this year has been in an AK competition experiment, and I'm not planning on really ever cleaning it.

 

[shibumiseeker]

Ford vs Chevy, Glock vs 1911. Do what makes you (the rhetorical “you”, not bwframe) happy and feel smug an superior to whomever doesn’t do or see things your way.

The rest of us will carry on not giving a **** what you think and gun writers and youtubers will continue to capitalize on selling you their opinions.
I clean mine when I am bored (rarely) and want to fondle a gun, or when there’s a malfunction. Carry weapons get the dust and lint cleaned and lubed every time I run through my carry ammo, so once every 1-6 months depending on how much a given gun is in carry rotation.

 

[jsharmon7]

I clean .22s a little more frequently because the ammo seems dirty. I’ve had a .22 pistol become a jam-o-matic after too much time between cleaning. The gun I carry every day also stays clean.

 

[Itchytriggerfinger]

About as often as I polish my hammer and wipe down my screwdrivers. Maybe CLP after a range trip but that's hit or miss.